"Aoi... AOOOOOOOOOOOOOIIIII.... WAKE UP YOU 250 POUND FURBALL!" My eyes opened to...

"What the hell?" I seemed to be back in Ponyville, same colorful atmosphere, the weird gingerbread house that sold pastries, the tree library, and the purple building that doubled as a boutique. I turned around to find.

"GAH!" My jaw dropped to the floor, right there, two feet shorter than me, was a white wolf in a blue kosode.

"Fuck of mother, is this what I look like?" His eyes scanned me up and down, darting from my front to my back.

"Who are you?" Suddenly, Princess Luna opened the door of the boutique with chicken feathers in her mouth, spitting them out with an irritated expression. She met eye contact with me, and her eyes widened with a horrified expression.

"Y-y-you're NOT suppose to be here!" the night princess exclaimed.

"Oro?" It was the white wolf who answered. His expression turned blank with fear. "Oh God... Oh God... this is somewhat potentially life threateningly bad." I blinked once.

"Am I still dreaming?" A thunderbolt roared across the sky, turning the day into an artificial night, what descended from the sky was.

"Luna-sama?" I glanced back at the other Luna, then this one. My eyes widened. The white wolf placed a paw on my shoulder and started to explain.

"Listen, I ain't gotta lotta time to explain, but everything can be summarized into three points. One, I'm YOU, well, the you that would have existed had you decided to kill Mr. Stabby McStabbystab way back, what was it... 20 years ago? Nevemind. Two, I'm alternate UNIVERSE YOU, and the Luna that stepped out of Carousel Boutique just happens to be MY Alternate Universe Luna, as well as my wife. Yeah, for those of you who were wondering, YES we eventually got hitched." I looked in the direction that 'I' was talking to. "And Five, no wait, THREE, is that somehow MY Luna had a bit too much of dat hard cider and so now we're able to somewhat jump dimensions through to all the other Aoi's dreams. Oh yeah, and currently Discord is having a dinner party with Fluttershy. BOOM, Spoiler for Season Three. You're WELCOME!"

"I'm leaving..." I turned around to try and wake up. Maybe if I walked long enough I'll eventually hit a lapse in my dream and wake up.

"Holy FUCK! Is that what my hair would have looked like from the back? Shit man, going for the whole Nurarihyon look aren't ya." I was getting a bit irritated. If he was right, and he was the result of me having taken action, I would have rather waited the 20 years to kill him.

"Now don't be like that. Wait, How did I read your mi-" He looked around, slapping himself with his own paw. "Right, right now I'm in the mind of a serial killer's head, worst part is that serial killer is me, er, you, er... Fuck it. Wait." He grabbed the sleeve of my dobuku. "Do me one favor and stand perfectly still."

"What?" Without realizing it, I was slammed in the face with a punch.

"YES! Discord owes me a hundred bits! Thanks man." He turned around, growing a pair of wings, "Oh and before I go, YES Rule 34, 63 and a combination of both applies to Multiverses as well, Which means that: Yes, in other universes you get shipped with Griffin and Echo and Ember and a gender bent version of yourself and Cthulu (BY GOD! DID YOU MADE IT WORK WITH CTHULU...) and Knightmare and Chelu (Which I will only leave you with a description in the general ballpark of "sucky, sucky, fucky, fucky") and pretty much every single royal family member and YES, even the kitchen sink. God speed, you furry fuck-bucket."

"Get out... NOW!" I pull out my pistol, aiming it at the twisted version of me's head. I pull the trigger to have confetti and streamer with a sign that says "bang" shoot out of the barrel.

"Oh shit... time to bail." He grabs one of the Luna's and pulls out an umbrella. "CIAO!"

I woke up with a start, sitting upright in a bar booth. Rubbing my eyes, I spotted Keith face deep in this world's equivalent of Dom Perignon, bubbles rising to the surface. I sigh. "That's it, Keith, I'm never letting you mix my drinks again."

=Luna=

"Oh my goodness!" I woke up from the strangest dream that I've ever had, the mid morning sun shining overhead. Sis suddenly turned to me, apparently doing some spring cleaning. I didn't know we even did that. "Tia, do you know that young wolf that came to the Grand Galloping Gala earlier this year?"

=Aoi=

'Is this going to be a habit?' I think to myself as I rub the weary sleep from my eyes. I needed to practice a bit more self control. Over the months that I've been here I've gotten drunk more times than I've been in my life, caused more trouble and commotion in two different countries, and have met people possibly more unstable than Keith. I look back at the gurgling pony that was my colleague in the human world.

"I take it back, definitely more stable." He lifts his head out of the bowl.

"Eh?" I shake my head. I stare across the floor, covered in unconscious ponies, griffins, and diamond dog's, with Varg sitting in a booth covered in his harem. I stood up, giving myself a spine tingling stretch. I don't know why, but a bed from a bar booth felt much better than the beds of Canterlot's bourgeoisie. I try to rewind what happened last night.

'That's right, after I talked with Varg, I went back to the dining room, and Keith...' I glanced back at him, who started to sway before landing straight back onto the bar table, nose first. 'Told me to lighten up.' After that we went back to the bar, and here Keith held something called a 'wake'. I sat back down, gazing over the various glasses, mugs, and pints all filled with various amounts of different liquors.

=6 hours ago=

"C'mon Aoi, it'll be fun, better than being all depressed and shiz about something that'll never change." Keith raised his glass, "I personally think it will be a hell of a lot more closure than looking at empty gravestones. So..." He looked across the relatives that joined, "Who's gonna start the first Eulogy?" A couple of griffins rubbed their feathers, nervous. "No one? Alright." He downed his mug, wiping away the froth from his muzzle, stepping down from the table.

"Now I didn't know anyone personally, but I wanted to say a few words. Tragedy just happens. It's not because of the eyes of an angry god, or the spite of fate or time, things just happen across a long chain of events that can never be fully explained or justified. But I can tell you one thing. We all die eventually, and honestly, I find it a bit of a waste of time to cry over it." A few teary eyes glared at him, "Not saying that it isn't justified, after all, it's all part of emotion, but rather than cling to the event itself, I think it's worth so much more-" he pulled out a gemstone "-to remember all the precious times more valuable than these gems that you all spent together. I can say, from dining with each and every one of you these past six months, excluding our new guests, that it was some shit load of good times we had here at the Oblong Tomb. Heh, I for one would be glad for this place to be my grave, but I'm not ready to die just yet. Hell, same should go for all of you, every loved one lost is another life the people they've left behind can live for." He turned to me and winked. "So come on, let's swap some stories now, give the place a grand old shine of tales that would make Cuchulain wet his pants." He sat back down, proud and cocksure of his speech. Sure enough, one by one, the loved ones went over to the memorial tablet in the middle of the room, telling tales of good times and bad: childhoods, adventures, and especially romances that brought a tear to many an eye in the bar.

It struck me that with each story, it slowly and slowly reminded me that I never really did once said a eulogy for my parents. It was a proper funeral and all, but I was too shy to even say a word. Now, after having avenged their death, I still haven't given proper honor to them. I took a swig of black rose wine and went up after the last few had told their tale. I took a deep breath, taking out Keith's blade, and etched the characters for both my parents names in the tablet. After folding it back in its hilt, I turned to address the crowd.

"Back when I was a young boy, my mother told be a bed time story. It was about a young prince, and a lovely geisha. Rather than allowing them to be together, the emperor kept them apart, for the geisha was the daughter of a once hated criminal. Back then in Nippon, reputation spread by bloodline, so any romantic affair between the two was a shame upon the emperor. However, she was madly in love with him, and the prince with her. So what did they do? Heh, they wrote love letters to each other that they never sent. Some had beautiful haikus with elegant katas, some were as simple as a few words to tell how much each one missed the other, some were even laced with rather saucy messages. But with no way for one to get the letters to the other, how do you suppose they would get the letters to each other? Or even if there was any point of writing them at all?" A few children raised their arms. I pointed to one.

"They flew them by pigeon." I shook my head with a smile.

"They met someplace and exchange the letters?"

"Close, but not quite." After a few more replies I told them.

"Each passing year, the letters grew less and less, but their love grew more and more. Each prayed to Inari, a goddess of love where I'm from, that someday they would be able to meet. A few months passed, and each got ready for the Autumn Harvest festival, hoping that the festival would take their mind off of their burning desires. The night came, and the festival cheered with music and dancing, but all the two could think about was each other. As midnight drew, they started to walk on a lonely road strewn with lanterns,
wearing masks so that no one would recognize them. Can you guess what happened?" Everyone shook their heads.

"They walked right past each other, not knowing that they were so close to each other, yet both were oblivious to the other's identity. Inari saw this through one of her servants, a tanuki taking guise as a statue in front of her temple, and took pity on them. She sent a brisk wind throughout the entire festival, strong enough from both east and west to free a single letter that each had carried with them. Both of them turned to chase after them, running back into each other to retrieve their secret letters, until they caught up with them, clasping the other's letter in hand. They still didn't notice each other in their masks, simply nodding, apologizing for the inconvenience, and leaving the festive grounds without another word, the geisha to her humble home, and the prince to the palace. It wasn't until later that night that they pulled out their letters, finding that the seal on each of them wasn't theirs. Simultaneously, they ripped open their letters, to find the same letter addressed to the intended recipient. And on those letters was a single word." It was a word that I couldn't bear to write just yet on my letter, one I felt guilty to exclude, and one that I had said once before.

"Ashiteru (I love you)." Infant cries of 'd'aaaaw' floated throughout the bar.

"Sadly enough, the never met again for 10 long years, even after the emperor had died. The Prince was soon swept up in kingly duties as kings often do, and the geisha moved to another province. But on that eleventh year, the festival came around once again. Remembering that fateful event, they each decided to go once more. When they finally met, they didn't recognize each other as ten years changes a person a lot in appearance, so they only saw each other as complete strangers. They stood in front of the temple of Inari, paying their respects. Suddenly, the prince spoke up.

'Every Day I come to this shrine to thank her for this night.' The geisha looked at him.

'Why is that?' she asked earnestly.

'It was on this night, that I had lost a letter.' The Geisha smiled at him.

'Funny, I lost one as well, but I happened to pick up another letter.' At this the emperor looked at her.

'Who was it from?'

'It was from the man I loved, a prince.' She turned her gaze back to the emperor. 'And on that letter was the word-' Their eyes met once more, and a flood of memories going back to when they first met sparked the same burning passion they felt many years ago. They leaned in to each other, locking eyes, holding hands, and together they said.

'I love you.'" Many of them shed a tear for my story. Supposedly, the story was about my great grandparents that had met several hundred years ago. I didn't believe it, of course, but the story stayed with me all the same.

The rest of the night was much livelier thanks to Keith and Eol: Keith talking with the people who knew the departed, and Eol playing pranks and drinking games, even challenging Varg to an arm wrestling contest in which Eol actually won. It brought back the memory of during the fight against the dragon, Eol punching through solid dragon scale. It didn't add up. I went over to him and motioned a private audience, he followed immediately.

"Eol, I wanted to ask you something. Two things actually. One, is how you got it in your head that you would be able to break dragon scale using only your fists, and bare fisted as well. Two, how did you actually do it?" To this Eol only shrugged.

"To be honest, I don't really know myself, I wasn't sure it would work, but something... something made me want to try. I'm not very good with swords, and you saw what happened in the training room when I went up against Ubi. I felt like I was just being a burden. It was seeing you, you taking on the dragon that ate my father, you going up against the entire Canterlot Zoo, you taking care of those 'Black Whoevers' while flying through the air like it was nothing, and me? I'm nothing, just a beta who reads a lot." His ears drooped.

"Then one day I went through something called 'Anatominy' or something like that, and found out a bit of how diamond dog bodies work, one thing was that our bones get stronger when they break, since our bodies use gems to repair them, not sure how, but it does. They grow back stronger and stronger each time. So when we got to Gem Fido, I figured that I could test this out. When you were bed bound, I tried something I thought was crazy at the time: punching solid rock. I did this over and over again, sure the first few times I broke my knuckles, but every day, they healed back better, and stronger too. Two weeks later, I managed to actually make a crack in the rock walls, and when that crazy pony brought you down here, I could actually break through to other branches of the warren. Just watch." He took out a ruby, bringing his fist into the palm he held the gem in. A loud crack followed, and tiny red pieces and some dust was all that was left.

"It got me to thinking, 'If I could break gems now, could I break dragon scale?' There was only one way to find out, and, well, you know the rest."

"The last thing I wanted to talk to you about was thanks. Although your action was crazy and reckless, in the end, you were a big help, and hey, now you can get the credit come mating season to brag that you managed to kill a dragon. After all, it was you who dealt the killing blow." Eol blushed.

"Nah, I don't stand a chance, not with you around. Heh, actually, you were kind of lucky to be hurt during mating season..."

"Oh? Why's that?"

Eol smiled childishly. "Oh, you'll find out next year."

I gulped. This may have been one of the very few times in my life that I had been genuinely scared.

=Present=

"Well, looks like someone had fun last night," I state, standing over the Underking, Topaz tracing circles on his chest.

"Pup, when you've lived as long as I have, you learn to have whatever fun you can take in times like these." The Old wolf chuckled, nipping at Topaz's ears.

"I wonder, what's being undead like?" With something as unnatural as being yanked back to life, I would think that someone would be disturbed by this.

"Like being alive, I still breathe, still feel pain, still have needs, and its not like this-" he lifted up the same arm he showed me when I first came here, "Isn't leaving, eventually all the wounds heal, but take a long time. The only thing I'm really missing is a pulse."

"And you still don't have any idea who did this to you?" He shook his head.

"I still don't know whether to hate him or like him. On one hand, getting shoved back to life at first hurts like Tartarus's fury, but you get used to it, and see it as a second chance. Thing is, I don't know how to die now. Stab me through the heart, already had stopped to begin with. Cut off my head, put it back on and I'm talking again in a month."

"Heh, I'm guessing that with living forever, you get bored pretty fast."

"You could say that." He stretches, "But when you've got pleasurable company like this, It's worth another go at life, no matter how long or short it is."

Two months had passed since the assault, since then we had made major advancements. Word instantly spread across Gem Fido that the Oblong Tomb wasn't so silent anymore, specially since there was still a crater where the airship landed. Varg decided that it was high time that the Underking of Gem Fido made himself known again. With Keith's help in defense systems, in the few short months that followed, we had the entire warren sanctioned and flying under Varg's Flag, an ancient emblem that the surrounding clans knew not to mess with. When messengers were sent to brief the surrounding clans, the results were rather... mixed. Of the 5 clans that bordered Varg's territory, 3 Immediately declared benign neutrality towards the warren, one alpha by the name of Quaretzel pledged allegiance to Varg and I, and one declared war on us. However, one visit from Eol, Ubi and I, and he immediately went to pieces and surrendered.

The Oblong Tomb soon became a main stronghold of operations, relatively close to Equestrian borders, but still a long way from the Dominion. I talked to Varg about Eol's former clan, and within the next month, we were able to transfer their clan to the Oblong Tomb, where they soon swore fealty to me, having been unable to instate an alpha amongst the bloodline. It was a long ceremony, one that I was accustomed to by now. Now, I was commanding a current force of 132 able bodied warriors, with 16 still in training, and a clan number totaling 312, excluding Eol, Ubi, and I. I took time between planning with Varg on the assault on Bitsburg to train everyone in the best way possible, the same way my teachers taught me, even some of the refugees came to practice, wanting to help out Varg and I any way they could.

But all throughout the months, every night when I retired to my chamber, I could think of nothing except the motive and the person behind the attack. It brought back a feeling that fueled me ever since that fateful day. The desire to hunt them down. Many nights I stayed awake, restless, flicking open and shut Keith's blade, which he had dubbed a Corvat, I rolled my eyes at the seemingly arbitrary bearing for it, but for all it was worth, the name somewhat stuck. I took a moment to admire the edge, polished with a blue tint of silver. To think, a little more than half a year ago, he made rather mediocre crafted weapons for a whim, but now: an entire arsenal of weapons along with a blade that could withstand dragon scale.

"So what do you think?" Keith sat down with a cold draft as I stared out of the window.

"It's interesting, on the outside, it's not much, like a regular mountain, but on the inside, every
different species in this warren managed to furnish this like a castle." Many of the earth ponies had asked some of the diamond dogs to help in hollowing out some of the warren for proper housing years ago, and in a few short months, the southern horn of the mountain was hollowed out for the ponies, an entire inn-like structure as big as an entire town.

"I meant the Corvat."

"I know, just keeping you waiting." He blinked twice before laughing.

"So you do have a sense of humor." He leaned back on a bench, the liquid sloshing around in his bottle, "I managed to swipe a paper from a nearby town, did you hear? Masonry got hit, bad, by a black dragon."

"Masonry?" My mind snapped back to the captain. "What happened there?"

"Surprisingly enough it was a young dragon, no taller than you or me. Somehow she managed to turn the entire mountain into a volcano. The article took a tally, and the death toll's in about the thousands."

"Ember..."

"Whassat?"

I folded the Corvat back into its hilt. "A few months ago, she broke into the Grand Galloping Gala, endangered everyone there, and assaulted Princess Luna, and promised to kill Griffin if she had the chance."

"Wait, back up, she did WHAT to best po- I mean Princess Luna? Oh Heeeeelll naw. Now I'mma hafta smack a bitch up."

"I don't think Varg would appreciate you assaulting his mates, now would he?"

"What?" He took a second to register what I just said, "Oh SHAMEful you." He poked a hoof at me. "But seriously though, put some emphasis behind your sarcasm, else it just sounds like a deadpan."

"I'll keep that in mind. On a previous note, I've seen what Ember can do, and I'm pretty sure not even the cannon you tote around in that black box can stand up to her." Keith gives a low whistle in response.

"Damn, I'm going to have to make some adjustments then."

"Keith..."

"Yeah dawg?"

"Why are you even in my room?"

"Psh, and I thought you had read up on human psychology. We're social animals, we thrive on communication, it gives a closer connection to those we converse with. Be it about drugs, sex, war, puppies... love..." He bit his lower lip. "You should try it sometime with Eol and Ubi, after all, you took them in as family, might as well talk to them like one. And hey." He tossed me a drink. "I know how you feel, the more you distance yourself from them, the more isolated, the safer you think they are. Sooner or later though, you'll have to find the courage to always keep them close. You've heard the saying, "Keep friends close, but enemies closer?" Yeah, complete bullshit. The closest you should keep are those you want to protect. After all, when they're so close, you are always in time to save them, and you always have an eye on them."

I smiled. "How is it that you always have some drop of philosophy to share?"

"What, you think I was just a drug crazed mad scientist, gun otaku, genetics genius, and overall nerd glued to the internet? Wait..." He slapped his head with a hoof, "Shit... I AM all those things, except for the drug crazed part." He sprawled out across the couch. "Thanks again, by the way."

"Well, it was either that, or get stabbed when you were waving that kitchen knife around. How is it that you managed to stay unnoticed this whole time?" It was nagging me how he managed to keep a faux identity with no prior training whatsoever.

"Because I actually retained a large portion of sense, enough to know when to somewhat act casual. I'm also great at impressions. You should see my Morgan Freeman voice."

"Who's Morgan Freeman?"

He deadpanned. "And like that, you've lost me." He got up, placing the bottle on a nearby table. "I'm going down to the construction site to see how they're doing without me. Ciao, baby." I laid my head on the window sill. I flick open the blade once more.

'It really is a fine blade. Sooner or later though, all blades becomes stained.'

One day, Inugami returned, calling me to a rather underused section of the warren. It looked like and old marble arena, with weapon racks nailed to the walls. Varg had been called there as well. When I saw him however, he had taken an anthropomorphic guise, clad in ancient samurai armor. But underneath was the same Nora, red markings across his face.

"Dressed for war?" I didn't like where this was going.

"No, to train." Varg and I looked at each other. "Over a thousand years, I've seen history unfold, and actually been a part of it. Now I intend to pass onto you two what I've learned, after all, you two lack a vital thing that once made the warriors of the Sengoku nigh unstoppable in battle." He shot a piercing gaze at both of us. "I stand here not as your friend, but as a teacher. Attack me." I hesitated. He drew a long blade and was on me in a second. I drew Kokuryu, and our blades clashed. I backed away by two steps, swinging my blade with a narrow slash. Out of nowhere, he grabbed the blade mid slash with bare fingers.

'LEFT!' I brought the Corvat up to shield. But instead was met with crippling knee to my lower abdomen. Varg wielded a battle lance and charged in with a full thrust, Inugami pulled Kokuryu downward to intercept the tip, splitting the lance tip to shaft. I let go of Kokuryu and went for a flying guillotine with the Corvat, jumping over Varg. A flash of white brought the divided remnants of the lance to intercept the Corvat, slowing down the slash to a halt. Varg grabbed Kokuryu and attempted to go for Inugami's legs, met only with a sharp kick to the head. To end the battle, Inugami grabbed the part of the lance above where the blade had stopped, trapping it with a vice, and twisted the blade out of my paw, a followup elbow slamming me into the ground. He dropped the Corvat next to my head.

"Tell me, the both of you, when was the last true war you've seen. I'm not talking about missions or duels, but true battlefield warfare." Varg and I both looked at each other, neither of us could answer.

"Thought so." His body morphed back into a feral form. "War has changed, and from what I've seen, has become a lot softer: the human world having the advancement of weaponry and co-ordinated combat, and this land having not seen war for over 900 years. As we progress in history, knowledge, and advancement, we lose a bit more of our fundamental fighting ability with each passing year."

"And what might that be?" Varg asked, folding his arms, "I may have been dead for about 600 years, but I still remember everything I was taught on terms of combat."

"Exactly, you learn... but you lose equally what you've had all along. Instinct."

"Instinct?" Humans always had instinct, every living creature does, but how does one lose it?

"By the look on your face, Aoi, I can tell you're a bit confused. Let me try and make things a bit clearer. Bird do not think, yet at a moment's notice, they avoid gunshots even though they've never experienced them, flies flee right on time to your hand swatting them, and all animals seem to know when a natural disaster comes. Why? It's not reflexes, nor intellect. It's sheer instinct, one that the lack of danger can wear away over time, even over generations. With more and more combat, you yourself have slowly regained some manner of that instinct. But what is it?" He pauses, giving us time to think.

"Simple. It's that tingling feeling when someone pulls the trigger, that twitch before something falls, that tensing of muscle when you feel someone's presence. Aoi, you called it 'Fight or Flight'. In a pure natural setting, when a single millisecond comes between life and death, the fight or flight response is instant. Now, humans are at the top of the food chain, no need to look behind for what might pounce, a setting of dull peace. Because of this, fight or flight has become dull as well, it takes seconds to react, because thought muddles instinct, you foolishly ask yourself the question 'What do I do?' instead of telling yourself 'Do.' And you Varg, wolves are at the peak of clan life, with no rivals, you hunt down whatever you please, having no need to look up for what pounces, only down to your prey. In this regard, both of you are slow compared to the world which uses nature as a regulating device to pick off those that lag. Do you understand?" We both nod. It made sense, but one thing was unclear, how do we get back what we never knew was lost?

"So was that all you needed to tell me, that I'm slow compared to you?" Varg seemed irritated. I intervened.

"No, it means that because that we are rarely in any true danger, with clans protecting us, we've lost our edge." I fold back the Corvat.

"When I was traveling alone, all I could rely on was myself, no one to watch my back for me. Outside Stalliongrad, I could tell when someone was watching me, now, people take me by surprise too often, because I've had Ubi and Eol." I pointed to Varg. "And you've got an entire fortress, not to mention being nigh indestructible."

"So what do you suggest?" I scratched my chin before settling on an answer.

"Historic wars used to be pure melee combat with only the ranged accompaniment of arrows. The battlefield was always hectic, unless you wore the right colors, you were as much an enemy as an ally, and could be killed by almost anything, a stray sword swing, a loose arrow, moromoro (and all the rest). So what better way to regain that instinct to avoid danger, than to believe the entire world wants you dead?" I hold up a single claw.

"It's Bitsburg versus me." The best way to break a shell is to open it from the inside. "We'll discuss it later." With that, I left, leaving behind the two.

=Varg=

"Did you tell him anything?" The overgrown mutt whispered.

"Just the basics. From the news I've heard, the pup's not far off for thinking that." I swear, that kid's got more gems under his weird robe thing than he lets off, and he's not even
undead.

"Just what exactly did the whelp even go through in this 'other world' of yours?"

"If you manage to see his real form, you won't need to ask." Cheeky son of a bitch. At the very least, I can see some stock in what this guy sees in Aoi.

=Aoi=

"WHAT?" Eol's jaw dropped when I broke the news to him. "No way you're going in there alone!"

"I'm going in solo, but that doesn't mean I'm coming out alone. I'll need everyone's help if we're going to pull this off."

"But why are you going in alone?" Ubi asked, "I'll be easier to get to the bottom of this if we work together, we can cover more ground."

"One, since whoever called the attack is clearly against diamond dogs, you can bet that he or she will be trying their hardest to rid the city of them out of public eyes, but they won't be looking for a non diamond dog, and especially won't try to assassinate a knight of the royal court."

"Wait, since when did you become a knight?" Keith asked, slack jawed.

"I didn't, the captain and I bailed out on the ceremony, but since Bitsburg is in Equestrian borders, any emissary harmed within it's borders will warrant a full investigation regardless of species, so all I would have to do is give the impression that I hold political rank. And even then, it's not the first time I've had to fend off attempts on my life."

"All the more reason we should come along." Eol protested. I glared at him.

"I'm going in alone and that's final." I turned to go to my chambers. "After all, once the signal goes up, I'm going to need all the help I can get to get out of there. I need to know I can count on you guys." With that I closed the door, alone with my thoughts once more. I went to a dresser to fish out a small rectangular comb.

Two weeks before Keith gave me the comb, said to do him a favor and brush my fur, any fur that fell out to give to him. I didn't know what he wanted with old fur, and I didn't want to know, but at the very least I thanked him for it. After a few weeks of grooming, I found that a lot of my fur had already started to cling to the new coat underneath, and grooming in the summertime became a regular routine. Looking in the mirror, I saw my fur had changed over the months from a slight amber hue into a softer moonlight silver.

'We have a few coats that change across the seasons,' Varg's aside played back in my head, 'wiry and a bit dirty in the spring, silky and thin in summer, coarse and standing in fall, and a thick double coat in winter.'

"I guess this is the silky fur." I pressed a paw against the smooth texture. "I'll never get used to not feeling skin anymore." Fur itself was more like wearing a constant coat that only changed in thickness every so often. I couldn't really feel any of the clothes on me, just the fabric pressing the fur closer. I took off my black dobuku and rustled through my pack to pull out the lagoon haori that Rarity and Princess Luna made for me. The design brought back a few fond memories, of visiting the countryside, thatch roofs, and a warm summer's day. I slipped it on over my kosode, the silk hanging loose in folds.

I pulled open the dresser and pulled out a small scroll rolled up. I had gotten the letter a few days ago, hiding it from Keith when I saw who it was from. Knowing him... on second thought, I don't really know what he would do. I gently broke the wax seal keeping the letter rolled up, scanning the page for the first few words that read, 'Dear Aoi.'

'I regret to inform you that Rainbow Dash has been feeling under the weather lately, unable to reply to your letter. After I had re Talked to her about the letter, I decided to write back in her stead. She has a soft spot for you, you know. Before she had taken ill with Feather Flu, she talked about you rather haphazardly. (But a lady always knows when one puts on a 'hard-to-get' facade) She started spinning in circles trying to spot you when I mentioned your name. So please be a dear and write back to her. Hopefully it would bring up her spirits and aid in her recovery.

Glamorously yours,
Rarity

P.S. I know that feeling of not being able to tell her, painfully so, in fact.'

I didn't waste a second grabbing a brush and parchment. I scrambled to fill and ink well and got to writing. After scribbling like a madman, I slapped a wax seal and rushed downstairs to the council chambers, spotting the maildog.

"Excuse me, could you deliver this to the Equestian Postal Service please?" The dog turned to me and froze dead in place. "Please, it's very important."

"Oh, um-um yes, I deliver to 'Questria." He grabbed the letter and went on his way. I sighed, hoping that everything was alright in Ponyville.

"No wonder you won't take a mate." I heard a chuckle behind me. "Looks like you already have someone special." I cleared my throat and turned around to find Varg with a sly look on his face.

"Since when have you known?"

"What do you take me for? I may be old as a marrow-less bone, but I can tell when someone's maw-over-hinds for someone when they rush that fast to deliver a letter. You left ink marks behind." He pointed to a trail of slowly dispersing botches of wet ink. I forgot that I had taken the brush with me.

"So who's the lucky one?" He wore a cocky grin.

"I'm fairly certain it's none of your business, Varg." I walked past him, "You already have enough of your own as is."

"Come now, don't tell me that the Lunar Legend is embarrassed about talking of his courting partner." I shot a burning glare at the Underking.

"We're not 'courting', I'm just a bit concerned for her safety that's all."

"Cur shit, you're blushing so much your fur's turned pink." I reached a paw to my muzzle and found it flushing warm. Varg bit his lower lip to keep himself from bursting into laughter.

"It's okay, pup, we all get a bit tense during this span of life. Hey, at least in another 8 months, you'll feel a bit better with some 'pleasurable company'." With a snicker he turned to leave. "Also, before I forget, I sent a letter to the princess prior asking about the policies of foreign affairs in Equestria. Apparently, it still stands that you have near full immunity in Equestria, barring of course theft and murder, and that can easily be overlooked with the right writ."

"Writ?"

"Warrant of assassination. A warrant for someone's death. There used to be a few 'black' clans that were hired to carry out writs back when the Griffon Dominion was still under Igor. Even he had a few writs circulating for his head on a silver platter. Basically, a writ is respected by any government, a blood pact held by very ancient magic, a death waver for both assassin and target. You could call it a duel contract, winner gets off with murder scott-free, loser is dead with no complaints, unless there's a draw of course. The magic has been long lost, but if it ever becomes active again, be on the lookout, anyone can be marked, and anyone can hunt. A funny little note though is that if one survives being marked and wins, they can't be marked by another writ, and I know of only 6 who are actually immune, one involving your dear Princess Celestia."

"You mean-"

"Even the nicest of people can hide secrets. Well, as you've said before, I've got business to attend to, negotiations to sanction an entire town are troublesome."

I thought about what Varg said about writs. 'A magically binding contract of a duel, one that not even kings can override.'

Keith stopped by my chambers again, striking up conversation as usual.

"I wonder why ponies don't have belly buttons?" I spit out a drink that Keith handed me as he started to go off tangent.

"What?" I choke out.

"Seriously, we don't have bellybuttons! Either that or they're just too small or concealed to noticed. Hey, take off your clothes and let me see if you have one under all that fur."

"What? NO!"

"If you're afraid of getting naked, let me give you a news flash, I've been naked this entire time, and so far, I don't give a shit for some inexplicable reason. Although when I get a boner during a conversation, it's super awkward."

"I'm not taking off my clothes just so you can satisfy your curiosity."

"Oh maaaaiii...." Keith croaked in a low voice. I just stare at him, "Well you're no fun."

I get up to retire to my bed, "If you don't mind, I'll be heading off to sleep, I've got a training regimen in the morning."

"Right, I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"You say that like I have a choice..."

"C'mon, you know you kinda sorta maybe even just a microscopic smidgen like our talks."

"Good night, Keith."

"I didn't hear a 'no'. *Slam*" I didn't let him finish as I shut the door in his face.

I failed miserably on training the new recruits the next morning. We started off on a light jog around the mountain.

"You call this a 'light jog'?" Keith panted as he trailed behind us near the rear of the group with the paint-fresh trainees. I overestimated a bit and gave everyone 75 kilogram packs to carry. I went over to him, jogging in place.

"It's good for building up stamina."

"How much are in these things?" Keith blubbered.

I smiled. "If I told you now, it would feel less rewarding when you finished." Secretly I was getting back at him for all the times he supplemented the diuretic with laxative.

"Come on, if you take anymore time, the sun will hit high noon, and in this part of Gem Fido, it'll be even harder with the entire place heated like a sauna." I waved for him to follow. He banged his two forelegs together as an insult and trotted on all fours with us.

"I don't know why I didn't think of this before."

"I don't know, why didn't you?" I asked with a coy smile.

"Aoi... did you just pull a troll face on me?" I didn't answer as I headed back to the front of the pack again, Eol and Ubi to my left and right. The jog continued for 3 more laps, a total of about 5 miles, we slowed down to
a walking pace to take in the scenery, at least the decent portion of it. The land around the base of the mountain contrasted greatly to the land beyond, having loamy soil brought from the run-off of the mountain when it rained, with common, more green flora than the deadwood we encountered at first in Gem Fido.

"Mountains are usually where life is, elsewhere is too hot or cold for all but the toughest trees." Ubi mumbled.

"I see what you mean, it's decent in the summer time." I breathed in a nice fresh scent. When we explored outward from the base, the wildlife seemed to reach about 100 yards in each direction, but then fused with the harsh geysers and poison vine trees.

"I wonder what caused all this, what caused all the trees and geysers."

"Some say the gods cursed this place, after greedy alphas came here to seek gems hordes rumored to be buried underneath. Some say that it was something foreign. The water used to be cool to drink, now, it's hotter than dragon's breath." As he said that a geyser erupted, shooting out a yellowish mist.

"I think it's something to do with Geotherma-whatsit called." Eol added, "I read about it in that purple librarian's book.

"It's geothermal energy, and... wait..." Keith rushed up to Eol, "Purple librarian?"

"Yeah, she was a unicorn that let me borrow her bo-"

"ERMAGERD! YOU MEAN YOU ACTUALLY MET TWILIGHT SPARKLE?!" Keith shook Eol so hard that he started to foam at the mouth. "From now on, we iz buddehz..." I shook my head with a smirk, taking note of the noonday sun.

"Alright, we should be heading inside now." Every single person breathed a heavy sigh of relief as we went inside the main cave, many plopping down onto the cool ground as soon as they reached shade. A soft breeze whistled in from the outside, giving some relief. I wiped my brow of sweat before announcing, "Congratulations everyone, you've just finished our warmup!" Everyone shot up with shocked expressions before dropping back down, some actually fainting.

"I was only joking." Keith's eye twitched.

"Do us all a favor and never joke about things like that again, you'll scare more than make them laugh, unless you're a sadistic P.E. teacher." He shuddered before taking off his pack.

"Oh DAYUM! That feels good. So, how much was in that pack?" He asked, giving a spine crackling stretch.

"About 75 kilos." I say bluntly, Keith's jaw dropped.

"No WONDER I felt like I was carrying a tank, that weighs more than my rifle!"

I roll my neck, shuddering in relief as I took off my pack. "Well you can always quit whenever you want, after all, you're the one who was insistent on following me in the first place." I turn to Eol and Ubi, "How are you two holding up." Eol took off his pack throwing a few air punches.

"I feel great, so what's next?"

"I'm going for some lunch."

"Lunch seems good right about now, that is, if everyone else can still make it to the dining hall." I sighed, "Tomorrow, the real work begins."

"Oh God, you weren't kidding when you said that was the warm up, were you?"

"A little from column A, a little from column B. This was just to gauge everyone." I took a mental note of everyone's physical advantages, including Eol's endurance.

'He really does want to prove himself doesn't he?'

At lunch, we sat down to a miniature feast of various homely foods: Keith with a fruit salad, Eol with a few legs of hare, Ubi with diamonds of assorted carats, and me with an entire blue fin tuna.

"Holy shit man, you're going to eat all that?" Keith stared at the enormous fish.

"Of course, after all, wasn't it YOU that said that I needed to consume at least ten thousand calories a day?"

"Point taken," Keith looked at his bowl, "I'm still kinda jelly though, you still get to enjoy bacon. Furry bastard..."

"If you ever visit Canterlot, we can stop by the castle. The Princesses' R&D chefs developed a seasoning that mimics many of our foods, along with a vegetarian substitute. I believe Knightmare called one of the dishes, 'Hay bacon'."

"No fucking way... Hay bacon that actually TASTES like bacon?" He threw his napkin in the air, "Fuck this thread, I'm out." He was about to leave before his stomach growled. "On second thought, I'll say for the food, THEN forsake the thread."

"You do know that most people still have no idea what you're on about..." I remind him, cutting into a cut of otoro.

"Yeah, the entire world is oblivious to the internet." He shoved a fork of mango into his mouth. I turned to Ubi, still eating his gems.

"Still haven't found an equal to that apple pie, have you?" Ubi shook his head. "Is it really that bad to eat regular food?" Ubi grimaced.

"Everything else makes me vomit." Ubi said bluntly before crunching a low carat diamond under his fangs.

"Well, maybe if you weren't so picky, you'd start to enjoy a lot of other foods." Eol tore into a roasted leg, smacking noisily.

"I am not picky, nothing has taste," Ubi murmured, rolling the blue-silver gem under a digit.

Keith held up his hooves, "Hold up, bruh, you mean to say that you can't taste anything other than gems?" Ubi nodded.

"Every other gem tastes bad. Diamonds are the only good gem."

"Now we know you're just picky," Eol remarked, shaking a shredded drumstick at Ubi, "Quartz tastes just like candy!" He swiveled to me. "Hey, Aoi, I've been meaning to ask, why is it that you can't eat gems?" I stared blankly at him, taking one of the gems from Ubi's plate and biting down hard on it, pulling it back out without a single scratch.

"I think it might be a dynamic branch off in your genetic line, that's my guess anyway." Keith chewed on a few nuts in his salad. "After all, Aoi's tall as a Captain Komamura, and the tallest I've seen on terms of height is Varg--he's about 10 feet-ish--and you two are about two feet shorter than Aoi." He waved the fork around, eye-ball measuring each of us.

"Silver lining, you two don't have to worry about banging your heads against the doors." He finishes and gets up. "Well, I'm headed back to engineering. Airships don't build themse- okay, screw conventional lines, I'MMA BUILD STUFF!"

After about 4 minutes of silence, Ubi finally spoke up.

"Is he-"

"Same world." It rather frightens me who else made it here. I've yet to meet this 'Echo' I read about.

=Daring Do=

"Like I said, I never get lost... We're just like taking the scenic route every so often." Don't think it, just don't think it.

"We're lost, aren't we?" He had 'I told you so' plastered all over his face.

"I didn't hear you complaining when it was just me and you 'lost in the woods' now did I?" He blushed and bit his lower lip with a goofy smile.

"Who said I was complaining?" He earned a hoof upside his head for that one.

=Aoi=

"After the Gala, I'm not sure what to expect."

Fall soon came, and with it came many new things. Keith called me down to engineering, said he wanted to show me something. I walked into the 'hangar' the entire ship covered.

"Ahp, no sneek peeks." He went under the tarp and came out a few seconds later, carrying a large suitcase. "You're gonna love this. Remember when I asked you to save all your fur?" He clicked open the clasps, opening to reveal what looked like a coat.

"Well, I thought about it, and decided that you're not going to fit in with a get-up like what you're wearing right now. After all, you're headed to the steam punk capital of Equestria. At first, I was thinking Victorian, but then I was like, 'Fuck it, you need something more badass'. So I commissioned a tailor to make you this." When he pulled out the coat, I saw it to be intricately designed with a faint silvery lace pattern, the inner lining of the coat having a familiar textured fur dyed black.

"You shed like a mofo, if you didn't notice, Enough to actually MAKE a coat. I think the tailor said there was still some left over. So I sold it to her for a nice amount. FYI, well maintained fur sells a bitching amount of bits."

"Thanks." I slid my arms through the loose sleeves. The coat overall looked pretty good, and felt surprisingly light.

"Oh you'll thank me even more when you head into the city itself. I swear that place is a gear head aficionado’s wet dream, everyone looks like something from the industrial era: lace, top hats, the whole nine yards, there used to be an engineer there, but rumor had it he was kinda a blackjack doctor as well."

"Did his name happen to be Geirmund?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"Just one of the many colorful character's on the captain's ship, he's the ship's surgeon and works with Steelhorn in engineering."

"Dayum, sooner or later you need to introduce me to your friends, they seem pretty badass."

"I guess you could call them friends." I took a few leisurely looks at the quality of the stitching on the coat, it reminded me of Knightmare's outfit. "I think you'd get along with Knightmare especially, he has almost the same taste in music as you do, not sure if he likes 'the classics'."

"Jamming, well, as you can see, the airships finished, so we'll be able to unveil tomorrow. I gotta hand it to myself, I honestly didn't think it would go as smoothly as I first expected."

"What did you expect, the entire ship to spontaneously combust?" At this Keith chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "That happened, didn't it?" I query in a impassive tone.

"Eh, only once or twice," he confessed, "and I at least know the cause of one of them."

"Only one?" I would be lying if I said I didn't see that coming.

"Well we fixed it now, so there shouldn't be any more problems whatsoever."

The next day, we got to see the ship in all it's glory. I gave a low whistle as I scanned the machine. The design was unique to say the least, a mix between an actual ship with a wing design similar to the structure of a
747. Make no mistake, this was indeed a war ship, armed to the teeth with anti-aircraft weaponry: cannons, flak-guns re-engineered, and mortars for air support for ground troops.

"Gentlemen, I give you, the Pillar of AWESOME!" Eol, Ubi and I slapped our paws against our face at the mention of the name.

"What? It's simple, it's memorable, and an homage to the greatest ship ever to be piloted in the UNSC." We stared at Keith.

"I don't get it." I deadpanned. Keith groaned.

"Fine, what are YOUR ideas?"

"Metallic Thunder!" Eol yapped.

"Dzemel," Ubi suggested.

"Dzemel?"

"Ancient dragon tongue for "strong-hearted"." Keith immediately plastered a puzzled look on his face, leaning in towards me.

"How the Fuck does Ubi know about ancient dragon tongue?"

"My Mother's a dragon." Ubi growled. Immediately Keith's expression snapped to an impassive stare.

=Keith=

'Mother of fuck, he's Dovahkiin.'

=Aoi=

"Does he happen to, you know... shout?" Keith questioned with a nudge.

"You'd be lucky to get him to talk above a whisper." Keith smacked his forehead with his hoof.

"RIIIGHT, forgot that you don't play video games either. My GOD, Aoi, how DID you pass the time?" I flashed him a peeved glance before turning my attention back to the ship.

"So what's you're idea for the ship name?"

"Honestly, I don't really care, but I know for certain that one of the titles of the bands you listen to fits better than something cheesy like the Pillar of Awesome."

"Hmm, you may have a point there..." Keith rubbed his chin with an open fetlock. "Alright, how about... Rolling Thunder?"

"Seems fine to me."

=Keith=

'Sucker...'

=Aoi=

His wide grin was rather unsettling, but I left it aside.

"Alright then, let's meet the crew." We went aboard the ship, taking with us a few troops that I had gotten to know over the past few months. "We've got Radiohead on comms, Sous on the mess hall, Blunderbus's team on the main cannons, Buckle and Swash's group on deck maintenance, Gearbox in engineering, and Bungie on ropes, tethers, and the like."

The ponies manned much of the machinery on the ship, while griffin's were nested near the crow's nest or engineering, anything to help fly the ship directly. The entire ship shined with polished decks and the outer plating, giving the vessel a deep amber color.

"She's a beaut. Be honest now, you didn't think I was going to finish this in a few months were you?" He nudged me waiting for an answer.

"Genetic Scientist, Weapon's specialist, and architect? I definitely didn't see the last one in the resume."

"That's because I suck at architecture, the actual ship design was from a resident of Bitsburg... Well, ex-resident." We came to a door labeled the Captain's Room. "Aoi, meet the captain." He opened the door to reveal a tall stallion, well dressed in what looked like Victorian era clothing.

"Count Valvette." The Stallion propped a monocle onto one eye.

"Please, Valve is plenty formal enough," he greeted, extending a hoof to meet my paw.

"We're ready to go, Varg's already on board in the meeting chamber, but first, a tour." Keith and Valve led us through the various structures on the inside. The ship had basic necessities: a bridge, a galley, a mess hall, various maintenance areas, and dining quarters, but what concerned me were the other areas he had. The Training rooms and rec rooms are understandable, but there were some that I didn't know what purpose they were: one room had various beds and tools, one was completely soundproof and had only a large table in there with belts hanging off of the sides, and one looked like a workshop of sorts, with gears, pipes and other assorted what-nots, but one room struck me as downright out of place: a room with naught but a single organ inside it.

"Keith, how did you manage to fit an entire organ into a ship like this?"

"Aoi, shame on you, you've been here how long and have forgot rule 315 of cartoon physics: shit's bigger on the inside." He did have a point, all the structures I've seen had interiors highly disproportionate to the exterior, but was it really just due to 'cartoon physics?'.

"Okay, so it may just be an enchantment on the ship, but who really gives a shit anymore, it's here, it's queer, get used to it." I scoffed and continued.

When we were finally finished with the tour, we met up at the bridge, and I asked a burning question that was on my mind.

"Two things. One, when can we set sail? Two, how are we going to get this entire ship out of the mountain?" At this Keith laughed.

"Don't you worry your fluffy little face, Uncle Keith's got it all under control," he professed, rubbing my hair before heading to the main control deck.

"I'm a few months older than you, in case you've forgotten." He ignored me and pressed a button on one of the panels.

"Okay, we're ready to get this tin can soaring, Unicorn team 5, 6, and 7, ready the teleportation spell!" We rushed on the top deck to see about a hundred unicorns take position around the ship. The air shimmered and filled with a wispy hue as the ship slowly levitated off of the ground.

"Transport in 3... NOW!" The world swirled around us as I felt everything move violently for a moment until the spinning stopped. I was still on the ship, but now under the gray sky of Gem Fido.

"SHITSHITSHIT!" The ship groaned with a loud impact form below, shaking everyone on board.

"What the hell was that?" I barked towards the direction of the bridge.

"I forgot to turn on the engines." All throughout the ship, I heard the simultaneous smack of about a thousand hooves, claws, and paws hitting foreheads, including my own.

I feared for all of us aboard the ship...

Author's Notes:

I wanted to write a lighter chapter, and get all the filler in, yes I admit it's filler, but at least it actually reads a bit like stuff actually happened in the span of 5 or 6 months. At least I hope it did. Also, I'm actually surprised that I was able to write this much after a break from so long, breaking 10k really is an accomplishment for me, since I have the attention span of a ferret on crack actually. Hope you enjoyed BSRC on a lighter note, because next chapter, sh*yay*t gets real.

Also, yes to those wondering, The Aoi in the Dream Sequence is Agent of Chaos Aoi, seen here: http://www.fimfiction.net/story/28510/aoi-agent-of-chaos , and was just there because I was bored and wanted a bit of a crossover, not really much significance, but when I wrote it, it was 3 in the morning and It seemed like a good idea at the time.