1 year, 11 months, 3 weeks, and 6 days since exile

Another day, another run to a mayor or self-entitled lord. She flew up the side of the cliff, shooting up over the edge of it. She stopped to hover in front of the town before her. It was built onto the cliff she had flown parallel to, made of wood with stone bases like most towns out here. A few buildings were bigger than most, and among them was the town hall.

She landed and was ushered in. A few minutes later, she pushed open the door to the mayor's office. Now, it was a nice office, mind you. A small bookcase, a large carved desk, a few small wood statues, and other decorations. However, none of it really interested her. You see one office of somebody trying to make themselves look important, you've seen 'um all.

The mayor, a Bighorn she had been told was named Scott sat behind it. He was deep in conversation with another Bighorn: a younger-looking female with smaller horns. The female one said, "Father, you said that the courier was supposed to be here by now!"

Mayor Scott said, "Now dear. I was told that this one is unusually speedy. She should be here in a few hours, ok honey?"

"But you said-"

"Sabrina," he said, interrupting her with a sudden firmness to his voice. "I already am paying much more than a normal courier to get it here in such a short amount of time. Have a little patience. She should be here soon." The younger one, which Rainbow assumed was his daughter, still didn't look happy, but she stopped whining. Rainbow, deciding she didn't exactly want to stay here for too long, let loose a cough, drawing their attention. "Ah, speak of the Sun Daemon."

The female sprang up, darting forward, coming to a stop just before her. Tips of their snouts touching, she said, "Well!? Do you have it!?"

Rainbow said, "Listen, lady. I just got here. I'm a delivery pony. I just drop this shit off; I don't check to see what's inside of it. So, let me do my job, and I'll let you....well, you can do whatever the hell you want."

Sabrina's cheeks puffed up in outrage. She sputtered for a few seconds, then snarled in annoyance and stormed out of the room. She then trotted over to the now somewhat apologetic looking mayor. "I'd like to, *ahem*, apologize for my little girl's behavior. She's, uh, kinda gotten out of hand lately."

Rainbow snorted. "You want my opinion? Cut her off. Let her fend for herself. I've wanted to do that to some brat in my old town for years."

"I'll take that into consideration," he said. "If I may ask, where are you from? I can't say I've seen anything, quite like you in my time, and I used to be a courier myself."

Rainbow slumped down a little. She didn't necessarily hate it when someone brought this up, but she didn't enjoy it either. It just set off another reminder of what she had lost. She had learned to tune it out, and a steady supply of crackers helped that significantly. However, she had to maintain appearances of her image, and it was always kind of fun to watch how they reacted to her opposition. "I don't see how it's any of your business, buster."

"Alright then. Sorry I asked," He said. After a brief pause, he said, "Well, you do have the package?"

"Yeah, right here." She pulled it out of her bag, then fill out the standard procedures. He thanked her, she hoped him a pleasant day, and she left. Routine to the letter. Nothing really changed between these reactions.

Outside, however, she was greeted by an unusual sight. He was a caragor, yet looked somewhat different than most of the others she saw. His skin was slightly darker, and his fangs were a bit longer. His clothes were standard for the peninsula: a white tunic with a leather belt, a set of sandals on his rear set of paws, and a small trilby hat. However, everything else seemed off. His above-mentioned skin tone, his posture, and the way he held himself. He almost reminded her of the statue-like figure of a royal guard on duty.

"Hello, ma'am. May I take up a moment of your time?", he asked. His voice also sounded different. Most creatures here had a vaguely Griffonian accent, meaning a somewhat scratchy, very throaty sounding voice. He, by contrast, had a very different one. It almost sounded like a Manehatten accent, but a little smoother, and much easier on the ears.

She signed, then said, "What is it you want?"

"Well, ma'am," he said. "I am a representative of a certain, erm, employer. He has seen your skills, along with your unique physical characteristics, and he wishes to offer you service. You work for him, and in turn, he will-"

Rainbow shut him up with a hoof shoved right up to his mouth. "Ok, bud. One, that's fucking creepy. Two, I'm sorry, but I can't. As of now, I'm under contract with the Demosian Express, and part of that contract is I can't take outside employment. And third, I've got a good gig going. I'm well paid, even if I blow most of it on crackers, I get to travel, and I'm respected. I've got all I could ever want out of what I've been dealt with. So, thanks, but no thanks." With that, she pulled her hoof away and darted off. She wanted to cover as much ground as possible before sundown.

The caragor simply dusted off his tunic, adjusted his hat, and walked off. Plan B it is, then.

Sorry for the short one, but I've been a bit busy the past few days, and haven't had as much time as I would've liked on the drafting. Sorry again; the next chapter should be a bit longer by contrast.