Quete

by Comrade Bagel Muffin

Ville Dans le Sable

Escutcheon woke up in the desert sand. Memories of last night and the plan that had been made were slowly coming back to him. Nightingale and the other consolers had turned his simple idea into a decent plan. He'd enter into the city and find a unicorn sympathizer named Pythagorean, a former slave who had earned his freedom due to his special talent. Then he'd have three days to find a peaceful solution. During which time the consolers would slip back into the city with soldiers, and weapons. By the third night if he hadn't succeeded he was to go to the slave district and open the gates. Pythagorean was already expecting him. In order to enter into the city unnoticed he'd pretend to be a slave hunter returning from the first hunt. A so called rite of passage. The bat pony he'd "caught" was suppose to be somewhere near by.

"Dusk?" Escutcheon's heart froze as he looked at the prone sleeping filly. She slowly started to stir from where she lay an iron collar around her neck and a pair of shackles fastened tightly to her forehooves. "Dusk you aren't suppose to be the pony that I'm taking with me, what's going on."

"Calm down. We're staying together at least until we get to the city then we'll have to part ways." She sat up wiping the sleep from her eyes, the cuffs around her hooves making the task rather difficult.

"You were suppose to stay at the cave where it was safe."

"Now you listen, and listen good." She walked over to him. Her eyes focused in. "We've stuck together since we met, and like it or not your stuck with me Escutcheon at least until my dad helps you get home." She pushed him to his rump. "I'm not going to sit idly by while my only friend in the whole wide world. The first pony I saw in over a year. Goes to a place where if he's caught will have his horn cut off and thrown into slavery." She sighed and her eyes softened. "Besides I'm really bad at good-byes, and you need a friend with you. Besides we've been with each other from the cave through the plain and across the desert."

"You nearly died in the desert." She smiled.

"Exactly, so how can this be any worse than that?" He sighed conceding the point. "See. Now one last little thing." She jumped on him and started chewing his ear.

"Stop it Dusk that tickles." Escutcheon tried to get away. Dusk used the chain of her hoof cuffs to pin him stuck under her. After a few seconds Escutcheon managed to roll the over getting on top of her. He managed to get her ear and started gently chewing in retaliation. After a minute the two of them back away giggling and smiling. "Thank you Dusk."

"Yeah no problem."

"Be safe."

"You too, Escutcheon."

"No seriously Dusk, please. I don't want you to get hurt." She nodded.

"Don't worry just don't blow your cover." He nodded. "Alright let's get going before we get all sad and mopy again." She got up and helped Escutcheon fed a rope through the lope on her collar. After five minutes of Dusk trying to get as dirty as she could the two of them headed out to the north west. If the information was correct they would arrive after a couple of hours.

The two of them trotted over a dune. and froze on the top of the sandy mountain. Looking down on the city in the middle of the desert. There were hundreds of obelisks around the perimeter of the city, just out side of a great marble wall. Engraved into the wall were snake like dragons with giant rubies in one of the front claws. At the center of the cite was a gigantic pyramid with a golden capstone. On the inside of the city many of the houses were of sandstone. In one area there was a large number of cages on the southern side of the city. All around the city wall were great pyres, sending up pillars of black smoke.

"Are you still sure about this Dusk?" Escutcheon gazed down on the city.

"Yeah. I'll be fine." She picked up the rope and gave it to him.

"Be safe." He grabbed it in his mouth.

"You too."