Chapter 5- First Day of Work
It was still nighttime when Dark had woken up. Looking at the clock, he saw it was 5:15 a.m. and decided to start getting himself ready for the day. Quietly, he made his way down into the kitchen for some breakfast. With the lack of time and not having to cook for the others today, Dark made himself a bowl of cereal and some toast to go with it. A quick, efficient meal for the time being until he could get into a routine with his new job. Looking to the kitchen clock, it was now 5:30 a.m. and time was wasting. It would take him about a half-hour for him to get to Sweet Apple Acres while walking, maybe twenty minutes if he were running. Grabbing one more piece of bread that he would toast on the way there, Dark cleaned his dishes and made for the castle doors.
The run through Ponyville in the early morning was quite relaxing, especially with how brisk it was today. However, with him being a furnace on legs, Dark didn't have any issues with the morning chill and kept up the pace. It wasn't long before he exited the village and was on the dirt road to the farm. Now out of town, he could hear the crickets and frogs out in the night. Though it was new to him, he found it rather pleasing. And with his night vision, Dark could make out some of the nocturnal animals that were running and flying about.
That was, until he heard a loud howl off to his right towards the Everfree Forest. Soon after, it was followed by two more from the same area. Getting a little nervous from this new sound, Dark used his Soul Eyes and took a peek in the general direction. Though he could see in the dark, the trees were blocking his line of sight and prevented him from seeing anything over there. With glowing eyes, he scanned the direction he heard the howling coming from. Still making his way to the farm, Dark finally made out several outlines of what appeared to be a small pack of wolves about seventy-five yards away from him, some of which where now poking out from behind the trees. Stopping and canceling the spell, Dark started to make out the glowing yellow eyes that were tracking him, and the creatures they belonged to. They didn't look like animals, though, but more like pieces of wood that were shaped like a wolf. Letting out a low snarl, these three creatures slowly started prowling towards Dark, along with a horrible stench that they carried with them.
Dark looked down the road and could see the fence that marked the Apple Families' home. I could try and make a break for it, Dark thought to himself. However, I doubt that I could outrun those things.
Looking past the wolves, Dark could see a faint light appearing over the horizon. With little time left, Dark decided to do something about the three that were closing in on him. Taking a low aggressive stance, Dark flared his wings half-mast and bared his fangs, flames licking the side of his lips while emanating a low draconic growl. He wasn't sure if it was his growling, the fire emanating from his maw, or if they thought of him as the greater predator that caused them to halt their progression and back away. Either way, he kept it up for a few minutes until the three wolves had backed up to the tree line and darted away.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Dark took a moment to get his breathing under control. After calming himself down enough, he continued his way down the path to the farm, but was still on high alert incase they came back. It wasn't long before he made it to the barn where Applejack was just finishing on loading up the empty baskets that they would use to load up the apples into. She looked up and waved to Dark as he got close enough.
"Mornin', Dark," she greeted him before looking to the faint light of the sun peeking over the horizon. "You're just on time too. Come on over here and Ah'll get ya strapped up. You're gonna be pullin' the cart."
"Okay. Also, I'm sorry, Applejack," Dark apologized while getting strapped in. "I would've been here sooner, but I got a little held up."
Applejack let loose a light chuckle. "Take too much time cookin' up breakfast for Twilight and Spike?" she joked.
Dark sighed. "No. She made it quite clear that I wouldn't be allowed to cook for her or Spike during my work days. Although I was tempted to do it anyways, I'm not sure if I wanna find out what would happen if I did."
Now strapped in, Applejack led Dark to the field they would be working today.
"Okay, if you weren't held up by Twilight, then what happened?" she asked.
"Meh, some wolves tried to stalk and probably eat me," Dark answered nonchalantly. He looked over to see Applejack with a terrified look on her face. "What? This isn't the first time something's tried to eat me, so I really don't find it that big of a deal."
They got to the first tree before they stopped and got Dark unhitched from the cart.
"This wouldn't by chance happen ta be related with those howls from earlier, would they?" Applejack asked.
"Yeah, they were."
"What did they look like?"
"Best I can describe them is that they look like pieces of animated wood in the shape of a wolf."
Applejack let out a loud sigh. "They're called timberwolves. They're one of the more vicious and aggressive predators in the Everfree Forest. Ah'm surprised ya got away from them."
"There were only three of them, and I didn't run away. I didn't think I could outrun them, so I scarred them off instead," he explained as he mimicked his stance from earlier, giving Applejack a look of what he did.
This, however, didn't make her any less uneasy about it. "That may have been a clever trick, but you got lucky. Timberwolves usually hunt in packs of six ta eight on average, sometimes over ten. What ya ran into was probably some sorta scoutin' party, or a new pack formin'." Applejack paused to think about this for a moment while Dark took it in. "Although, Ah don't understand why they'd be so close ta here. They rarely ever leave the Everfree Forest ta go huntin'."
Dark, now upset with himself, looked down. "I'm sorry that I acted so brashly, Applejack," he apologized.
Applejack's expression softened and gave Dark a playful shoulder nudge. "Don't worry about it, sugarcube. What matters is that you're fine and got her safely. But what are ya gonna do if it happens again?"
"Since I'm not used to running with these claws yet, and seeing as how I can't fly, I'll just have to do it again. And if that doesn't work, then I'll burn them to ashes."
Applejack shook her head. "And what about the trees and everythin' else that'll catch on fire? And what if they start runnin' around while they're still on fire?"
This wasn't what Dark wanted to hear. It was also another reason why he would train away from Stonewall Village, so he wouldn't accidentally burn anything or anypony. Though he had mastery over fire, he couldn't use his Amplify to reabsorb any flames that he himself created. Dark let out a sigh of defeat as he looked back to Applejack with an answer.
"Alright. I won't use my fire-breathing or any of my fire magic against them," Dark answered before beginning to unload the baskets out of the cart.
"So what's the plan then?" Applejack asked him while pointing Dark to where to place the baskets.
"After I'm done with work for today, I'll ask Aunt Sunshine and Twilight if I can get in some practice for my draconic magic this weekend. And if that doesn't work, then I'll just have to be careful when coming over until I can learn to fly from Rainbow."
"Ah remember Apple Bloom sayin' last night that ya weren't allowed ta practice it alone, right?" Applejack asked, receiving a nod in return. "So why not?"
"They just don't want me to practice it and accidentally injure myself is all," he answered. "At least, not until I get a better handle on it."
"Better safe than sorry Ah guess," Applejack commented. "Speakin' of Apple Bloom, thank ya kindly for bringin' her home last night. With the timberwolves so close ta town now, Ah'm gonna have ta have her commin' home either before nighttime, or with somepony walkin' her."
Dark waved a claw off. "It was no problem, Applejack. Besides, I told them that I wouldn't let them go home alone at dark anyway."
Applejack gave a warm smile to him before taking notice of the sun's place in the sky. "We've burnt enough daylight as it is. Why don't you come over by this tree and Ah'll give ya a proper run-through of how ta buck an apple tree."
Dark obliged and got himself placed in front of the tree while Applejack explained in greater detail on how to applebuck. Her explanation was more detailed than the last one, but was easy enough to understand. Besides some techniques that she liked to use, he had to hit the tree roughly between a quarter to a third of the way up the tree's trunk, and near the center. Probably easier said than done since Applejack made it look and sound so easy.
After she was done explaining, Applejack took a step back. "Alright, why don't ya give it a try now?"
Dark took his position and was about to give it a buck before stopping in mid-kick. Landing his hooves down, Dark remembered what happened the first time he tried it and quickly tucked his tail between his legs, covering his underside while protecting his tail from being bucked again. Applejack gave a chuckle, no doubt remembering what happened as well.
Taking a moment to realign himself with the tree, Dark planted his claws into the ground and bucked. He hit the tree with a solid hit, but was off his mark by half a foot low and off to the side. Still though, he did manage to get about a fourth of the apples out of the tree.
"You know what ya did wrong?" Applejack asked.
"Yeah, I hit too low," Dark answered.
"That, and ya hit too far to the right. You'll get it soon, though."
Dark gave an understanding nod and tried it again. This time he hit the tree dead center, but was still low. Applejack was patient, though. She knew it would take him a while to learn how to hit that 'sweet spot' on the tree to make it drop all its apples. After Dark's fourth try, the tree was empty and the baskets were filled with the fallen apples. Those that didn't drop into the baskets were picked up and added to the piles. Shortly after, Big Mac came and took the apples back to the barn to be stored while Applejack lead Dark to the next tree. Thanks to the talk Dark and Applejack had earlier, Big Mac was able to get the next few trees prepped for them.
They got into a steady rhythm where Big Mac would place empty baskets beneath the apple trees and take the filled ones back to the barn, while Dark would buck them. It wasn't until his tenth tree that Applejack felt comfortable to leave Dark to work on his own. Though his technique had gotten better, he still didn't get a full grasp of it yet. But that would be fixed over time with more experience.
Despite Applejack having to take some time off to help Dark, by the time noon came around, they had half of the field cleared out of apples and stored away. Applejack then called out to her brother and Dark that it was time for lunch and made their way to the house. Applejack was the first to enter the house, followed by Big Mac, and finally Dark, who seemed to be walking a little funny.
"Are ya alright there, sugarcube?" Applejack asked as Dark walked to the table.
Dark stretched his back legs before sitting with a groan. "Yeah, my legs are just a bit sore is all."
She chuckled while getting some food from the refrigerator. "What's wrong? Ah thought that ya would be more fit than this, considerin' that old job ya had."
"Normally, yes, but this applebucking has me working muscles that I'm not used to using."
"Fair enough Ah suppose," Applejack shrugged, setting out their lunch for the day.
It wasn't anything too fancy, just a slice of Granny Smith's apple pie with a bowl of apple soup. It was still good though, and Dark was happy to be getting lunch along with work. Although, the soup did feel a little cold to him, so he decided to reheat it with his fire breath. Careful to not accidentally burn the table, Dark breathed out a stream of fire that heated the soup until he could hear it boil. After the flames receded, Dark took a careful sip to see if he heated it up too much or not. Thankfully, it was the prefect temperature for him and began sipping away at his meal. He was too engrossed in his lunch, though, that he didn't notice Applejack and Big Mac looking at him funny until she cleared her throat.
"If ya could, Ah would appreciate it if ya wouldn't breath fire at the table. Even if it's for reheatin' your food," Applejack asked.
Dark's ears drooped at hearing this. "Sorry, Applejack."
"No need ta be sorry, just don't wanna have the table accidentally burnt down is all." She then tested her own soup before she grimaced. "Although, the soup could use a bit more reheatin'."
Big Mac took a sip of his own soup before agreeing. "Eeyup."
"If you want, I can use a spell to reheat it," Dark offered.
Applejack looked up to him with a raised eyebrow. "Then why didn't ya use it instead of your fire-breathin' in the first place?"
Dark meekly rubbed the back of his head. "I wanted to test my fire breath, so I didn't think about the spell at the time."
"Alright then, go ahead," she answered, letting Dark reheat their food.
Satisfied with how warm their soup was, they ate in relative silence with the only noises being the sound of spoons and slurping. They had finished the soup and were about to go to the pie when an elderly shriek was heard. Then, before anyone knew what was going on, Dark felt something metallic hit him upside the head, leaving his ears ringing. He let out a yelp of pain before rubbing the sore spot on the back of his head and turning around to see what, or who, hit him. Standing behind him was a wrinkly old, light-green earth pony, with a faded white mane, and holding a frying pan.
Dang it all, that really hurt, Dark thought to himself while looking at his attacker. Perhaps I'm not as durable as I thought I was. Then again, that was just a cat scratch before.
"Granny! What the hay did ya do that for!?" Applejack demanded.
The old pony only glared at Dark, her frying pan ready for another swing. "Ah saw this here giant bat and needed ta whack it outta the house," Granny answered.
Applejack and Big Mac groaned while Dark kept rubbing his head, feeling the blood starting to leak from where she hit him. He brought his claw out in front of him and looked at the blood that covered it. Seeing the blood, Big Mac stood up from the table.
"Ah'll go get the first aid kit," he stated.
"That won't be necessary," Dark interrupted before channeling his magic into his horn. A moment later a small ball of fire was floating above his head, emanating a soothing glow.
"Uh, Dark? What did ya just do?" Applejack asked.
"It's a spell I developed called Healing Flame," he explained. "Unlike normal fire, it doesn't burn anything. Instead, it emanates a soft glow that will heal anyone within its light over time. Plus, if it's casted on a target, it'll follow it until its duration of five minutes wears off, or it's dispelled. Otherwise, if it's not casted on a target, but in a location, it'll stay there and not move instead. Unfortunately, though, I can only cast one at a time, and it doesn't work on aching muscles, scars, or to replenish your stamina. That also includes restoring a unicorn's magical reserves."
Applejack gave a low whistle. "That's pretty nifty ta have on hoof." She turned her attention back to her grandmother. "And for your information, Granny, this here is Dark. He's the new farmhoof that Ah told ya about. Also, he's somethin' called a kirin, not a bat."
Granny put on her glasses and got a better look at Dark. Now that she could see better, she set the frying pan down off to the side.
"Sorry about that, sonny," she apologized. "My sights not what it used ta be. Thought for a moment you were a giant bat, what with them wings of yours." Granny shuddered. "Only seen one Vampire Fruit Bat of that size before, and let me tell you, it'll forever haunt your memories."
"It's alright I suppose. Just happy that it wasn't any worse, or else I might have been in trouble," Dark replied.
"But aren't ya suppose ta be a lot tougher now that you're part dragon?" Applejack asked.
"That's what I thought, but Granny has apparently proved us otherwise. Yes, I am more durable, but I'm not as tough as what a dragon would naturally be. I'm sorta somewhere between the two I think. We'll know more after Twilight starts her tests on me this weekend."
They finished up the rest of their lunch and made their way back out to finish up the chores. With the way they had set themselves up, the rest of their afternoon went without any problems, except for a loose wheel that needed tightening. Other than that, they were able to get themselves ahead of where Applejack thought they would be. It was about 5 p.m. before they called it quits for the day and took a moment to sit out on the porch with some lemonade. Normally the two siblings would be proud of themselves for putting in a hard day's work, but with their new helper, they got all of today's work, and some of tomorrow's work finished up as well.
"Whoo-wee!" Applejack exclaimed. "That was probably one of the best days of work we've had here in a long time."
"Eeyup," Big Mac agreed before taking a sip of his drink.
"How'd you manage to handle this place with just the two of you?" Dark asked while stretching his legs.
"Ah'm not really sure, sugarcube," Applejack answered. "Ah suppose that we've done it for so long that we just sorta got used ta it."
"Alright, but what about winter? Will we still be harvesting apples then?"
Applejack shook her head. "Sorry, but when winter comes around, things will start ta get slow around here. Granted we will have some chores ta do, but nothin' that we'll need help with." She paused for a moment. "However, it wouldn't feel right ta me if we just let ya go for the winter. Any ideas on how ya could still help?"
Dark took a drink and thought over it for a moment. "What about clearing out the road to your house? I could come over after a snow shower and clear the way for you guys."
"That could work." She looked over to her brother. "What do ya say, Big Mac?"
"Eeyup," he answered with a nod.
Dark let a breath that he didn't know he had held in, happy that he would still have a job of some kind when winter came around.
"You do know, of course, that we won't be able ta pay ya the same amount that ya would normally get, right?" she clarified with Dark, who nodded in return. "Alright. Good ta know."
The sun was beginning its descent when they decided to get up. Dark's legs, however, were starting to get stiff on him from the workout he got from today. Slowly he made his way to the kitchen to wash out the cup he used before saying goodbye to everypony for the afternoon. Walking down the path out of the apple orchard, he bumped into Apple Bloom.
"Hey there, Dark," She greeted him.
"Hello, Apple Bloom," Dark returned. "What were you up to today?"
"Just hangin' out with the girls at the park."
"Did you three have fun?"
"Yep."
"Good." Dark was about to continue his way home before he paused to look back to Apple Bloom. "By the way, your sister wanted to talk to you about what time she wants you home by."
Apple Bloom frowned at him. "Why? Did Ah do somethin' wrong?"
Dark gave a light-hearted chuckle. "No, you're not in any trouble. She just wants to talk to you and make sure you'll be safe is all."
"Alright. Well, Ah guess Ah'll see ya around," she said as she ran off to her home.
Dark smiled and shook his head at her before heading back home himself. Although it seemed peaceful as always, the encounter from this morning had Dark on edge. During his walk back to town, Dark kept glancing over to the forest's edge, keeping an eye out on any signs of movement and smelling for that foul scent from before. Thankfully, there were no signs of them by the time he entered Ponyville, leaving Dark in the clear.
Even with the sun just setting, ponies were still moving about their business. Whether it was heading out to eat or heading home, they still took a second to wave or greet Dark, to which he gratefully returned. Quickly after, the sun had completely set, blanketing the sky in Luna's night. Even though Dark was always awake during the day, he much preferred the night. Slowing his pace, Dark idly strolled while taking in the starry sky.
After entering the castle and closing the door behind him, Dark decided to make his way to the lounge and crash on one of the couches. His legs were aching earlier, but now they were starting to burn.
Dang, I haven't worked out my legs like that for a long time, Dark thought to himself, the lounge doors now in front of him. Perhaps it'll ease up once I get off of my hooves.
He opened the door and saw Twilight and Sunshine sitting on one of the couches talking to each other, while spike was sitting on the floor reading a comic book. Dark greeted them briefly before flopping down on the opposing couch, burying his face in a pillow.
"Well, you look exhausted," Twilight observed, watching Dark lay on the couch.
He turned his head out from the pillow to face her. "Just a little bit tired. I'm not used to using my legs like that, so they're a little sore right now. Just give me a minute or two and I'll get started on dinner."
Twilight shook her head. "No you're not. I told you last night that you wouldn't be cooking during your work days, and that includes dinner."
"I thought that was only for breakfast?" he asked in confusion.
"Again, nope. When I said that you wouldn't cook, I meant for the whole day. Either Spike or I will be cooking dinner."
Dark went silent for a moment before letting out a sigh. "I'm too tired to try and argue with you about it. Go ahead if that's what you really wanna do."
"Good, I will," she answered while smirking at Dark.
It was clear to see, but Dark saw something a little different. Whether it was his mind playing with him from exhaustion or not, he didn't know.
She actually looks kinda cute when she's like that, Dark thought to himself. Soon after he caught himself starring at her and felt a blush coming on. Quickly, Dark turned his head away from her, trying to control the red that he was sure had covered his face by now. No! Bad, Dark! No thinking about her like that. He turned his head to get a peek of Twilight, her smirk still remaining, along with one from Sunshine.
"Is everything alright, Dark?" Sunshine asked. "Your face is looking quite a bit red there."
Dark gulped before thinking of an excuse to remove himself from the room.
"Umm, I think I'm gonna go and get myself cleaned up before dinner starts," Dark sheepishly said as he backed out of the lounge.
After the door closed and Dark could no longer be heard running down the halls, Twilight and Sunshine both let out loud laughs.
"I'm starting to think that he may like you, Twilight," Sunshine commented, making her blush a little.
"Are you sure he wasn't just embarrassed or overheated?" Twilight asked.
"Twilight, I have lived for centuries. I'm pretty sure I would know the signs by now. With that said, I can see them on him just as much as I can on you."
Spike, hearing in on their conversation, looked up from his comic book.
"So does that mean that you're gonna ask him out on a date pretty soon?" he asked with a smug grin. "Because if that's so, then you know I'm gonna have to start teasing you about it."
Twilight didn't say anything to him. Instead, she levitated a picture over to Spike for him to see.
"Huh? What's this?" he asked while grabbing the picture.
"Oh, just something from the party that we thought you would like to see," Twilight happily answered.
Confused, Spike took a look at it and was shocked and horrified by what was on it. It was a picture of him asleep with the Crusaders all cuddled up against him. At that moment, Spike's entire body changed color from purple to crimson. After taking in what he was seeing, he looked back up to Twilight and Sunshine.
"You can thank Pinkie Pie for that," Sunshine said. "Honestly, nopony could stop themselves from cooing over how cute you four were together that night."
Now it was Spikes turn to excuse himself as he made his way to the kitchen to begin dinner, leaving Twilight and Sunshine in an even bigger laughing fit than before. It was a good minute or so before Twilight was able to collect herself enough for her to speak.
"S-So is it always this fun to tease guys like that?" Twilight asked with a laugh.
Sunshine giggled and draped a foreleg over Twilight's shoulders. "Yes, yes it is, Twilight. Just make sure not to go too overboard with it, though, alright?"
Twilight nodded with a giggle before she and Sunshine got up and made their way to the kitchen as well to help start dinner. With the three of them, it didn't take long for it to be ready, and just in time too as Dark just walked in refreshed and looking a bit less achy than before.
After Dark thanked them for the food, they dug right in. It was spaghetti and tofu meatballs with garlic buttered toast. Truly a meal any stallion would love. Even though it was one of Dark's favorite foods, he made sure to not scarf it down like a rabid wolf. Remembering about the events of that morning, Dark was reminded of what he wanted to ask them. Twilight however, beat him to it.
"So, Dark, how did your first day of work go? Did anything interesting happen?" she asked.
Dark looked in surprise for a moment, wondering if she read his mind before answering, "Umm, yeah actually. Though it didn't have anything to do with working the farm."
"Why? What happened?"
Dark hesitated for a moment. "Long story short, some timberwolves tried attacking me on my way to Sweet Apple Acres."
Twilight let a small gasp while Sunshine and Spike looked at Dark, seeing if they could spot any injuries.
"So what happened then?" Spike asked him. "You don't look like you got into a fight."
"I scarred them off," he answered. "There were only three of them, so my guess is that they didn't think I was worth the risk of fighting."
"That was very reckless of you, Dark," Twilight scolded. "What if you weren't so lucky and they came after you? You could've been seriously hurt!"
Dark let out a sigh. "I know. Applejack already gave me a talking to about it."
"Good."
"But I didn't have much of a choice," he tried defending himself. "I'm not used to running on these claws yet, I can't fly, and if I did use my fire breath or any fire magic, then I could have accidentally set something on fire. Which brings me to a question I was hoping to ask you and Aunt Sunshine."
Twilight and Sunshine looked to each other before Sunshine looked back to Dark.
"Yes?" Sunshine inquired.
Dark took a deep breath to calm his nerves before he could answer them. "I was hoping that this weekend, after Twilight's testing, if I would be aloud to train with some more of my draconic magic."
"What spell did you want to train with exactly?" Twilight asked.
"I want to try what Nocturne did during our fight and learn how to meld into the shadows. That way I'll be able to safely escape them without being hurt if they should show up again."
Twilight thought over it for a few minutes before she gave her answer. "Aunt Sunshine and I are going to talk about it, then we'll give you an answer. Probably tomorrow afternoon if that's alright."
"Sure, I'm in no rush. I'll just have to be more careful until then."
"Good." Twilight paused before she thought of something she would need to do. "I suppose I should go tell the mayor about timberwolves being near Ponyville tomorrow morning."
Deep in the Everfree Forest, three timberwolves crossed an old wooden bridge that lead to the old castle ruins. They didn't get far, though, as they stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of a figure in a black cloak. The three wolves gave a whimper while humbly lowering themselves to the ground before him.
"Where is his body?" the cloaked figure asked the wolves. "I sent you three to kill him and bring me his corpse, so why have you returned empty?"
The wolves' only answer was more whimpering, this time accompanied with them shaking in fear. The cloaked figure raised a hoof and rubbed the bride of his nose.
"Apparently I should have sent more of you to go after him. However, it would be pointless to do so now after this failed excursion." The cloaked figure turned away from the wolves, making his way back to the castle. "You three may return back to your pack. We'll have to lay low for a while before we can strike again. But this time, with greater force and numbers."
The timberwolves quickly made themselves scarce in fear of the cloaked figure changing his mind. Entering the castle ruins, he took a moment to think of his next plan.
Perhaps a bit more muscle is required. A few manticores might do it, but perhaps... yes. The cloaked figure broke into a maniacal laughter. I'll use a few of them in the next attack. And this time, he won't escape so easily, if at all.
Meanwhile in Stonewall Village, the solders were settling in for the night while Iron Guard was still up at the Command Tent. It was a long and tedious day of going over the village, sorting through the dead dragons, and trying to find any villagers. None of their bodies could be found which struck him as odd, and the mine entrance was sealed by two dragon corpses that were wedged into it. Thankfully, the stench that plagued the village was starting to ease up, much to everypony's relief. Iron Guard's attention was brought up when one of his soldiers entered the tent.
"Sir!" the solder called with a salute. "I believe that we may have found the villagers."
Iron Guard's mood raised upon hearing some good news. "Good work. Where were they?"
"That's the problem, sir. We didn't find the villagers' bodies. Instead, we found some sort of obelisk with a plaque that read, "Here lies the ponies of Stonewall Village. May they all rest in peace", and roughly two hundred and fifty-four graves surrounding it. Judging by the soil, we have estimated that they're close to a week old, give or take a few days."
The captain let out a groan, his worries confirmed. "Alright, we will stop the search for any possible survivors. I want your team to continue examining the graves and try to figure out an exact date as to when they were buried. The rest of us will sort through the dragon corpses to get a proper body count, and try to gain entry into the mines."
"Yes, sir!" the solder saluted. "One more thing sir," he started before signaling in two earth ponies that were carrying a metal chest. "What do you want us to do with this?"
Iron Guard walked over and opened the chest. After seeing what was inside, he immediately closed the lid and looked back to the soldiers that were present.
"Who all knows about the contents of this chest?" he calmly asked.
"Nopony besides us four, sir," the first soldier answered.
"Good. I want you three to guard that chest here at the Command Tent. I also want it under lock-and-key and for you to keep an eye on it at all times. And for Celestia's sake, do not tell anypony else what's inside. Understood?!"
"Yes, sir!" they answered, bringing the chest to the back corner of the tent and taking their positions around it.
"I will be keeping an eye on it as well while I'm here. I don't want any chances taken with this."
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.....
I'm getting a bad feeling as to who that cloaked figure is....
6861250
Calling it as his brother now
7139796 You're kidding right? If that's the case why did Discord not mention it when he did a memory scan?
they found the death metal for dragons
7190918 Because how would Discord know? Dark's brother left a year ago and never returned. The 5 days missing from Dark's head, is him absorbing the Dragon's magic/body to take over his role, burying the town folks, and walking till he passed out near ponyville. Where in any of that would his brother, or this cloak guy show up?
NUH THEY HAZ DARK'S PROPERTY!!!! HE CAN SUE THEM FOR STEALING NOW!!! XD
7928614 s2.quickmeme.com/img/3b/3b15d28613eed663317de57773fba89b4507dd9a37a7ce1f920681d141ce9ac9.jpg
Is this my first comment? If it is, yay.
What I want to say: Healing Flame doesn't make sense. It implies an AoE healing spell surrounding a ball of flame in a shield spell. Healing Magic is difficult enough, applying it in an AoE would be taxing on even Twilicorn. It implies Dark has a lot more power than Twilight Sparkle, and this is without his Amplify spell.
On another note, Healing Magic has to be directed, so AoE healing spells don't even make sense. The reasoning behind this is that healing spells accelerate the body's natural healing. But it has to be directed, lest tumours develop. (Basically, you have to direct how the skin grows or else it'll grow in the wrong direction).
gutes Kapitel mein Freund (German) (^_^)
I noticed in this chapter that a few times when dark says "scared", it's spelled "scarred". Beyond that, the grammar is greatly improved from chapter one.
Always the god damn timberwolves...
My dude why was he apologizing to apple jack? Also why is he so submissive, why is he agreeing with everything, conflict doesn’t make your character an asshole it defines their personalities. If your characters doesn’t have any flaws it makes them dull and boring (and don’t controlling your power or being overpowered is not a flaw). A flaw make your character imperfect, if you like the “flaw” of your personality then it’s not a flaw.
Scared
Alowed
OHHHHH BUSTED BITCH! They saw that blush....NOW RUN FOR YA LIFE!!!!FEMALES!ARE!!FUCKING!!!SCARY WITH A “ I SEE IT ALL LOOK”!!!!!!!
9445541
How did you manage to get your correction spelled wrong?
9412470
Because this author at the time of posting does not understand the fundamentals of story writing. Now I haven't completed this story and if the story continues with this bland character through the whole story: the author doesn't understand how to create a story at all.