> Can You Hear the Drums?
>  by Symphonicdysonince
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Brave New World.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I awoke to birdsong. With a stretch, I sat up and flicked my leather duster to the side. Turning to my backpack, previously my pillow, I pulled a meager meal of scavenged food for my breakfast. As I ate, I consulted the scroll and map I had found when I first woke up here.

According to the map, I should be seeing the cave entrance around mid-afternoon. I popped a wild cherry into my mouth. The scroll said it would only lead me to it, but I must do the rest. The rest of what, I wonder. With a shrug, I returned the scroll to its place. I threw my duster on, tucking the map into an inside pocket, before belting my  sword on.

It was a finely made messer. The blade barely had a curve, with a fine etching of a frozen flame along the spine and fuller. The nagel was detailed as a wolf's paw, and the end cap as a wolf's snarling head. Leather wrapped a handle just long enough for me to hold with both hands. The sheath carried the same design of frozen flames as the blade it contained.

I cast my gaze around the forest I was in, tying my hair back as I did so. With a sigh, I scaled the tree I had slept against. Most of the way up, I paused to take in the view. From my vantage point, I spotted the gorge the cave was supposedly in. Making note of any nearby landmarks, I also noted the vague outlines of buildings in the distance. Must be that town on the map. What was is called, Something Ville? I shrugged before climbing back down the tree. Whatever, it'll make a good place to start after I deal with whatever's in the cave.

Reaching the tree's base, I slung my backpack on. Picking up the walking stick I had made yesterday, I took my bearings and continued my hike. As I walked, I cast my mind back to the day I woke up here.

I had no recollections of my personal past, but clear memories of learning my various skills. From those, I could glean that I had a history of misdeeds to my name, even if I couldn't remember the actual acts. The strongest memory was that I needed to go to this cave for my newest job, and that my purpose would come to me there. I had been walking during the two days since.

My thoughts were interrupted by a low growling from my left. I planted my stick firmly into the ground, watching as a group of wooden wolves emerged from the bushes. After counting five, I drew my blade. Motes of silvery light danced across the swords spine, drifting to the ground, as the etching faintly glowed with a pale light.

My eyes drifted over the small pack as a sixth wolf deigned to show itself. "Alright." I growled, holding my blade low. "Who want's to go first?"

The smallest one lunged at me. I spun my blade into the side of its skull, pivoting on my heel as I did so. Using its own momentum, I forced it to continue past me. I spared it a glance before focusing to the rest of the pack, noting the small patch of ice forming around the cut. It seemed to freeze the blood, clotting the wound. So that's what it does. Keeping an ear on the wolf behind me, I made a quick thrust at a wolf trying to shift closer from my right.

We kept this dance up for a while. Several wolves' had patches of ice forming on them. I could tell the wolves were trying to wear me down, but I wasn't going to give that satisfaction. Taking the initiative, I stepped forward, neatly slicing through a wolf's leg. I smirked when it landed on its frozen stump.

I had to give ground so as to close the opening I gave. Stumpy decided to cut its loses and retreated. A few more strikes like that and they'll break. I thought smugly.

Then a seventh wolf entered the clearing. It stood about a half-foot taller than the rest, and covered in resin covered scars. As the rest of the pack backed away, I realized that the alpha had arrived.

"Well, shit." I grumbled. I shifted my stance to point my blade at the larger wolf, two hands gripping the hilt. I risked a glance at my improvised walking stick.

The alpha charged in my moment of distraction. I barely dodged in time, only scoring a slight nick off of its shoulder. The ice didn't even take. We circled the clearing, the alpha and I refusing to show the other our backs. I started to scrutinize my foe for any opening I could find. 

Then I got lucky.

The alpha overshot its lunge, plowing into the wolves behind me. As most of the pack rushed to their alpha's aid, I bull rushed the smallest wooden mutt.

Somehow, it was caught off guard. I forced my forearm under its head, pushing it up, and rammed my messer into its guts. Without stopping, I shoved the twitching body to the side and bolted into the trees. I hauled ass in the direction of the gorge. I could hear the wolves rallying and charging after me. 

Somehow, I led them on a merry chase. I swung my blade at any wolves I could see trying to flank me. After a few minutes of frantic running and slashing, I saw the alpha running just outside of my reach. Both of us kept a wary eye on the other, and kept pace.

I glanced over to see it suddenly peel away from me, trying to skid to a stop. Ah, hell yeah! You don't-!

I ran out onto nothing. I looked down to see just how far I had to fall. I had just enough time to sheath my sword before I slammed into the steep slope. Then my world became a rolling mass of pain.



I came to at the base of the cliff. My everything was sore. With a groan, I sat up and checked over my gear. Thankfully, nothing was broken. I looked up the slope I had fallen down.

Tall and steep, it had kept the wolves at bay. I didn't doubt that they were looking for a way down to get me.

Good luck with that. I taunted. I pulled my map out while I had a chance. I quickly found my location within the gorge, and turned to face the direction of the cave. Lapping up the map, I tucked it back into my coat and began walking again. Gonna miss my stick. It was a good stick.

It didn't take very long before I had come across a jagged opening in one of the cliffs. I felt my pocket buzz. I pulled the scroll from its pocket, unfurling it with a quick flick. I looked between the scroll and hole a couple of times, matching the new picture with the cave. Tucking the scroll back into it's pocket, I quickly pulled my pack from my back and fished out a torch. I quickly lit it after slinging my pack back over my shoulder and unsheathed my blade. I entered the cave with my blade held in a low guard, torch held above and behind my head.

I stepped as carefully as I could through the dark, following the curve of the wall. Soon, I had to make my way around stalagmites and ducking stalactites. After walking for what felt like an hour, the cave suddenly opened into a cavern. I cast my gaze from one side to the other, before my eyes stopped at my feet.

Oh, hello. I thought. You are not natural... I placed my foot carefully onto the first of the many carved steps. I walked down the stairs as they curved with the wall to my left. Only the open air greeted me on my right. As I neared the bottom, carvings started to appear on the wall, depicting a scene of a large bipedal canine leading an ice covered army of those wooden wolves and smaller two-legged canines. It transitioned through a war-torn battlefield between the canine forces and an army of horses, some with wings, others with horns, but most with none. Leading those forces were a pair of equines with both carved at the base of the stairs.

I paused, before whipping around, messer pointed at large dog's snout. It widened it's eyes, backpedaling as it raised its large hands in surrender. Wait, hands? I kept my blade raised as I took in the creature in front of me.

It stood on it's hind legs, balancing itself with a mangy tail with short bony spines at the end. It wore a red vest over its dark gray fur. Large expressive lime green eyes fearfully stared from their place above its snout. I looked behind it to see two others, one larger and darker, the other smaller with a tanner coat. 

Well, looks like I found the natives... I moved my torch out low and behind me. I slightly lowered my blade, ready to bring it back to bear. "Who are you?" I rumbled.

"R-Rover." The lead one stammered, never looking away from the blade and the drifting frost. "This is Spot and Fido." He, judging by the voice, seemed to get control of its voice as it spoke. "Why are you here in our sacred cave?" His eyes flicked to my neck. "You here to pray, too?"

I looked over the three dogs. I pointed with my torch to the stairs. "Sit there." I commanded. "If you have any, light a torch." The largest one, Fido, wordlessly pulled his own torch out and held it out for me to light. The three dogs sat under the carvings without further words. "If any of you move, I will strike." I rumbled a warning.

I found a crack in the floor and jammed my torch into it. With my now free hand, I pulled my scroll out. What am supposed to do now? As if to answer my thoughts, the ink on the scroll moved to show a copy of the carvings as well as the faces of the three dogs. It also showed a design for a studded collar.

I looked up at the dogs, placing the scroll into its pocket. I picked my torch back up, stomping my way back to the stairs. "I have questions that need answering." I growled. "You will answer them." Rover nodded his head in a nervous blur. "I will sheath my blade, but I will be quick to strike if any of you move to cause me harm." Seeing them all nod their understanding, I put action to words.

"Why is this cave sacred?" I began.

"This was the first home all packs in this area had. Many of our ancestors were laid to rest here." Rover spoke up. "While it has been abandoned over time, every dog still makes pilgrimages at least once in their lives to pay respects to our ancestors, who carved our northern brethren's prophecies onto the walls. This place, called Old Home, is also our final refuge. This will be the last bastion of Diamond Dog kind in the end days."

"What do the carvings mean?"

Spot raised a hand. "It is the prophecy of the rise of the Diamond Dogs over the Ponies of the surface!" He barked.

Rover smacked Spot with his tail. "There is more than that!" He turned back to me. "It was said that a dog would be born who could wield and control winter as the Pony Princess' control the sun and moon, and that this dog would unite all of the packs under their collar. They would even be able to command the spirits of the wild wolves, like the timberwolves of the Everfree. This dog would lead us to claim our place on the surface.

"Many dogs have tried in years past, but all have failed. Lord Crunch came the closest, but he was defeated by the Princesses the first time he left the caves." Rover sighed sadly. "None have had even met the prophecy's basic signs. All pack Alphas have had weapons enchanted with the best ice spells, but none could command the season itself. These days, while we still believe that we will one day carve a place out on the surface, the prophecy is told as a fairy tale. None truly believe in it."

I tilted my head. "Do you?"

"Once, maybe, as a pup." He shrugged. "But who doesn't want to grow up to be the great hero of the packs at that age?"

Thinking back to the collar design, and Rover's words, I asked. "What is the meaning behind the collars?"

"You don't know?" Spot gasped. I saw Fido look at me with pity as Rover clubbed the smaller dog with his tail again.

"I am sorry, for you to lose your pack at such a young age." Rover sighed, rubbing his bare neck. "It is how dogs tell which pack each other is from."

I motioned to Rovers neck. "And your's?"

"Banished." Fido grumbled.

Rover nodded. "Kicked out of our pack because we lost a slave."

"You keep slaves." I rumbled lowly.

"Our Alpha did!" He snarled. "Some other packs do, too. They think it will," he raised his paw to make air quotes, "'help them remember their place beneath us'. They are the exception, not the rule. No sane Alpha would risk the wrath of the Princesses if they found out."

"And yet, you still took slaves." I stated.

"What else were we supposed to do?" Rover whipped his arms out. "Challenge the Alpha for his place? Bruno would be chewing our bones for dinner!" He panted into the echoes. "We're glad we banished, but..."

"No pack, no home." Fido sighed.

"No one take strays in." Spot whined. "We have no collar, we must be bad. Safer for pack, safer for Alpha."

Rover nodded. "So we come here, maybe scrounge a living in the Everfree above us. Hope that a pack would take pity on us and either take us in, or, more likely, end our suffering. We've been staying in the ruins over there." He waved off across the cavern's floor. "You have no pack, you can stay with us."

I looked over the group of dejected outcasts. These were dogs who had nothing but the vests they wore and each other. "This is just sad." I sighed. Spot quickly shot a glare at me, but the others just looked at me with sad confusion. "What's stopping you from starting your own pack?"

Rover snorted. "No one knows our names, and Bruno would hunt us down for daring to set up a territory so close to his. He likes to scam pilgrims as they come here." Another sigh. "If we could make a name for ourselves, far from here, while getting the resources we'd need, then maybe we could buy the leather we'd need to make ourselves our new collars. And, besides, what could three dogs accomplish? We'd never make names for ourselves." 

"Give me one good man, and I'll show you." I gave a mirthless smile.

Rover squinted at me. "Wait, were did you get the leather for your fancy coat, if you are a stray like us?"

I placed a hand on my swords hilt. "Made it myself." I rumbled. "I don't have the equipment to make more leather, though. And I'm not ruining my duster for you."

Fido waved a paw. "Alpha's need fancy coat. Easier to find like that." The other two nodded sagely.

"We get leather somehow." Spot stated.

"If alpha lead us?" Rover gave me an expectant look.

"... You want me, a 'stray' you just met, with no clue as to my past, lead you?" I raised an eyebrow.

"We know that you have a fancy sword, and that you have a fancy coat you made yourself, so you must be a strong fighter. We know that you can stand with no tail, so you must be very nimble. You ask questions with minimal threats, so you must be smart." Rover shrugged. "Why wouldn't you be a good leader?"

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not even a Diamond Dog."

The three shared a look. "You're not? Then how did you get down here?" Rover asked.

I pointed back up the stairs. "I came in from the cave entrance in the gorge."

"You must be dog." Fido rumbled. "Only dog can find Old Home surface entrance."

"Fido's right." Rover nodded. "Ancestor's placed a powerful spell on Old Home to keep the Winter Ponies out when they followed them from the north. No non-dog can find this place, so long as it is remembered."

"But why me?"

"We be here for many sleeps now, without purpose." Spot explained with a hopeful smile. "You come, give us purpose?"

I blinked with a shake of my head. "Isn't claiming allegiance to me like this a little quick?"

They shared another look. Rover spoke up for the trio again. "For the last several days, we've been felling like we've been waiting for something." He nodded at me. "I think you might be it. So, what do we call you? And what do you want to call your pack?"

Is this what I'm meant to do? I mentally sighed. Lead three mutts to "glory"? I turned from Rover, walking off towards the ruins. "You can call me Fernando." I sighed.

Thinking on the design of the collar, and how they seemed to be made from frozen flame, I smirked. "From now on, we are the Arctic Hounds."
> The Unexpected Guests.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

They weren't kidding about this place being a ruin. I looked around the run down hovel the dogs had lead me to. It was one of many that had been carved into the far wall.  At my request, Rover had scratched a map of Old Home on one of the walls, labeling the tunnels leaving from the massive cavern. I was briefly stunned when he just started carving with his claws, not even bothering to grab a chisel. Spot and Fido had crawled into their bedrolls against the fair wall to try and sleep.

I'm being generous with calling those tattered cloth scraps 'bedrolls'.

"Alright, Rover." I said at length, turning from the wall. "What, and where, are the nearest packs?"

Rover stepped up to the wall to point at the tunnels. "Well, there's Bruno's Devil Dogs to the south east, near the pony town. The Iron Wolves are to the east, near the border of the Badlands. They're lead by a she-dog called Ash Ear. Up northish is the Steel Labs. They're the best metal workers in the forest. Don't know who the Alpha is, though.

"There's a group of packs that made an alliance to the west, called the Trader's Market. It's made of the Thunder Paws, the Freebooters, and the Black Fangs, lead by Lassie, Badrok, and Ralph, respectively. They tend to trade with the Buffalo out that way. They get their goods from the last nearby pack, which is south west of us, called Coyote's Howlers. Obviously, the Alpha's Coyote." Rover marked the packs' names on the tunnels leading to them.

"What about pony settlements?"

"Eh, Dodge Junction to the northeast, a new one to the west called Appleoosa, or something, Hollow Shades up that way." He waved to the upper left corner of the map, before tapping a point near Bruno's pack. "But the important one is Ponyville. They've got new heroes there."

I felt a shiver of excitement run through me. "Oh?"

"Yeah." Rover nodded. "I've only heard rumors, mind you, but they apparently wield the strongest of pony magics between them. They defeated an ancient evil in a single night."

"So, the ponies used to be oppressed?" I mused.

Rover slowly looked at me. "No.... This evil escaped its prison in the moon and defeated the Princess. Then the six ponies beat it in this ancient castle in the Everfree."

"Don't you mean 'Princesses'?" I rumbled.

"No, there was only one Princess at the time." Rover looked down in thought. "The second Princess showed up shortly after that night, though."

"That makes me wonder." We shared a look. "Just where exactly did this new princess come from?"

Rover shrugged. "Maybe the leader of the six heroes was crowned?"

Something tickled the back of my mind. "Maybe." I looked at my crude map. "Any pony cities?"

Rover tapped the wall off to the south. "Baltimare is the second nearest." He waved a paw to the south east. "Canterlot's closer, but it's the Alpha Settlement, and the Princesses live there."

"We won't be going there with only four dogs." I stated. I hummed in thought. If we hit a small town, it'd be safer, but might not give us the resources we need to start a pack. Hitting a larger city will give us more renown to start recruiting dogs, but would be riskier with just us. I stared at the wall, staring at nothing as I focused on potential plans. Hmm, big cities have suburbs....

My eyes snapped to Rover. "Get some rest. We leave for Baltimare tomorrow."



We had packed up everything we had owned, and left Old Home behind. I followed Rover as he led us through the tunnels. Spot walked behind me, while Fido carried the only lit torch at the rear. 

As we walked, I let my thoughts wonder. While it may have been useful to live there, I don't think we should set up shop in Old Home. But where to set up? I focused on the lead dog. "Rover," I lowly rumbled, "Where is a good set of caves directly south of Old Home?"

"It's a little ways off." He shrugged. "But it's too close to Bruno's pack. When he finds out..."

"If he finds out, I will deal with him." I growled, my hand tightening on my messer's hilt. "When we come back from Baltimare, take us there."

"Got it, Alpha." Rover said.

We continued our walk in silence, stopping only to eat and sleep once "night" fell. Waking early, we ate our breakfast on the move. Even though we only focused on moving, it still took us two more days before the tunnel started to slant upwards.

"I take it we need to leave the tunnels?" I asked. "A safety precaution against the ponies finding us?"

"Got it in one." Rover confirmed. "Not many dogs out here. We'll need to dig our own tunnels for whatever you may have planned."

"Very well." I rumbled as I stepped out into the light. I blinked as my eyes adjusted to proper sunlight. "Let's get as close to the suburb sprawl as we can before we start digging."

"Should be another day, then." Rover nodded.

About a day later, we stood on a cliff looking out over the forest and the distant buildings marking the edge of Baltimare's suburbia. The trees were awashed with the setting sun's light, the near by river reflecting the dying light. Planting my new walking stick, we got started with making camp. Soon enough, Fido was boiling a wild bird we had caught earlier while Spot put the finishing touches on our lean-to. Rover and I were sitting at he cliff's edge, discussing our potential plans.

The next day, we would begin to dig.



We had spent a few days digging, setting up a few dead end tunnels and traps as was the dog's apparent habit. We even included a trap of my own design. We were taking a break while we ate the last of the bird.

Hmmm. Going to need to send someone for food tomorrow. I pulled my scroll out looking for anything new on it. Noting a blotch of ink I reached out and poked it. I watched as the blotch expanded out to cover a section of the scroll. It took me a moment to realize that it was showing a map of the tunnels we were in. 

But if that section was our tunnel, what was that open spot ahead of us?

I quickly hid the scroll before standing and drawing my blade. The motion wasn't missed by the others as they readied themselves for a fight.

"Something's ahead." I growled. Fido and Rover flanked the wall with fists raised while Spot carefully dug a small hole. 

He managed to poke a claw through the wall. Stepping back, he turned to me. "There's a space ahead. You want me to look through hole?" With my nod, Spot returned to the wall and leaned forward to look through his peephole.

Without warning, a large paw smashed through the wall, grabbed Spot around the neck. Before we could blink, there was a new, Spot-shaped hole in the wall. Rover and Fido began to widen the hole as we listened to Spot's cries of alarm. 

They were taking too long.

"Move!" I barked before throwing my shoulder into the wall, bursting through in a spray of earth and rocks. Without slowing, I body-checked the first dog I saw. Feeling that I had lifted them off the ground, I thrust my left hand out and threw the dog into the far wall. I turned to see Spot being thrown at Fido while Rover brawled with a border collie. A dachshund lay dazed against the wall.

I barely had time to raise my blade before a walking mountain slammed a paw into my gut. With a wheeze, I refused to bend as I slashed out at the beasts arm. My blade only scored a shallow cut through the thick fur as the force of the blow pushed me back. I glared at the furred giant, giving a grim smirk as frost clung to the thing's fur. I felt my chest and hid a wince. Oh, that's a broken rib.

I kept my blade at guard, growling at the being in front of me. "If you stand down, we'll stand down."

"What's stoppin' ya from just keepin' fightin'?" It rumbled back at me.

I watched as Fido held Spot back by the hole in the wall. "We didn't know you were here." I replied. "We will stay on that side of the wall, you stay on this side?"

It nodded.

"Rover!" I commanded. He ducked back to look at me. I pointed towards my other two dogs. "Stand down."

"You too, Missy."

I backed towards the hole in the wall, taking the chance to get a good look at our opponents. The dachshund was being lifted to their feet by the mountain of a creature, while the collie glared at us. None wore collars.

This gives me an idea. I mused as I felt my rib set itself. Sucking in a deep breath, I spoke. "I apologize for breaking into your home." I rumbled to the group. "We didn't know that others were out here."

The dachshund leaned on the largest, I assume, dog. "Who's that?" She whimpered.

"Just some stupid strays." The collie answered at a quick glance at our necks.

"I'll judge tha'." The big one grunted. It turned to us. "What'chu wan'?"

I sheathed my blade as I replied. "We're on our way to Baltimare to make a name for ourselves. Get the shit we need to start a pack."

The collie scoffed. "Just the four of you, taking on a city of ponies? You really are just some stupid strays!"

"Stupid or not, we're going to do it." I shrugged. "Of course, when word spreads of our deeds, do you really think the ponies would care which dogs the retaliate against?"

The mountain of fur let loose a growl that I could feel through my shoes. "Is tha' a threat?"

I shook my head, holding a hand out to stop Spot from bolting. "No, merely a warning. I can't, nor will, force you to leave. But, we will be passing by this way when we're done here, and I'd hate to have you caught up in our consequences." I gave my best disarming smile. "Of course, you could always join us."

"What would you want with a crippled bitch?" The dachshund demanded.

I blinked. That was rather straight forward of her.

"Crippled how?" Spot cut in before I could speak. Fido gave him a smack for me.

"I'm blind, you idiot." She snapped back.

"Blind or not," I rumbled, glaring at Spot before his mouth could get us into trouble, "the Arctic Hounds will take in any strays." I turned my look to the other two, and saw them give me slight nods. "We are collarless right now anyways." I turned my smile back onto the three strangers. "I'm sure that there's something that we can offer each other..."

The big one looked us over. "Ya know th' rules o' hospitality?" I nodded. "Good. Then yer our guest. Missy, help Zeva git some foods goin'." It turned to me. "You an' I gots some words to have."

"Of course." I nodded. "Where can my lads rest up?"

"Down th' tunnel, to th' left." It flicked a massive paw between me and it. "We'll stay here t' talk."

I leaned against the tunnel wall as Rover led the others past me. We stood in silence, taking our measure of the other. It almost seemed like a silent battle of our wills.

"So." It broke first. "What'chu here for?"

"I told you: to make a name for ourselves." I shrugged. "We don't have much -we're strays, after all- so we need to steal what we can to get started. Don't matter if it's supplies or wealth."

"Ya must've been doin' somethin' right. Got yerself a fancy coat an' sword." It eye-balled me while rubbing the last of the frost off. "What's yer story?"

"Tell me yours, and I'll tell ya ours."

A grunt came as my response. "Ya know Zeva's, she's blind. Ain't a pack that'll take a blind dog. She's lucky she ran inta us. Missy made a play fer Alpha, got banished fer her troubles. Mutt didn' even give'er a fight. Just upped and booted her. Shit pack, anyways. An' me?" It waved a paw at itself. "I'm a Mastiff. One o' the rarer Tibet'n ones. No Alpha'd risk a dog my size in their pack, even a girl like me could make a play at bein' Alpha."

That's a girl?! I nodded. "Rover, Spot, and Fido all got kicked from the same pack. Wouldn't take slaves." I watched for her reaction. She gave a nod and a smile. "I take it we're of the same mind on that?"

"Takin' pony slaves is pointless. Git a dog t' do a dog's work."

I sighed. "As for me, never had one to get banished from. Everything I have, I found or made myself."

The silence fell again. This time, it seemed to have shifted to a companionable one. Eventually, it was broken.

"Hey, Alpha!" Fido leaned into the room. "Missy sent me. Food's done."

As one, we made our way to the table. The she dog and I sat at the head of the table. Neither of us took the actual head. Instead, we sat on opposite shoulders, with our dogs alternating sides down the table. We ate in silence, each focusing on their own bowls. Even still, I could feel a tension in the air. Missy, sitting beside me, kept glancing at me out of the corner of her eye.

Soon enough, our bowls had been licked clean, and Spot had helped Zeva put the leftovers away. The mountain of a dog led us to a room we could rest in while Missy left with Zeva. As I watched my dogs unfurl their bedrolls, I turned to our host.

"We will be leaving in the morning." I stated. "Thank you for tonight's hospitality." I turned to leave, but was stopped when she paw onto my shoulder.

"Did ya mean it with yer offer?"

I nodded.

"I'll talk it over with th' girls. Give ya our answer before ya leave." She started to turn away, before pausing. "Didn't give ya m' name. It's Capricorn."

"Fernando." I smiled as I rejoined my pack. "Good night, lads."

"Night, boss." Spot muttered.
> A Growing Pack.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I awoke early. I looked to my dogs, watching their sleeping forms for a moment. I got up and, idly flipping Spot's blanket back over him, I left the room. I turned for where I remember the bathroom was, passing a few unused rooms doing so. I paused when I heard a faint hard knocking sound, but ignored it for my own bodily needs.

Once my business was done, I returned to our given room. Using what little space I had, I went through a quick routine of stretches and exercises. Afterwards, I focused on my magic. That's right, I had magic. I discovered it when I asked Rover about where the excess dirt was going1. He looked at me before explaining that a Dog's innate magic prevents it from expanding. They could also super compress it to brace and shore up tunnel walls. He gave me some exercises they teach pups. After my routine, I quietly belted my blade on before slowly pulling on my coat. I soon had my bedding rolled up and tied to my pack. Nodding to myself, I stepped out into the tunnel.

I had kept an ear on the knocking noise all morning and, while it slightly changed in tone or pitch, it hadn't stopped except for the briefest of moments.

I followed my ears, stepping as lightly as I could. Soon, I found myself in a kitchen of sorts. Looking around, I quickly spotted Zeva at a counter, staring at the wall in front of her while her paws deftly minced a potato on the counter. My gaze drifted over the other cut and prepared food. Salted meat lay a few feet away on a separate cutting board. I watched as Zeva slid the cuttings from her current board onto a pan with the knife while grabbing a second potato with her other paw.

“You might as well come in.” Zeva's soft voice drifted to me. “I know you're standing there.”

I took a few steps into the room. “Sorry.” I rumbled. “Didn't want to startle you-”

“I'm blind, not stupid.” She interrupted, her chopping growing slightly harder. “I heard you shuffling to the bathroom earlier.”

I nodded. “And how did you know I was in the doorway?”

“I didn't.” The slivers of potatoes slid into the pan as a third took their place. “Not for sure. For a larger breed, you know how to move quietly.”

“Had to.” I shrugged, my mind turning to my fragmented memories. “Grew up... on the surface. Alone. It was very difficult at first. Didn't really get any easier.”

“Sounds like you had a hard life?” Zeva pressed.

“I did.” With no further words coming, Zeva let the matter drop. I moved to a vacant stool and sat down, content with watching the dachshund work. 

Soon enough, she spoke up again. “I hate to impose, but could you start the fire for me?” She asked, pointing to a wood stove. I could see some embers still clinging to life within it's confines. “I usually end up hurting myself with the flint and steel.” She placed the knife down after scraping the last potato into the pan.

“Sure.” I arched an eyebrow while moving for the wood box. I quickly made a small pile of tinder within the stove, gently resting on the embers. With careful puffing, I soon had the tinder burning. Slowly, I added larger and larger pieces until I had a proper fire going.

“Odd.” Zeva tilted her head. “I didn't hear any rasping...”

“Didn't need to.” I glanced at her. She had shifted over to the meat, cleaver raised in her up-stretched paw. Her feet, placed shoulder width apart, lifted slightly from the force of her chop. “You never hurt yourself, didn't you.”

With a small huff, she raised her muzzle. “What makes you say that?”

“You're chopping meat with strong overhead swings, with the knife not once landing near your other paw. You diced the potatoes with the speed and precision of a dog that can see.” I rumbled as I stood. I slowly stepped towards her as she rested the knife on the cutting board. “Both of which speaks highly of your spacial awareness and skill with your blade.” I trailed my gaze across her lithe form. “And you clearly had some formal training with your stance, which your toned muscles suggest you keep in practice of.

“All in all, I doubt you were ever clumsy enough to hurt yourself on something like flint and steal.” I stepped back and returned to the stool. “Like you said, you're blind, not stupid.”

She resumed her chopping with a chuckle. “You are good.” She said with a shake of her head. “And right. The surface is a difficult place...”

I felt the heavy foot falls long before their owner leaned into the kitchen. “How long fer breakfast?” Capricorn asked.

“Not too long.” Zeva answered, placing the first pan onto the stove top. “Give me about ten, fifteen minutes.”

“'Kay.” Capricorn's gaze turned to me. “Ya might as well git yer dogs up.”

I stood with a nod and left without a word.

“I took my measure of him.” Zeva's voice drifted to me.

“An'?”

I couldn't hear much more of the conversation as I came to my dogs' room. I thumped through the room, whipping blankets off of sleeping forms. “Up and at 'em, boys.” I smirked as I watched them squirm awake. “Pack up your rolls, in case we need to leave quickly. Breakfast is in fifteen, I'm going to talk with our host.”

I stepped out, only moving far enough so I wouldn't be heard.

“Bet he not packed yet.” Spot grumbled.

“No, he's packed.” Rover sighed. “Right, let's make sure this room is spotless...”

They're good lads. I thought with a smile. I made my way towards the dining room, intending to help set the table. I slowed when words drifted to me.

“... Can't and won't.” Missy stated. “Zeva needs us, no matter what she insists.”

“An' yet..?”

“I don't trust them. We know next to nothin' about them. They could just be bidin' their time until they have the perfect opportunity to off you, and then Zeva and I would be defenseless.”

“Ya know tha' ain't true.” Capricorn chuckled. “Zeva's tougher then tha'. She'd protect ya.”

“This isn't a jokin' matter!” Missy snapped. “Don't you think that this is just too perfect? A small band of plucky exiles comin' to rescue a kennel of bitches, like in the caretaker's old stories? Most of those don't end too well for us.” I heard as what sounded like plates clattered onto the table. “And the one leadin' them! He barely has any fur, no muzzle, and his ears look so very wrong! He doesn't even have a freakin' tail! He even shrugged off one of your blows! No wonder he grew up without a pack. Freakish mutant.”

“But a strong one.” Capricorn paused. “No pack t' learn from, t' raise 'im right. An' yet, here he is, with a coat an' sword fit fer a proper Alpha. There's somethin' abou' him, Missy. Somethin' tha' tells me he's gonna go places.”

Missy snorted. “Like rottin' in some mutt's trash heap.”

“Don' be to hard on him. He grew up with no pack, an' yet still made tha' fancy coat o' his?”

“He could'a stole it of some other mutt and be lyin'.” Missy scoffed. “Smokey tunnels, even  Zeva can do tha'!”

Capricorn snorted this time. “I still think yer over thinkin' it.'

I shook my head and carefully moved away from the door. She'll keep me on my toes at least. After I was several steps away, I turned back for the dining room. Letting my feet fall with a bit more force, I called out. “Capricorn, you down here?”

“Yeah.” She replied as I poked my head into the room. “Ya need somethin'?”

Seeing that the table was mostly set, I moved into the room to get out of the doorway. “I was wondering if you had time to talk before breakfast.”

The mastiff shrugged. “So long's it don' take t' long.” She led me from the room. We didn't go far before she stopped.

“I'll be blunt.” I rumbled. “These are your tunnels. I would appreciate it if you could lead us to the point closest to Baltimare. My lads and I can dig our way from there.”

“Yea, Missy an' I can do tha'.”

I nodded. “Thank you. For the help and giving us a place for the night.”

Rover led my other dogs past us. “We can leave when you're ready.”

Capricorn watched them pass. “When do ya plan on leaving?”

“Right after breakfast.” I answered.

“Kay. I'll go help Zeva brin' it in.”

Breakfast passed in silence. I could feel Missy glaring at me for most of it. I didn't know what has caused her to be so angry with me, but I could work with it.

She'll keep me honest, if nothing else.

"So." Capricorn spoke up as the last few mouthfuls were scooped up. I turned to her, handing off my dirty plate to Spot. "Ya planin' on leavin' now." It was not a question. 

Spot paused in placing the dirty dishes in a pile for later cleaning, while everyone else looked to me for my answer.

"I'm afraid so." I rumbled. "The sooner we can begin, the sooner we can make our collars." My dogs all nodded in agreement.

"Ya said tha' you'd take in strays? Ya ain't gone back on tha'?" The large dog confirmed. Once I had nodded, she looked to her girls. Missy gave Zeva's paw a slight squeeze, and both dogs gave slight nods, though Missy's carried a slight scowl with it. Capricorn smiled before continuing. "Then we'll take it."

"You give me one reason," Missy glared at me, "and I'll take you down myself!"

"Good." She blinked as I addressed her. "If you have any complaints, let me know. I cannot fix what I don't know." I leaned back in my chair, giving her a small smile. "If you'd like, you can poke holes in all my plans. Help me shore them up, and you might even find something that I missed. And, if you ever wish to leave, then I won't stop you. So long as you return your collar, of course."

Although she never stopped glaring, it did weaken slightly.

I leaned over the table. "Alright then. Are far have you dug into Baltimare?"

"Only far enough to raid the nearest farms." Zeva answered.

"How far are those from the suburbs?"

"'Bout twenty tailin's2 from th' farm nearest to th' houses." Capricorn rumbled. "Tha' farm's 'bout thirty, forty tailin's from our nearest tunnel."

I nodded. "Quite a way to go." I rumbled, steepling my fingers as I mused. I looked over at Spot and Fido. "You remember the fall back plan?" They nodded. "Fido, you and Zeva start packing this place up and prepping a fall back point at the start of our tunnels here. Only leave anything we can't easily replace, tear up, or anything we won't need."

"Why me?" Zeva asked as Fido shot me a thumbs up.

"You know this den well enough to not need a paw on the wall, and you gathered the ingredients for breakfast without any help." I smiled, knowing that she couldn't see it. "Fido can supply all the muscle you'd need." I looked over the rest of my dogs. "The rest of us with focus on extending the tunnels into the suburbs, while stocking up on any food stuffs we may need. Once we've tunneled far enough, we'll start raiding homes for gems and leather, as well as anything else we could make use of." I watched a grin spread across Missy's face.




It took us several days to dig the full distance, taking the time to put in the necessary traps and dead ends the Dogs were so found of. We had taken long enough for Fido and Zeva to finish their tasks. Once they had rejoined us, I had Zeva stay in the base. She would be in charge of sorting and storing our ill-gained loot. Right now, she was moving our perishable foods to the fall back point.

Fido had joined us in the tunnels, his strength helping speed up the excavation, especially alongside Capricorn. Spot was sent back to help Zeva and, since he was the fastest of us, to act as a messenger between us.

We stopped tunneling when we unearthed plumbing. Shoring up the walls with our own innate magics, we began to follow the pipes to the sewers.

I patted the brick wall we had dug up. "What time of day is it?"

Rover placed a paw against the dirt, closing his eyes. "Just after sundown, I think."

"Good." I stated. I stepped back and pointed at the wall. "Lets get this torn down. Quietly." I added as Fido wound up a punch. "I want to be able to put his back together as we come and go."

"Why should we care?" Missy asked.

"Let me answer with a question." I rumbled in response. "What would terrify ponies more: a small pack that they can easily track down and find, or one that seemingly vanish into thin air?"

"But they'd just get lost in our tunnels." Missy countered.

"That's already too close." I growled. "And what's stopping the Guard from methodically searching every tunnel. Sure, that'd give us time to pack up and leave, but they could always get lucky and follow the right tunnels. And that's just assuming that they don't have a unicorn that knows any tracking spells."

"In which case, being lead to a brick wall in the sewers will confuse or mislead them for longer then coming across a patch of dirt in the sewer wall." Rover nodded. He leaned in to study a part of the wall. "Capricorn? If you have any metal to spare, we could probably make some hinges. Put them here and here, and a deadbolt here," he pointed to a couple of bricks, "and we could make a door. Let us keep the mortar intact, which will hid the door on the other side."

"Jus' need a mark on th' other side." Capricorn nodded. "Fer us."

I leaned down and scratched a stylized flame inside a hexagon on the ground. "Think you can make a smaller version of this? Small enough to fit in a corner of a brick?"

Fido took a look at it, and scratched it in the dirt, making it smaller and smaller. The smallest one, he scratched into the middle of the wall. I smoothed out the dirt, before we all turned and left for the metal.
> It Begins.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had taken us a few days to create our door, and even longer to map the sewers. We knew which houses looked like they held what we needed were, if not what they contained. I sat at the dining room table, maps and papers in hand, going over everything we knew. The dogs left me to it, citing that I would ask for their opinions if I wanted it.

They're too used to the Alphas planing everything, it seems.

Hmm... I rubbed my eyes as I contemplated. If there's one thing these ponies did right, they've keep anything valuable out of sight. I'm going to need to take a risk and just pick a house to hit. I pulled my scroll out, and started scratching what I knew about the 'best' houses to hit. Once done, I checked their locations on our map. Hmmm. This residence is the furthest from our sewer door. It might be safest to hit it first, use the surprise of the raid to run the distance back. A brief, dull glow from my scroll caught my attention. Oh? What's this?

I focused on the scroll, and noticed a list of valuables listed beside each house. How did that get there? None of us knew about those. I shrugged, putting it from my mind. Must be my mysterious benefactor. Although, this does give me enough info to start my plans. But I mustn't become reliant on this. I looked up to the door as Missy walk past. "Missy, a moment, if you would?"

"Wadda want?" She groaned as she approached the table.

I flip the map and parchments to face her, keeping my scroll to myself. "What do you make of this?"

She scoffed. "I assume you have a plan?" I nodded. "Then why even ask me?"

"You might find something I missed." I rumbled.

She rolled her eyes at me, then bent down to examine the papers. It didn't take her long to give me her answer. "I'd hit this house first, then this one. Both in the same night, but only at night. We grab everything we can." She tapped the two closest houses as she spoke.

"Why?"

"Does it matter?" She snarked, giving me a glare. I just rolled my hand, encouraging her to continue. "The close access to the tunnel will give us an easy escape if we get caught, and we could split our forces to hit both houses at once. Ya know, double our gain?"

"How would you split us?"

"You, Fido and Rover hit the farther house, Spot, Capricorn and I hit the closer."

I nodded. "And then what?"

"Eh," she shrugged, "I'd figure that out tomorrow."

"That's not good enough." I stated, raising a hand to cut off her retort. "If you plan far enough ahead, you can anticipate what you're foe will do. Ever play chess?" She shook her head. "Of course not. You should, if you want to be an Alpha. It'll teach you to strategize." I pulled the papers back to me. "Now, your plan does have merit, but only if we had more dogs. Why send only three dogs against an unknown number of hostiles?

"Also, I think we should save the nearest houses for when the pones catch on to us, make it easier to get away." I looked up at her. "What do you think?"

"So we hit a couple of mid distance ones." She scowled. "Don't change my plan none."

I sighed. "Can you go find the others? I'll detail the plan to the Pack as a whole."

That got a final eye roll and sigh. "Fine."

I had enough time to unfurl our larger map and set up some tokens before the Pack had all gathered. I waited until everydog was seated, letting them look over the map I had set up. I had the furthest house circled, and I began by tapping the token. "This is our target for tonight." I rumbled. "It's the farthest house from our door. Zeva, you're on door guard duty. When we come back, we'll knock three times. We may be coming back hot, so you'll need to be ready to open and close it quickly. Do you want anyone for company?"

She shook her head. "I'll be fine alone."

"Good. Spot, you and Missy will be on watch. Each of you are to take a corner of the lot. If you see ponies coming, let us know and we'll bail. The rest of us will be looting the house. Fido, Capricorn, you're going to be the muscle here. Grab as much as you can carry, but prioritize leathers and diamonds. Rover and I will be rounding up the occupants and keeping them secure.

"I want this quick and quiet. If we can be done in ten minutes, great. Under five? Even better." I made sure to look each of them in the eye. "No killing if we can help it. I want the city guards to come after us as thieves, not killers."

"Why would that matter?" Missy asked. "They'd still be after us."

"Yes, but how they'd be after us would be different." I explained. "As thieves, they'd be after us to reclaim goods and wares, and throw us in jail if they could. They'd be happy with one or two of us, hoping that we'd either rescue the ones caught, or leave them behind as we go after easier pickings.

"As murderers, they'd be after us, wares be damned. They wouldn't stop at just one or two, they'd want us all. And they'd be more inclined to use lethal force to stop us." I smiled. "I'd rather they'd underestimate us, at least until we have a larger pack. Any other questions? No? Rover, how long until sunset?"

"About four hours."

"Alright. Everyone get some rest, we move out in five."




We stepped through our door into the sewers, sacs hanging from our belts. I stepped to the side to let Spot take point. Missy hung back as the rest of my pack spread into the sewers.

"Are you sure you'll be okay." Missy fussed about Zeva.

The blind dog waved her off. "I'll be fine. You go have fun with the raid." She closed the door, shutting us in.

I looked around the group, getting nods back in turn. Turning, I lead the way through the sewers. Soon, we reached the surface access we needed. Stepping back, I let Spot rush up the ladder and slowly lift the cover. After making sure we wouldn't be noticed, he led the way out. Capricorn had to squeeze out last. We crept our way up the street, sticking to what shadows and hedgerows we could.

"When we come back, you and Fido go first. Drop your load to him, then go down after." I ordered, knowing that we may be pressed for time by then. "We'll jump down after you."

"Ya wan' us ta catch ya?"

"That's the idea, yes." I confirmed as we neared our target. It was a two story building, with a small yard at the front. from our scouting, we knew that it had a fairly large backyard.

Missy rushed to the front corner, checking down the side of the building. We waited for her nod before slipping down the side of the building. I edged my way to the corner, peering around it. Seeing no one in the backyard and no lights in the windows, I tapped Spot and waved him forward.

He nodded, bolting across the yard and taking his place at the corner. I led the group to the door, and, after checking the handle, pushed the door in. I glanced at Rover, both of us sharing an arched eyebrow, stunned at the lack of sense displayed. Shaking my head, I stepped in.

The room was neatly organized, yet sparse. We quietly spread through the ground floor, noting the lack of family photos. The table had only a few chairs, and was mostly taken up with schematics. I quickly glanced over them. They looked to be for some kind of motor. I rolled them up and tucked them into my belt.

"Nobody"s down here, boss." Rover whispered to me.

I nodded. "Owner might be single." I snapped my fingers to get my dog's attention and pointed up the stairs. Capricorn nodded, and softly climbed the stairs. One by one, we ascended to the second story. We carefully peeked into each room as we went. Fido hissed at me, pointing of the room he was outside of. Nodding, I made my way over while drawing my blade. Looking in, I saw a four post bed with twined lumps in it. I waved Rover over before stalking into the room.

As I got closet, I saw that a pair of earth ponies were in sleeping in the bed, one male, the other female. Their colors were hard to make out. I pointed Rover to the far side of the bed, where the mare's back was facing. I whipped the blankets of the couple, pointing my blade to the stallion's throat. Rover reached out and grabbed the mare in a choke hold, but refrained from applying pressure.

The mare quickly woke up, and her gasp and choked of scream awoke her most likely husband. His eye's widened upon noticing my blade.

"Are you awake now?" I growled out.

"Y-yes." He squeaked out.

"Good. Anyone else here?"

"N-no."

I glanced at Rover, who nodded to the door. Capricorn tromped of to begin looting the house. Fido came in to begin tying the stallion in his sheets. "You'll stay here. Both of you. You scream, the mare gets it. She screams, you get it. Got it?" He nodded, his hooves hogtied together and muzzle bound. Fido bound the mare the same way, then left to help Capricorn. I waved Rover to join them. "Let me know when we're done."

Rover nodded, leaving the room. I could here faint tinkling and clattering as things were moved around. The stallion flinched when a loud crunching noise echoed through the house. Soon enough the sound died down.

"We're good, boss." Rover leaned in. "The others are getting the haul to the... entrance now."

"Good." I strode forward, and slammed my pommel into the stallions head. The mare began screaming, muffled by her own muzzle, as he slumped into unconsciousness. Her muted screams turned to muted pleas as I turned to her. I cut her off with a quick strike, knocking her out as well. I sliced their legs free, then turned and strode out of the room. "C'mon, lets go."

Rover nodded, following me back as I sheathed my blade.. Once we were down the stairs, we bolted through the open back door. Spot ran across the yard to join us. As a group, we jogged back to the sewer cover. Missy stood over the hole, dropping the last of our gains to the others below. She looked up, nodding before jumping down herself.

Spot pushed the cover over enough to be easily grabbed from below as Rover hopped down. I waved Spot down ahead of me, before flipping down onto the ladder. I pulled the cover back into place before dropping down into Capricorns arms. I gave her a nod as I got my feet under me. I grabbed a chest and accepted a bag on top of it. As one, we turned for our secret exit.

Capricorn reached it first, shifting the safe she was carrying onto her shoulders to knock on the door. With a near silent click, Zeva pulled the door open, making sure to stand out of the way. Capricorn bulled through first, followed by Fido. I waited for the others to go through first before going through myself. I heard Zeva push the door closed behind us.

We didn't stop our running until we got back to our first check point.

We placed our ill-gotten gains down to rest. I quickly began sifting through the loose items and bags. I frowned at the materials inside, before looking over the pair of chests and the safe. The locks on the chests didn't look too hard to pick, if I had the tools for it, but the safe would be it's own problem.

I looked over my group of dogs. "Good work, everyone." I rumbled. "Quick, clean, and we got a good haul. Most of this we'll need to pawn off or repurpose, but we got most of what we needed. No leather, though."

"Here's hoping the next house has some." Rover stated. The others nodded in agreement. "Right, who's carrying what?"

Capricorn lifted the safe back onto her shoulder and tucked a chest under her other arm. Fido claimed the other chest and a pair of bags. The rest we split, even Zeva grabbing a bag. With a smile on my face, I led my pack back to base.