Ch. 3: Proof of Purpose(Revised)
“Ugh, fuck me up the ass with a deathclaw…” groaned Sia as she came too, only to find her entire torso aching terribly. Immediately abandoning the idea of sitting up, as the movement caused a sharp pain to stab at Sia’s stomach, the woman laid back and looked around to see a bell on the end table with a note that read ‘Ring for Service’.
Reaching over carefully as not to jar her new wounds, Sia grasped the bell and gave it a couple of rings before laying all the way back down and waiting. Before long, Glic came in through the door smiling at Sia.
“Glad tae see yer awake,” the elderly Diamond Dog smiled, “Punctured lung, four fractured ribs, two broken, and a massive amount of muscle damage. Yer quite a lucky lass tha’ our magics were able tae heal ye, though ye’ll be sore fer a while tae come.”
Nodding, Sia was about to lay her head back down and ask if she could get a meal brought to her when she suddenly remembered Oran laying on the ground, bleeding badly. Jolting up, Sia only stopped loud enough to let out a cry of pain before speaking up.
“Where’s Oran! She was hurt really badly!”
“Calm yerself lass, calm,” soothed Glic as he gently pushed Sia back down, “Oran will survive just fine. She took a nasty hit to the eyes without having any armour on. She’s blind, but our Goddess, Dorch Speur, has already seen to her and granted her the magic to continue on.”
The mere idea of a Goddess manifesting herself simply to aid a singular being, even if it was her first friend, was absolutely ludicrous. She had listened to Oran the prior night sure, but that didn’t mean she believed in a stupid, non-entity.
”I don’t see why you wouldn’t choose to believe in someone in higher power than you, especially if they had an interest in your survival.”
Before Sia could do more than mentally question what the hell just happened, the voice continued.
“I may not have had a hand in your arrival, but you are stronger than you know. I can use you, and in return I can give you aid, beginning at the end. All I ask is that you warn Glic of the cult, and that you prepare to fight against them. They must be stopped at all costs.”
“I suppose that’d be okay, but how do I know you aren’t a bad guy?” Sia mentally questioned.
“The same way I know you aren’t a raider, it’s simply not in your nature to be heartless, Sia Ceannard.”
“Ceannard? That’s not part of my name, I’m just Sia.”
“Name, title, rank, position. It all means the same thing to those that love you, remember that young one. Now, take this small gift for attempting to protect one of my pups, and be on your way. Be warned though, this will likely be one of the last times I come to your immediate aid.”
As if a single second hadn’t passed at all, Sia immediately felt all her soreness and fatigue fall from her body like the shedding of a blanket. As Glic shut the door behind him, leaving Sia in the room herself, she slowly rose to sit again, this time no pain hindering her.
Standing up from bed and scanning the room, Sia quickly located her clothes and dressed herself hastily before moving to the door and pulling it open. Just outside was Amais, who had obviously been making his way to her room.
“Ye shouldnae be up quite yet lass!”
“Well, no,” Sia shrugged, “But uh, well, I guess I had a talk with someone who was thankful for me throwing myself at something that could, and did, throw me right back away from itself easily.”
“Dorch Speur.” Amais grinned, “The Goddess has a loving attitude and cares fer each o’ the Clan on a personal level Ah’ll no understand Ah’m sure. Listen tae me prattle on though. Ah’m sure ye’d like tae go an’ visit Oran.”
Nodding, the pair began to pick their way through the tunnels, and along the way a question sprang to Sia’s mind.
“That’s twice now you’ve saved my life at the last second. I want to say thanks, but how is it you’ve pulled that off twice?”
Chuckling quietly, Amais rubbed the back of his neck as he tried to think of a response, but in the end settled for the truth.
“Ah uh, well lass, Ah originally saw ye whilst scouting, and then Ah dunno, yer tattoos caught mah eyes. Ah like patterns an’ such, an’ yer tattoos are a new set o’ patterns. After tha’, well, Ah know we’re no the same species, but Ah kind of think yer cute.”
Starting at that final line Sia caught her foot on a loose stone and nearly fell only to have one of Amais’ paws reach out and grab her, the angle causing her to lean up against the larger Dog’s leg. Sia’s face immediately lit up at the proximity and she started to stutter, pulling away from Amais and staring intently at the ground. Amais just stood, equally chagrined, as he found an interesting spot on the ceiling.
“Uhhhh, so you uh, think I’m cute? That’s probably, well no, definitely the first time I haven’t been told that with someone trying to rip my clothes off. So, uhh, thanks for uh, not ripping my clothes or trying to uh, man… er, dog handle me… yeah,” Sia stuttered lamely.
For his part, Amais just tried to figure out exactly what happened to his attempt to compliment Sia and make a pass at her. It seemed to both fail spectacularly as well as succeed, though he wasn’t sure what to really make of what happened anyway. Rather than think more of it, he just prayed to have not messed everything up and continued down the hallway.
An awkward silence had settled around the pair and lingered there for the time it took them to reach the room Oran was in. It had also been a silence that allowed Sia’s slightly addled and heavily confused brain to start sorting a number of things out.
“Here’s Oran’s room. Ah’ve got stuff tae go do,” Amais claimed, though his excuse to walk away fell pretty flat and sounded flaky even to himself.
Before he could walk away, Sia grabbed his paw and turned him around. The woman made a point to not look at him, but spoke nonetheless.
“I, uh, thanks for thinking I’m cute too. I just… all this being nice and friendly stuff is new, and I really don’t know what to do with it all. But yeah, thanks and all that.”
Nodding, Amais gently pulled his paw away and turned to wander off with his own thoughts, leaving Sia at Oran’s door. Realising that she wasn’t going to get much out of thin air, Sia put what just happened to the back of her mind so she could check on Oran.
Pushing the door open, the first thing Sia did was duck as she nearly got brained by a floating tea kettle. Oran was sitting on the bed with a shawl tied around her eyes, smiling widely.
“Ah was beginning tae wonder when ye’d show up. Lookit all this, Ah can make things float’n’shet!” Oran giggled madly as a random feather tickled at Sia’s ear, causing her to bat at the offending object. “Iffen Ah’d known going blind would ha’ led Dorch Speur tae give me this kind o’ magic, Ah’da had a minotaur kick me in the noggin ages ago!”
Sia made to belt out a laugh, genuinely finding the comment funny. Instead what left her throat was a strangled, choking sob. The woman had no idea what she was upset about. She hadn’t been hurt, right? Not that badly, so why was she upset? Sia spent a few more moments before it clicked.
“This is my fault… I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. If I had fought harder, or moved faster or-”
“Wheesht yerself,” scolded Oran as she placed her paw over Sia’s mouth, silencing the woman, “This wasnae yer fault, Sia. Minotaurs are hardened warriors, an’ Ah knew tha’. Honestly Ah was thinkin’ more o’ protectin’ ye. Ah look at ye, an’ yer frame is jest so small tha’ Ah was thinkin’ tha’ fightin’ would’ha kept ye safer. ‘Sides, there is th’ obvious fact tha’ Ah’ve now got bleedin’ magic!”
To ensure that Sia fully understood this fact Oran enveloped her with a glowing aura and lifted the young woman up before levitating her over and setting her down on the bed before giving Sia a large hug.
“An’ on top o’ everything else, we all made it out alive!”
Sia just shook her head, completely lost on how the she-dog wasn’t yelling at her, or hitting her, or hitting her whilst yelling at her. Instead, Sia just settled to hug Oran back where the pair quickly found sleep and in Oran’s cause, exhaustion, taking over.
He-Who-Flies-True glared balefully at the scout before him as the gryphon raider explained how the human, Sia, had not only survived, but had allied with the Diamond Dogs. It meant that the being he loathed the most was now actively playing against him. Rising, the large draconic gryphon stopped at the scout’s side for just a moment before snapping his reptilian jaws down on the fool raider’s neck, cracking it easily.
That done, he absorbed the ebbing life force and ambient magic as he gained another few inches in height. Pleased with his work, He-Who-Flies-True made his way through the large tent to Mons Montis. They needed to take the Burrows soon if he wanted what he was after.
Both Oran and Sia awoke to the feeling of bobbing up and down over and over. As the pair opened their eyes, they were quick to realise that they were slung over Amais’ shoulders. Before either could even think of moving, the larger Diamond Dog spoke.
“We’ve got a meetin’ in the mess hall. Seems we three may ‘ave pissed the hellfire out o’ the cultists with our wee stunt. The lot o’ our kin’ll be there.”
With that, he lowered the two females to the ground and let them walk alongside of him as they made their way into the already crowded mess hall. The mess hall itself was in a state of uproar, similar to how it had been on Sia’s very first visit, only angrier. Following Amais and Oran, Sia walked up to the counter and got some food.
Once that was done, the trio found a table while Glic took a stand on a table in the centre. While a small number of the dogs present immediately quieted down, the majority didn’t seem to notice. Amais took this time to clamp his paws over Sia’s ears, and before the woman could ask why an amazingly loud howl tore through the cavern, going so far as to cause Sia to feel the reverberations in her bones.
The effect was immediate and every dog quieted down in an instant as Glic’s howl slowly echoed softer and softer throughout the room.
“Thank you,” the elder dog smiled before continuing. “Now, as ye know, we recently took in a young ‘woman’. A being whose species isnae usually found in our world. She was harmed and under great duress when my son led a rescue mission out o’ his scouting party tae save her. Since then this woman, whose name is Sia, has actively attempted tae learn everything she can abou’ our culture an’ been nothing if no’ pleasant. Yesterday morning, both Sia and our young songstress Oran, were attacked by a party o’ Cultist. Both Oran and Sia were heavily injured during this attack, and Amais saved them.”
This information sent a number of mutterings rippling throughout the mess hall. Dogs were questioning whether the Cult was moving closer, or if Sia could perhaps be a spy. One dog closer to Sia even muttered something about aliens.
Another, slightly quieter, rumbling growl silenced the chattering as Glic continued.
“Continuing on, what this all leads up tae is that the Cultists are, in fact, moving further into our territory, and a few scouting parties ‘ave proved this. This means many things, but the most notable o’ which will be less ventures topside as well as Ah want ye all tae form yer hunting packs. We must make sure they understan’ tha’ this is our home, no’ their’s.”
The ensuing silence was prominent as dogs began to rise, mingle about, and then return to seats in sets of threes. Both Amais and Oran stood as well, but a shout from a nearby dog stopped them and drew the attention of the crowd.
“How d’we know tha’ th’ bitch isnae a spy?!” it shouted while pointing directly at Sia. All at once. murmurs and accusations started float amongst the dogs lips. All this trouble hadn’t started until after the small woman had arrived, so what if it was her doing?
In response to the dog’s accusation, Amais placed himself in between the majority of the crowd and Sia, growling all the while. As more accusations began to fly Oran stood as well, but Sia pushed past her two friends, the two she didn’t want to lose, and spoke.
“I’ll prove it!” she shouted as loudly as possible. “I’ll show you my loyalty! I’ll fight alongside you all, I’ll show you I hate this cult just as much as you all do!”
“Ah’ll be th’ second! Ah’ll fight with Sia!” Oran shouted as well, stepping up next to the woman.
“An’ Ah’ll be the third!” rumbled Amais as he also stepped forward. “Which makes a full huntin’ party. Ah don’ s’pose ye’ll want tae object? Ah’m free fer a fight tae prove yer word iffen ye wish it.”
The opposing dog backed down quietly and the meeting came to a close as Oran and Amais led Sia off to begin her crash course on training.
The next two weeks were by far one of the most grueling experiences that Sia had ever endured in her life. Every morning was waking up to the feeling of having been run over by a herd of brahmin before being used as a punching bag for the Khans and finalised with the idea that a deathclaw had chewed on her for a bit a spit her back out.
Regardless, the woman persevered, intent on proving to not just the dogs her want to protect them, but to also prove to herself that she was good.
While many of her dreams of Cassandra had come to a halt, they had quickly been replaced with similar sleepy time constructs consisting of a myriad of feelings and notions that the woman had never once experienced before. These were instigated by the many conversations she would share with Oran on her life in the wastes, as well as occasional times where she and Amais would choose to sneak a glance at the other at the same time. Those always ended with odd feelings in her stomach and a blush on her cheeks.
Regardless, the training continued with the two dogs teaching her to work cohesively and in synch with them. How they would use the blind spots that one created to the advantage of their own partners, or how they would protect each other and run interference. It was as if each one of them was a limb controlled by the same mind, all geared towards preservation of the self as a whole.
While they trained, skirmishes had begun to take place between the Tauth Clan and the Cult, but so far there had only been one instance of a dog coming back in bad condition.
Tomorrow, though, was the day that Sia had been waiting for. It was the day to show every dog in the burrows just what her training had taught her. Tomorrow was the day to finally spar against another hunting pack.
As she laid her head down and closed her eyes, her mind swirled and the land of dreams took over.
Sia wandered amongst what was a mixture of the burrows, the woods, and the hot springs. Ever since Luna’s visit and her realisation that she could control dreams, she had been practising more and more. The result was thus.
As Sia lounged about in her dream waters, a large shadow cast over her. Keeping her eyes shut in case it was a figment of Cassandra’s memory, Sia focused on making it disappear. Realising she was still in its shadow, she mustered all her bravery in face of Cassandra and willed for the shadow casting figure to leave even harder.
“While I am impressed to say the least,” chuckled a melodic voice, “you are nowhere near the skill it would take to cast me from your dreams, young one.”
Startled, Sia floundered in the shallows for a bit before scampering her way onto the shore and standing up to face Luna.
“I thought you were supposed to show up a week ago? Not that I mind, I just thought… well… never mind, ignore me.”
“Don’t worry yourself over not knowing what to say, nor over the fear of upsetting me. Now, before we continue, perhaps you would like to re-clothe yourself? Or not, it makes no real difference to me,” the alicorn added with a cheeky smile. “Though I doubt that Glen would appreciate my looking.”
Looking down quickly, Sia’s cheeks flushed bright red and warmed up considerably as she realised that she had unknowingly willed her clothes away while relaxing in the warm hot spring’s waters. Thoughts of herself wearing her gear immediately surfaced in her mind and it promptly appeared on her body.
“Now, moving on from that. Sia, we have a problem. My sister is thoroughly displeased by the fact that she had absolutely no idea that there was a subspecies of intelligent, civil Diamond Dogs milling about in our Northern region. Which is, in turn, not good. You see, her fuc...er, her loving partner at this time sent a correspondence to Saddle Arabia. A number of the Saddle Arabians, in an attempt to aid in forging an alliance between themselves and our own country, will be moving into your area with a small number of my own Lunar Guard.”
As Luna spoke Sia couldn’t help but wonder what the Saddle Arabians had to do with her situation, and was prompt in vocalising her thoughts.
“Well, you see, Sia,” answered Luna, “the ‘Southern Dogs’ as you called them, spent a long time at war with the Saddle Arabians. Needless to say the Saddle Arabians won’t react well to any form of Diamond Dog presence.”
Her face finding her palm, Sia bit back the urge to yell out her frustration. Not to yell at Luna, mind you, but just to vent. Instead she took a large breath and let the overabundance do its work calming her mind.
“So then Luna, what do you suppose we do up here? Because the Tauth Clan is already making its own counter-moves against the cultists. Since, well, they like the idea of getting closer to the natural entrances of the burrows and attacked myself and my friend Oran.”
Finding a particularly soft bed of grass, Luna laid down and beckoned for Sia to take a seat. As the young woman seated herself, the Alicorn smiled at her before beginning to speak.
“Well, you go prove that your Tauth Clan is good, and you opt for an alliance. I can’t guarantee the Saddle Arabians will listen, but you will be able to at least explain your situation and attempt to keep the two groups out of each others way.”
“Why does that have to be my job? I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m not exactly known for a domineering personality, nor the stature to back up anything I say,” Sia groused critically.
“No, I suppose you aren’t. Though being one that vies for peace or at the least wishes safety for their loved ones, can be just as powerful,” Luna admonished seriously. “Though, if your tattoos are not too important to you, I could alter part of them, specifically next to your eyes. I would make two crescent moons on the outside edges of your eyes. I could then inform my soldiers so they would recognise you. You may also want your two friends.”
“Bring Dogs to meet with… Horses… that don’t like…” trailed Sia, her mind taxing itself trying to keep up with the political logic.
Luna chuckled as she continued.
“Bring Dogs that are larger than you to prove that they are not the bloodthirsty beasts from the south. Think about it Sia, even with the prowess for survival you have, do you really think Amais would be phased by your foot kicking him in the head? He’d probably just pick you up and throw you, right?”
Sia kept her mouth shut, choosing not to to mention that during a spar a few days back, that exact thing had occurred.
“So when you walk up to the Saddle Arabians and tell them that the Dogs are nice and civil, your proof is standing calmly right next to you.” Luna finished simply while knowing that her logic was perfectly sound. “Though, I would recommend that the Dogs wait for your signal... wouldn’t want them to be shot at out of reflex.”
“That’s fantastic!” gushed Sia rather uncharacteristically. “But so far every time I’ve met some new grouping of peoples, or otherwise, that are supposedly civil, they’ve tried to kill me. That and these Saddle Arabians are enemies of the only species I’ve met that don’t walk on more than two legs. Pardon me if I’m both wary and a bit cynical.”
Luna debated as to whether she should laugh at Sia’s surprising boldness, or glare at her for the attitude. Choosing the former, the Lunar Diarch spoke again.
“Well, you don’t have to go meet them, but your friends could be harmed, and that would be nopony’s fault but your own.”
Realising that she really didn’t have as much of a choice in the matter as she wanted, Sia conceded to Luna’s plans, and also to the aesthetic changes of her facial tattoos, before bidding the princess a good night and closing her eyes so that she could awake and start the new day.
Rubbing her arm thoughtfully, Sia readied herself for what was no doubt going to be a fight that would leave her sore as hell the next morning. It was true that she had done very well training with and against Oran and Amais, but she also knew they had held back.
This was an actual fight though. The other hunting pack wasn’t going to hold back or be nice about things. The only good thing Sia had going for her was that Oran had copied the spell on her leggings and applied it to the rest of her garments. The downside was that her uncovered skin was entirely unaffected by the protective spell.
That coupled with the predatory looks from Glac Facal, the Dog that had accused her of being a traitor two weeks back in the meeting, left Sia really wishing she had the choice to run and hide.
Amais leaned down and gave the young woman a comforting smile before nodding to the furthest left Dog.
“Rabhadh, who’ll stay back an’ give out advice tae the other two. They don’ see ye as a threat, an’ Rabhadh isnae a fighter. If ye can take him, my own an’ Oran’s fights shall be easier. Ah’ll be taking Glac Facal, the bampot tha’ decided tae mouth off. Finally, Oran is taking care o’ Mall, the burly bugger off tae the right.”
“Right, then I suppose when they bum rush, I should just run as fast as possible and watch as you and Oran run right past me into the fray?” Sia chuckled dryly before continuing. “Actually if you do the roll thing we practised I could slip by while you two fight.”
Oran laughed and nodded, as did Amais. In agreement with their plan, Sia too stood and nodded to the sidelines, letting Glic know they were ready. Even if she didn’t understand why she was made pack leader.
Taking their spots on the line Sia couldn’t help but feel her breathing pick up as Glic stepped out to the middle of the field to relegate the rules. Pretty much basic stuff like no killing, maiming, or removal of limbs. Essentially things to keep everybody alive at the end of the day. Once the elder Dog had finished laying the rules out, he stepped off the field and raised a large flag.
“Ready?” Glic asked rhetorically before swinging the flag towards the ground. “FIGHT!”
Sia set off on a full tilt sprint as Amais and Oran loped easily next to her. The woman couldn’t help but feel fear course through her veins as Glac Facal and Mall grew closer and closer. Just as they were about to meet, Amais suddenly powered forward and threw himself into a leap.
Landing in a crouch, the massive Dog swung his arms out and caused Glac and Mall to stop short. Using Amais’ outstretched leg, Sia nimbly ran up her pack mates back and launched herself over the two adversaries while Oran similarly leapt over Amais to deliver a kick to Mall’s head.
Landing nimbly from her vault, Oran circled around to make sure Mall’s attention was on her whilst Amais performed a similar act with Glac. Using this to her full advantage, Sia landed lightly from her vault and tucked into a tight roll to shift her momentum into a run.
Rabhadh’s eyes narrowed as he realised exactly what the opposing hunting pack had done and called a warning, but that only served to earn Mall a kick to the side of his leg and Glac being dragged backwards by the towering Amais.
“Yeah, no. You don’t get help. It’s just me and you, Radhabh. Don’t tell me you can’t take on little old me,” jibed Sia, intent on getting the Dog to take the first move.
For his part, Radhabh scrutinised Sia carefully before launching himself at her. Expecting as much, Sia manoeuvered herself under her larger aggressor while launching a painful strike from her elbow into his knee. In response, Radhabh kicked out with his other leg and just barely caught Sia.
The blow was still enough to launch the small woman a few feet, and by the time she’d regained her footing Radhabh was already charging her.
A ways away on the field, Oran was skillfully dodging Mall’s heavy swings. While the she-dog did not strike as hard as Mall, and he not as fast, Oran knew that a single hit from the burlier dog would likely have her reeling.
Ducking in to send a flurry of jabs at Mall’s side, Oran sensed Glac breaking away from Amais after having tripped the larger dog and realised that he was intending to go after the pre-occupied Sia. Dead-legging Mall, Oran quickly set after Glac.
Mall, having quickly recovered from Oran’s attack, turned to follow only to have a massive paw slam into the side of his head and hear Amais’ chuckle.
“Yer mine, lad.”
Back across the way, Sia continued the struggle with Radhabh. She had just started getting an advantage over the Dog, but also realised that he was distracted by something. Assuming it could only be Oran and Amais wiping the floor with his compatriots, she pressed forward with her attack. Using the outstretched leg of the Dog to her advantage, Sia performed a neat backflip, landing a kick to Rabhadh’s chin in the process.
Halfway through while still upside down, Sia was suddenly allowed the perfect view of Glac flying through the air towards her. Bringing her arms in for defense, she felt Glac’s powerful paws wrap around her as he bore down and slammed her into the ground. Sia let out a cry of shock and a gasp of pain as she hit, but quickly pushed it aside and kicked out at the Dog’s shoulder to free herself.
Clambering to her feet, she managed to catch eye of Oran engaging the obviously unhappy Raddhabh and Mall struggling futilely against Amais’ superior strength, speed, and size. Recognising that her friends were fine, Sia placed all of her focus on Glac, who was making a point to circle her menacingly.
“You think yer a smart one, don’t ye? Formin’ huntin’ packs, makin’ friends. Here’s th’ thing lassie, yer no’ one of us. Yer a baldie-skinned-bairn who wakes up cryin’ tae nightmares every other nigh’! Ye think we cannae hear ye?”
Understanding the Dog was trying to intimidate her, Sia narrowed her eyes and laughed.
“Then you should know that there are things in my mind that scare me more than you ever could.”
“Oh…” grinned Glac, his wolfish visage becoming almost feral. “Then Ah guess Ah’ll need tae remedy tha’!”
Spinning to the right as fast as she could, Sia only just managed to dodge out of the path of Glac’s lunge, only to find the Dog deftly rounding for a second attack. This time Glac’s jaws wrapped around and clamped down on her non-dominant right arm. While the enchantments to her clothes kept the bite from truly harming her, the steadily increasing pressure was extremely uncomfortable.
Attempting to swing her other arm around, Glac refused to let Sia get a hit in. Standing on all fours, the Dog shook his head violently, jerking Sia around like a ragdoll. The woman felt nauseous as the world began to spin. Just as she finally felt like she would be sick, the pressure on Sia’s arm vanished as momentary weightlessness took over.
The ground met Sia quickly quickly after her short ‘flight’. Bouncing once or twice before sliding to a stop, Sia let out a pained groan. Before she could fully stand up, Glac roughly backhanded her. The Dog’s paw connected to her chest, and the woman was promptly reintroduced to that same weightlessness before finding the ground a second time.
Knowing she had no chance of standing, but also that Oran and Amais were preoccupied, Sia made as if to stand again. This time when Glac attempted to strike her, Sia rolled onto her back before propelling both feet harshly into the dark void of the Dog’s kilt. Glac let out a high pitched keen of pain, his eyes crossing momentarily, before stumbling away.
Struggling to her feet, Sia used the brief respite to her immediate advantage and attempted to gain her breath. In the miniscule moment of respite, Sia managed to gather enough energy to dodge the now infuriated assault on her person.
Glac’s eyes had gone red and he was breathing so hard that spittle was flying from his mouth. Darting forward, he wrapped a claw around Sia’s trailing leg as she leapt backward and dragged her towards him. Caught on the coarse rocks, Sia’s jacket came loose and pulled away from her right shoulder.
In his undiluted fury, Glac took immediate notice of the weak spot and latched his jaws over Sia’s shoulder. His teeth sank through the woman’s flesh like it was little other than hot butter. Giving her a shake or two, Glac promptly threw Sia straight down into the ground at his feet. Rage never once leaving his eyes, he shot his jaws down to envelop her head.
He never noticed her left arm arc towards him, nor the tomahawk that had appeared from thin air. All the Dog knew was an odd pressure in his neck before he fell off to the side and his eyes grew dark.
In seconds, Oran’s magics danced over Sia’s torn skin, slowly knitting the flesh back together and smoothing out the tissue. Rising into a sitting position and pulling her jacket back up to sit on her body properly, Sia couldn’t hold back the revulsion at the realisation that she had killed. Bile rose in her throat seconds before she spewed her meal from earlier across the sparring field.
Before she could utter a word in her own defence, Glic had placed a calming paw down on her back, rubbing it gently.
“Ah was feert tha’ this may ha’ taken a bad turn. Ah apologise fer no’ having put a stop tae this as soon as Glac lost ‘imself. Fear no’ any recompense from us lass, Glac knew th’ rules, an’ he knew what could happen iffen he broke them,” the elderly Dog assured with a kind smile.
Nodding, Sia attempted to rise, only to feel Amais’ massive arms encompass her and lift her as if she were a small child. His large head tucked down and rubbed gently against Sia’s chin before he smiled.
“Ah’m glad yer alrigh’ Sia.”
Practically feeling the worry the Dog had for her, she could only nod as Oran placed a paw on her unwounded shoulder and gave it a caring, gentle squeeze.
“Thank you Amais, and you as well Oran. I, uh, do you think… Would you mind accompanying me to my room? So we can just talk and rest?”
Nodding, the two dogs turned and made their way through the dispersing crowd while Sia simply let the peace fill her being while she had the time to rest.
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You done goofed with the italics
4092849 Oh noes!
Anyway, I fixed it. And I didn't goof, I...uh...
....was testing the attentiveness of my readers. 
What is the Wanderings-verse?
What is this a crossover of?
4092917 The Wandering-verse is the base universe for both Fallout America and Equestria set up by Ed2481 for his stories Drak Wanderings, Light Wanderings and Other Wanderings. The crossover factor comes in with Sia being a former raider of the Mojave Wasteland from Fallout New Vegas, and will be returning there towards the end of the story.
This story is based is Ed's version of the Mojave Wasteland as well as his version of Equestria from the Wandering-verse.
The only typo I noticed
I think I found a plot hole as small as it may be...
1 first being that I'm not sure if you were goin' for Sia meaning horses as in ponies in general going along with the common misconception, or that she actually knew that Saddle Arabians were actual horses. I don't remember her coming across that knowledge.
Besides them things, was a good chapter as always.
4093167 That is a small plot hole...I claim that Luna simply showed the Lunar Guard and Saddle Arabians in the dream realm while introducing them, because it's easier than any other excuse to fix that.
4093186
Okay!
Makes sense to me!
And hey, you still need a grammar nazi fer your story here?
4092973 ....Yeah,basically,Its the story that started because The courier is 'fair'.......Yeah sure,Chopping bits off of a person who was forced into something is fair
4093224 I actually managed to locate one, thankfully.
4093229 And Cassandra, while not my character in particular, is a good person. This whole idea was derived from the saying "Good guys aren't always nice guys, and nice guys aren't always good guys." while exploring those grey areas a bit more.
That magical tomahawk is damn useful... I wish I had one for my guys, cause I loved the thrown melee weapons, but hated having to collect the stupid things.
Also, does it happen to share any other properties with Aegis Fang, or is any and all semblance of any kind merely coincidental?
4095135 Aegis Fang...I know I've heard that before, and I think it's from the Legends of Drizzt. If so, cool, I love that series. If not, shit, I tried.
And honestly when I made it I had two things in mind. Twilight knowing Ethan's ability to lose track of things, and the fact that Sia would be easy to physically overpower or disarm and she needed a trump card(One that won't always work, i.e. the minotaur at the hotsprings).
The easiest way to do that was make a weapon that returns to the hands of the first person to have skin contact(Ethan and Cassandra both wearing gloves that first chapter) with it when it is willed to do so.
In truth I never thought once of Aegis Fang making the weapon but now that you bring it up I realise the similarities. Anyway outside the ability to be called upon anywhere it really is just an extremely tough folding tomahawk That coupled with Sia's general .unwillingness to kill and you've got a rarely used yet powerful tool.
4095505 Eyup, right on the money, it's Wulfgar's hammer from the Drizzt series. And with that theory debunked, you're reasoning behind it is completely sound. Oh, and it needs a name! You can't have a magical weapon without a name!
So, I wonder when someone is going to mod one of these into the Fallout games...
4096596 Wouldn't be surprised if a mod for it is floating around. That or toggle god mode and never run out. And I prolly should name it. Chances are it'll be something Scots-Gaelic and get named by Amais or Oran.
4095505 it's the knife you can't see you should fear.