Tales of Old Equestria: 1st Saga

by Pending Storm

Chapter 4: Groundsdale

The zebra casually looked over his merchandise settled into his shop’s gloom, making sure all of the items were in reasonable condition. His goods ranged from masks crafted in his homeland, to various potions, to miscellaneous exotic items. Most of his products weren’t quite as valuable as he would have his customers believe.

The shop was briefly illuminated with sunlight as a pony entered through the door, then returned to its usual darkness. A light gray earth pony, a rapier sheathed at his hip, walked toward the zebra, carrying a very large and heavy bag upon his back. He stopped at the counter, and stared directly into the shopkeeper’s eyes.

“Zavanno,” the stallion greeted the zebra coldly. “You still have it, right?”

The zebra grinned. “Ah, Hardy, it is good to see you again. How many weeks has it been? Nine, maybe ten?”

The stallion narrowed his eyes. “Cut to the chase,” said Hard Counter. “Do you still have it?”

“Hmph.” The shopkeeper reached under the counter, and pulled out a small box, securely sealed by a combination lock. Carefully spinning each of the six small wheels, he entered the combination. Opening the lid, Hardy could see a small vial within, filled with purple liquid.

“I still have it, as you can clearly see,” Zavanno said, closing the box and locking it. “I will give it to you, for the negotiated fee.”

Counter sighed, then swung the bag off his back and onto the counter. The bag opened up, causing an assortment of bits and gems to spill out. Zavanno beamed at the sight.

The zebra grabbed a coin and inspected it to make sure it wasn’t counterfeit, then began to laugh gleefully. “Yes, yes, this will do! I can retire now, thanks to you!” he said, handing the box to the stallion.

Hard Counter took the box. “Yeah, I bet,” he replied scornfully, turning the box to the side with the lock. “What’s the combination?”

“2-0-1-5-5-3. Then flip this catch, and your purchase you will see.”

Hardy repeated the numbers in his head while setting them into the lock. He flipped the catch as instructed and opened it, revealing the small vial of purple liquid; his eyes lit up when he saw it. The gray-coated stallion removed it from the box and examined it, being extra cautious not to drop it.

He tried to restrain himself from getting too hopeful, but he couldn’t help but feel a little emotional. The vial he held was quite possibly his last hope...

“Why do you look so blue, even though this item finally belongs to you?” a perplexed Zavanno asked.

Hard Counter turned to Zavanno. “Do you always have to speak in rhymes? Seriously, don’t you get tired of it?” The merchant frowned for a moment, then went back to counting his bits.

This could have been a potentially joyous moment for Counter, but he reminded himself that even if it worked, his problems were far from over.

Hardy returned the vial to his box, before putting the box in a pouch on his sword belt. “If this doesn’t work... “

“I guarantee it will, otherwise I will refund your bill... Mostly.”

Counter raised an eyebrow. “Mostly?”

“You owe me for reserving that item for as long as I did. Not negotiable, I’m afraid,” he stated.

The earth pony frowned, pointing his hoof at the merchant. “You... Didn’t rhyme that time,”

Zavanno smiled. “Because you’re right, I do get tired of it. And now that our transaction has concluded... “ He pointed toward the shop door.

Hard Counter exited the shop. Outside, the warmth and brightness of the sun was refreshing after being in Zavanno’s dark hut. He brushed aside his purple mane as he looked up at the sky, admiring its beauty.

Cloudsdale, home of the pegasi, hung high in the sky. Hardy knew some earth ponies and unicorns who wished they could see the cloud city, but he personally wasn’t interested; from what he’d heard, it was just a bunch of clouds with a couple of rainbows here and there, nothing too interesting. Not to mention, he didn’t care for the idea of being miles above the ground.

There appeared to be a dark cloud near Cloudsdale; no doubt the pegasi were working on something weather-related.

Looks like a storm cloud, he thought, then sighed. And it was such a nice day...

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, feeling the warmth of the sun. This was a new day, one with promise. Hardy wasn’t really the optimistic type, but it seemed as though things were starting to look up. He took a few more moments to relax before beginning the next step of his journey.

His eyes opened wide as he was startled by a loud crash nearby. Hardy looked around and saw a cloud of dust rising from the other side of the village.

“...The hay?” He ran toward the commotion, joining the growing crowd of onlookers.

Counter waded his way through the crowd of mumbling ponies to get a better view. Choking dust partially obscured somepony’s newly ruined home. Though the walls were mostly intact, the entire roof had been caved in.

“My house!” a mare exclaimed, pushing her way through the mass of ponies to her home. She opened the door, releasing a puff of dust, causing her to cough. The mare looked inside, only to see it filled with rubble and debris. She started to tear up.

Hardy’s curiosity got the better of him. He went up to the door, looking past the mare to see what had happened within. Much of the debris was clearly once part of the roof, as well as some wreckage he couldn’t identify. “Sorry about your house... No one was inside, right?”

The mare wiped away some tears. “No, I live alone... How could this have happened?”

“It looks like something crashed through your roof; no idea what it was, though.”

She took a deep breath as she tried to calm down. “Must have been the pegasi, then. But why?”

“Well, I doubt they did this on purpose.” He noticed the mare wasn’t really comforted by that. “Don’t worry, I’m sure your fellow townsponies will be more than happy to help you clean this mess.”

She looked at him with a smile. “Thank you. I’d really appreciate it,” the mare said with a sniff.

“Um, well, I-I didn’t mean me... I actually live in Hoofington, and I’m going to be heading back there real soon,” Counter said with a sheepish grin. She looked at him skeptically. “So, uh... Good luck with your... uh... house.”

Hardy turned around and starting trotting towards his next destination. Usually, he might’ve taken some time to help out a pony like that, but the last thing he wanted to do today was waste any more time. There was only one thing he had to do before leaving for his hometown of Hoofington.

He soon arrived at another house, opened the door and entered inside. “Crashy, I have it!”

A white unicorn entered the room, her green eyes widened. “You have it?” she asked in astonishment.

Hardy patted the pouch on his sword belt. With a smile, he repeated, “I have it!” She ran up to him, her fiery red and orange hair bouncing up and down, and the two embraced.

Her name was Crash Landing, or Crashy for short. Hard Counter met her when he first visited Groundsdale several months before, and since that time they had become more than just friends.

“You ready to go? Cause I’m hoofing it to Hoofington right now,” said Hard Counter.

“I can’t leave just yet,” she replied, her smile disappearing.

“Huh? What?” Hardy asked, surprised. She knew the significance of this occasion, so he wondered what could possibly be so important that she had to delay their departure.

“Something’s come up... Or should I say down.”

Crashy led Hardy to her room. An injured pony lay, unconscious, in her bed, tucked under a blanket.

“Who the heck is this?” Hardy inquired, puzzled.

“Her name is Pending Storm,” she answered. “We’ve met a few times before, but I don’t really know her that well.”

“Okay, why is she here?”

“I was outside watering my flowers, and despite it being a sunny day, I thought I heard thunder. I looked up at Cloudsdale, and noticed the dark cloud next it.”

“I saw that too.”

“Having not much better to do, I stared at the sky for a bit, curious to see what the pegasi were going to do with it. Not much happened, and I was losing interest. Just before I went back to my flowers, I noticed a dot in the sky. I correctly assumed it to be a pegasus, but then I noticed she wasn’t flying, she was falling. I grabbed my net, and dashed off to catch her.”

“The one you use to catch Wonderbolts with?” Hardy asked.

“Yes, that net,” Crashy answered. “But what’s important, is I managed to catch her!”

He smiled. “Nice job, Crashy! Saving lives; that’s my girl!”

She blushed. “Thanks.”

Crash Landing was known as Groundsdale’s local safety expert, mostly when it came to flying for pegasi. It was often her job to instruct young pegasi about flight safety, and on some occasions oversee the Wonderbolts while they practiced dangerous stunts. Needless to say, Pending wasn’t the first pony she’d saved from certain death.

Hard Counter walked to the side of the bed, examining the pegasus. “So... Did she just forget how to fly or something?”

Crash Landing snorted. “Doubtful. I don’t know what happened, but her left wing was really beat up. It looks pretty recent. I doubt anypony could fly with a wing in that kind of state.”

Hardy lifted an eyebrow. “She was in a city of fluffy clouds... How could one injure themselves that badly in a city of fluffy clouds?”

The green mare began to groan, slowly shifting her head from side to side. “Uuugh. . .”

Crash Landing quickly went to the side of the bed, looking over her patient. “I think she’s waking up,” Crashy told Hardy. “Ms. Storm?” she whispered.

Pending groaned even louder. “...Today’s forecast... M-me...”

Hard Counter looked perplexed for a moment, before looking up. “Ah.” He smirked. “Heh, I get it.”

“Ms. Storm?” Crashy asked again, a little louder. She placed her hoof on Pending’s shoulder.

Her eyelids flickered for a moment, then slowly opened. She sluggishly sat up, then looked up at Crash Landing.

“Ugh... Oh, hey Crash, err, Landing?..." Pending turned to the other side. “... Hey... You?”

He smirked, and extended his hoof towards her. “Hello, the name’s Hard Counter.”

“That’s nice,” Pending said. She turned back to Crash Landing, apparently too drowsy to notice Hardy’s offering of a hoofshake. “What... Am I doing here?”

“Well, I brought you here after I caught you.”

“Caught me? Caught me doing what?” Pending glanced at Hardy then lowered her voice. “Was it something I wouldn’t want ponies knowing about?”

“No, Ms. Storm, I mean I actually caught you. With a net. While you were falling. From the sky.”

Pending was stunned for a moment. “Falling... From the sky?” She looked down, contemplating what Crash just said.

“Yes. Can you remember what happened? What made you lose consciousness? What happened to your wing?” Crash Landing asked.

Pending Storm continued to ponder it. “I... Maybe? But I think it was a dream, wasn’t it?” she asked herself. “It had to be... “ To verify, she touched her left wing, pressing against it, which caused her significant pain. “Ow!”

“Are you okay? How bad does it hurt?” Crashy asked, concerned that Pending’s wing might have been broken.

Storm didn’t hear her, too lost in the rising panic of realization. “But then the other stuff... Oh, no…” She hid her face in her hooves. “Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no... “

Hardy and Crashy looked at each other, unsettled by the pegasus’s reaction.

“What is it, Pending?” Crash Landing asked.

Storm lowered her forelegs, staring down at the blanket. “Cloudsdale... A bunch of mean ponies came... They took it over... They almost killed me... ”

Hard Counter leaned forward. “Who?” he asked with a hint of impatience.

She turned to him; he could see the dread in her eyes. “The Sky Tribe.”

He stared at her, then leaned back, lifted his hoof up to his chin, thinking. “The Sky Tribe... Are you sure?”

“Trust me, they made sure we knew who they were and what they wanted.”

“But they’ve kept to themselves in the northern part of Equestria for decades... For them to suddenly attack now... They can’t still be mad about the treaty with the griffons, can they?”

Storm’s eyebrows raised. “They are. How do you know about them?”

“I used to be a soldier; it was part of my job to know Equestria’s enemies. They’re crazy, war-mongering, supremacist pegasi, and were banished for good reason.”

“Wait, hold on!” Crashy said with a raised voice. “You’re telling me that Cloudsdale, the city right above us, has been invaded by these ponies?! What about the citizens, are they okay?”

Pending looked back down, a somber look on her face. “I don’t think any pegasi were seriously hurt... But my dad... I don’t know if he’s going to be okay... And Roswell... Roswell’s gone.”

“Gone?” Crashy said, startled. “What do you mean ‘gone’? Did something happen to Roswell? Is he okay?”

“The leader of the tribe broke his air shop. We last saw Roswell and his shop fall through the clouds... ”

“Air shop?” Hardy was confused at first, but then he remembered Crashy telling him about a pony in town who owned a flying shop. “Oh.” Then he thought back to what happened after he left Zavanno’s shop: the mysterious object that crashed into one townpony’s house. “Before I came here, a large object crashed into somepony’s house; I’m sorry to say, but I think it was the air shop.”

Tears began to run down Pending’s cheeks. She wiped them away and tried to refrain from sobbing. “You didn’t see him there? Where it crashed?”

Hardy sighed. “No, but there was a lot of rubble... “

“Oh.” she said sorrowfully, looking down at the bedclothes.

Crash Landing covered her face, trying not to cry. Hardy went over to her side to comfort her.

“You mentioned that the Sky Tribe made it clear what they wanted. What was it?” Hard Counter asked urgently.

Pending wiped away her tears, and sniffled one last time; the mourning would have to wait. She suddenly became more alert, looking at Hardy straight in the eyes. “They plan to take over Equestria; they plan on overthrowing Princess Celestia.”

The unicorn and earth pony gasped.

“Overthrow the Princess?!” Crashy said, shocked and horrified.

“H-how?! How do they plan on doing this?” Hardy questioned.

“They didn’t say how! It was obvious they didn’t trust us.” Pending Storm got out of the bed, still a little sore after being kicked by the Commander. “But we can talk about that later! What we should do now is warn Groundsdale that there’s an army of evil pegasi right above us all!”

The three ponies suddenly heard shouts and screams coming from outside. They ran to one of the windows, looked out, and were horrified at what they saw.

Dozens upon dozens of pegasi, all clad in black and gold armor, rained down from the sky, chasing and arresting the citizens of Groundsdale. They began to knock down doors, apprehending the ponies inside.

Hardy glowered. “I think they already know.”

“No! This is like Cloudsdale all over again!” Pending choked, eying the chaos.

Crash Landing became visibly distressed. “W-what do we do now?”

“We can’t stay here!” declared Pending. “They’re gonna kick your front door down any second!”

“Good thing we have a back door,” Counter replied.

The three ponies hurried to the back door, leading to the small alley next to Crashy’s house. Hard Counter slipped into the alley, checking both directions. Seeing nopony, he motioned for Crashy and Pending to follow. As they neared the end, Hardy motioned for the other two to stop. A Sky Tribe soldier hovered just around the corner, still unaware of their presence. Counter drew his rapier, preparing to make the first strike if seen.

Suddenly, across the street, a shadowy figure darted down an alleyway. The pegasus flew to investigate and pursue, disappearing from sight.

Hardy glanced both ways down the road, before turning to the others. “Alright, stick together, don’t let them see you, and we might just escape. Luckily for us, we’re not too far from the edge of town, right, Crashy?”

“Well, yes, but are we just going to abandon our town to the Sky Tribe?” she asked.

“Sweetie, I’m flattered you think I could face dozens of soldiers by myself,” Hard Counter said. “But I’m not that good. Besides, there’s no way I’m gonna risk you, her, or this-” he patted the pouch on his sword belt. “-falling into their hooves.”

“I can defend us, too,” Pending said timidly.

Hard Counter looked at her skeptically. “Uh huh...” He looked both ways of the road again. “Okay, coast is clear.”

The three ponies dashed across the thoroughfare to another alleyway. Hidden by the closely clustered houses, they made their way towards the far end.

Ducking between the last few buildings, the three ponies arrived at the edge of Groundsdale. A short courtyard, and a small field beyond, was all that separated them from the safety of the northern woods. That, and the two soldiers keeping guard, hovering at the courtyard’s edge.

Hard Counter clenched his teeth, hearing the two mares sigh in dismay. They were so close… They could try to circle around, but every moment in the city meant more danger. He couldn’t rely on Pending and Crashy knowing how to move stealthily, so the only option was forward.

“We need to make it to the woods,” he said. “Trust me.”

The mares nodded, and followed behind him into the middle of the courtyard.

“You there, halt!” The Sky Tribe soldiers advanced, leveling their spears at the ponies.

“You three are coming with us,” said one of the soldiers, a mare not much older than Pending.

Hard Counter drew his sword and pointed it at the warriors. “No, thanks.”

The other soldier, a stallion, chuckled. “You don’t want to do that.”

Hardy turned his head to the side, his eyes shifting between the Crashy and Pending, and the Sky Tribe warriors. “You two, go without me,” he said, just quiet enough for the soldiers not to hear. “I’ll hold them off.”

Crash Landing shook her head. “No, I’m not leaving without you. I can help, and so can Pending, maybe.”

“I can? Y-yeah, I can,” Storm claimed.

“No, seriously...”

“This is your last warning,” the warrior stallion said. “Surrender now, or else we can’t guarantee we’ll be taking you alive.”

Hard Counter sighed anxiously. He turned to Crash Landing and whispered: “Fine, but stay back. Crashy, you use your magic to hold one of them in the air while I take care of the other one. Pending, uh, moral support.”

“I can do it,” Crashy assured. “Well, maybe…”

“So, am I supposed to cheer? Or say ‘good job’? Or…?” asked Pending.

Hardy face-hoofed. “Dear Celestia…”

“That’s it!” the armored mare snarled. “You were warned!”

Counter steeled himself. Though it was three against two, the odds were still in favor of the two soldiers, who had likely trained their entire lives. Hardy knew he couldn’t rely on Crash or Pending in this fight.

If we get through this alive, I’m definitely going to give Crashy fencing lessons.

The soldiers pointed their spears at the earth pony armed only with a rapier. “Alright, dirt pony, we warned you!”

Hardy braced himself as his foes charged, when suddenly a black shape came flying out of the shadows.

The black-clad unicorn delivered a flying kick into the armored stallion, knocking him into his partner and sending both Sky Tribe warriors sprawling through a nearby house.

The stranger landed on her hooves, then turned to the three shocked ponies. She gazed at them with her red eyes, the same color as the shock running through her black mane and tail. The pony wore tight, black garments, which covered nearly all of her, allowing only a few glimpses of her tan coat underneath. Around her neck she wore a light gray scarf, a bit torn at the end.

After a moment, she suddenly disappeared in a flash of red magic. The Sky Tribe warriors the stranger ambushed appeared to have been knocked unconscious.

Hardy, Crash, and Pending were stunned, eyes wide.

“So... That just happened,” said Hardy, a little relieved.

Crashy looked upwards and poked at Counter with her hoof. “Look.”

The three of them looked up. It was the mysterious pony again, standing on the roof of a nearby house, her scarf waving in the breeze. She looked down at them.

“I wouldn’t stay here if I were you,” she said, her voice muffled by her outfit.

“Who are you?” Hard Counter asked.

“There are still others who need my help. I’ll distract the soldiers long enough for you to escape. Good luck.” And with that, she teleported away, disappearing in a magical flash.

“She reminds of me of somepony... But I can’t put my hoof on it,” Pending mused aloud.

“That’s great and all, but I’d suggest that we now take her advice,” Crashy urged.

“Agreed,” Hardy said, sheathing his sword.

The three ponies fled Groundsdale, running as fast as they could. They didn’t spare even the moment to look back until they had reached the northern woods. The woods were certainly no forest, but were still at least dense enough to help conceal them from aerial patrols.

Exhausted, the group took cover under a tree to rest.

“Okay... Now that we’re finished running for our lives... Who the hay was that?!” Counter asked.

“I’m... not sure...” Crashy said, trying to catch her breath. “But if I had to guess... I’d say that was... the Shadow Ninja.”

Pending, slumped against the tree, breathless, turned to her. “Of course... the Shadow Ninja! I’ve... only heard the stories... but she definitely fits... the description.”

Hardy raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me, what? Shadow Ninja?”

“There have been stories around Groundsdale-”

“And Cloudsdale,” Pending interjected.

“-and Cloudsdale, of a ninja pony, who defends the village against threats. A few years ago, when a pack of Timberwolves attacked the village, it is said that she destroyed each and every one of the monsters and then scattered the remains so that they couldn’t reform.”

“I heard she once fought a cragadile that had gotten too close to town, and that she kept blasting it with her magic until it fled back to the Everfree Forest.”

Crashy turned to Pending. “Well, I heard-”

Hardy raised his hoof. “Okay, I get it. But who is she?”

“Nopony knows. The Shadow Ninja has never revealed her true identity. She could be any unicorn in Groundsdale…” Pending looks at Crash Landing with suspicion. “Any unicorn.”

Crash narrowed her eyes. “Storm, I was right next to you when she appeared.”

“Oh... Okay, so maybe it isn’t Crashy.”

“Maybe?”

“Okay, moving on from the ninja pony,” Hard Counter interjected. “What the hay are we going to do, now? The Sky Tribe’s captured both Cloudsdale and its sister city, and they could be sending scouts to look for anypony who might’ve escaped.”

Crashy looked down and gave a dejected sigh. “Oh, I hope everypony in town are okay... Pending, why did they kill Roswell?”

Storm shuddered as well. “He was an earth pony. The Commander, Sky Fury, said the skies belong to pegasi, and pegasi alone.”

“And most of Groundsdale are earth ponies... I fear for them,” Crashy said grimly.

“Pending, I’m sorry to bring this up, but I must ask,” Hardy said. “You mentioned you weren’t sure if your father was going to be okay. Why?”

Storm got uneasy. Her father got in trouble because she was initially too scared to take the blame. She would also have to explain her powers to the two of them, though Pending wasn’t sure if it was worth keeping a secret anymore.

Her eyes looked away; she nervously rubbed the back of her head. “It’s... Complicated.”

“Complicated?”

“I’m sorry, it’s just-”

She stopped. While she averted her eyes from Hardy, she had been looking off in the distance, and in the distance she saw something strange.

“What is it, Storm?” asked Crash.

“I think... I think I see another pony!”

“Sky Tribe?” Hardy asked, gripping his sword.

“I don’t think so; doesn’t look like they’re wearing armor. It looks like they’re hiding in a tree!”

Without another word, Pending ran off. Counter and Crash immediately followed right after her.

The tree wasn’t far away, on the edge of a small meadow. Pending skidded to a stop, followed closely by Crash Landing and Hard Counter. The three looked up and gasped.

Suspended from the tree was the limp form of a pony. The pony swayed slightly in the breeze, hanging from several threads tangled up with a large blanket-like cloth in the tree’s upper branches. The pony didn’t move, and his eyes were closed.

“Roswell?!” Pending cried.

Suddenly, his eyes flashed open. “Whoa, what? What? What’s happening?” He asked as he looked around in confusion.

“Roswell!” Pending said again, her face glowing with relief.

He looked down and smiled. “Pending!”

“Roswell!” she repeated excitedly.

He chuckled. “Yes, it is I, Roswell... Now can somepony get me down from here?”

“Wait a second,” Hardy said. “You’re Roswell? As in the guy who’s air shop fell from the sky? As in the guy who’s supposed to be dead?”

“Yep, that’s me.”

Crash Landing smiled up at Roswell. “Mr. Rivet, I’m really glad to see you’re alive!”

“Heh, thanks guys, really, I appreciate it! But this isn’t as fun as it looks…You, with the sword? Would you kindly cut these strings for me?”

Hard Counter took a look at Roswell, and the threads he was trapped by. “I could; why don’t you just take off the coat?”

“Oh haaaaaaay no!” Roswell exclaimed. “I don’t go anywhere without my trench coat.”

“You’re kidding me.”

“He’s not,” Pending said, shaking her head.

Hard Counter groaned. “Fine.” He turned to Crashy. “Mind giving me a lift?”

She nodded, took a deep breath, and began concentrating on Hardy. He started to levitate, ascending up to where Roswell was. Once they were on the same level, the stallion drew his sword and began cutting the threads, his rapier’s point dancing between the branches.

Roswell bobbed slightly as his weight shifted with each cut strand. He began tilting forward…

“Wait, no, no, no, no, no…!”

Counter cut the final thread, sending Roswell plummeting to the ground, landing face first in the dirt.

“Ow…” he said, glancing at Storm. “Pending, you could have at least tried to catch me.”

“Yeah... sorry...” she said, helping Roswell off the ground and brushing the dirt off his coat. “I still can’t believe you survived.”

“Of course I did! Did you think I wouldn’t have a back-up plan in case Roswell Rations ever decided to drop from the sky?”

“Well, I wasn’t sure if you had ever considered that possibility.”

“Are you kidding me? That thing was a deathtrap! Once I made the air shop, first thing I did afterwards was install a parachute in my trench coat.”

“What’s a parachute?” Hardy inquired.

“Oh, just something I invented,” Roswell said, smiling proudly.

Hard Counter raised an eyebrow. “Right... Anyways, now that that’s taken care of, we should get-”

“Stop right there, ground-dweller scum!”

Startled, the four ponies turned around, and to their dismay, found themselves surrounded by a squad of Sky Tribe warriors, each one glaring at them from under their silver and ebony armor.

Pending turned to the others. “I think they’re talking to you guys…”

To be continued...

Author's Note:

Credit to Yoichi Hayabusa for the cover art. Check out his page on DeviantArt.
Credit to Drazex and M1 A4 Abrams for editing and revisions.
Credit to Yoichi Hayabusa for creating the following OCs: Hard Counter, Crash Landing, and Pending Storm.
Credit to Tesseradical17 for his OC, Roswell Rivet.

Comments

[EquiNoXun]

Another great chapter as always, and a well-polished one, at that.

[Pending Storm]

6202577 Thank you. Drazex really helped with the polishing.

[vdrake77]

Annnnnnnnnd there we go! NOW I'm invested! Him not going anywhere without the trenchcoat makes a LOT of sense.