Doug struggles to keep up as the Storm King bounds to the nearest flight of stairs, taking them four steps at a time with giant leaps that barely seem to faze him. His legs, his arms, his whole being feels like it is just being dragged along for the ride, his heart not into the runs he normally loves. The exertion cannot rid his mind of Luna’s admission, and neither can the piercing whistle Raikou looses as soon as they reach the roof.

“You seem a little down,” Raikou remarks as Doug glumly walks next to him, his energetic voice oddly compassionate. He stares out across the city, then up at one of the heavy warships disgorging a light shuttle.

“You think?” Doug snaps back. He sighs, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. “Sorry. It’s, just, one of my mares is only with me to have a foal.”

Raikou waits as Doug pauses, looking like he wants to lean on something and missing the staff.

“I mean,” Doug continues, filling the silence, “it’s not like I didn’t know this was a possibility. Even with her. Especially with her. I knew she wanted to keep up with Celestia in the foal department. I just… I don’t know, I thought she liked me more than that. We talked, during jogs and whatnot, about what she was working on, what she ate, listening to her complain. But it was never about anything particularly deep. I can’t help but blame myself for not noticing sooner and doing something about it.”

“Mm.” Raikou goes to his belt, digging into the lower back compartment. He unsnaps a clear flask and offers it to Doug. “Try this. It’ll help.”

Doug frowns, but takes it. FFMCT is stamped with stylized gold letters. Amber colored liquid with flecks of purple swish around inside; he pops the top off and takes a cautious whiff. It smells like apples and... something. “What is it?”

“It’s the best,” the Storm King laughs. “Loosens you up, lowers inhibitions. Helps you do anything you put your mind to. I’d swear by it if I ever made any promises.”

One of Doug’s eyebrows narrows as he stares. “And your earlier ‘promise’ about an alliance? Or would you call that something different?”

“That?” Raikou shakes his head. “That was just a proposal. Not the marriage kind. The business kind.” He adds a wink, Doug not looking amused. “Now, if you agree to those terms?” He offers a half-hearted shrug. “Who knows? But I am a hedgehog of my word. Most creatures just don’t like what I have to say.”

“Honesty is an important tenet,” Doug says, nodding to himself. He holds up the full flask and looks Raikou in the eyes. “This isn’t harmful?”

Raikou holds up a hand, fingers straight. “Tip’s honor. It won’t hurt you.” He smirks, chuckling. “Just the stupid stuff you think of and do that’ll hurt you.”

Doug eyes the flask, then the broad smile of the creature next to him. ”Guess the worse that can happen is a slow and painful death,” he casually remarks as he takes a swig. It tastes like apple juice and some bitter vegetable, eliciting a pucker and grimace. He tries to pass the flask back.

“Finish it!” Raikou cajoles, refusing the flask. He waves to his belt. “I buy crates of the stuff, I’ve got plenty!”

A gag at the awful taste isn’t enough to stop him, the effects of the tonic already coursing, and Doug chugs down the rest. He shudders, suppresses a small burp, and looks for somewhere to put the empty flask. He realizes, just now, that his inventory space consists of his two hands. He didn’t bring his armor - or any clothes at all - but it doesn’t really bother him.

He turns to inspect the creature next to him, starting with his cloven hooves shaped like a satyr’s, the bulky armor built to withstand a battle axe chopping at neck chest, ending up staring at the twin horns jutting out like lightning bolts from the Storm King’s head. He can’t stop himself from running a hand along the white fur that pokes out from the chestplate down to the armguard. It’s thick and coarse, yet surprisingly relaxing. He notices something odd under the fur around the shoulder, but it’s difficult to make out. “So, a hedgehog? Not really seeing it.”

“Try going the other way,” Raikou dares with a smirk. He chortles as Doug tries, only to impale himself on the sharp quills. “See? I’m just like that. I can be your best friend, but if you rub me the wrong way?” He sneers, exposing his fangs. “Makes putting on the armor a bit of a chore, but that’s why I never take it off.”

“...I can tell,” Doug says as he nurses the dozen tiny pinpricks oozing minute droplets of blood. A bit of the Storm King’s musk gets to him, not that it smells awful. He sighs, slouching over, still a little depressed.

“That’s not enough to take your mind off it?” Raikou ponders, scratching at his chin while staring up at the approaching shuttle. His face brightens with an idea, and it does not give Doug a good feeling. “Hey, I know just the place!”

Doug regards him dubiously. “Really?”

“Really!” The Storm King grins, inspecting Doug from head to toe. Mostly his toes. “How good are you with your feet? You’ll need ‘em, and your mouth, for the sows at this place!”

”I, um…” The only reasons Doug can think of that involve his feet and sows are not exactly hygienic. The curious part of him wants to try, and that side only grows stronger the longer he thinks about it. His decision-making process, befuddled as it is, gets cut short by a snort from Raikou.

“Oh, of course! I should have known.” The Storm King waves as Rainbow Dash blasts away from the building, executes a perfect hairpin turn and lands next to them. “You’d bring your own.”

“Your own what?” Rainbow Dash asks, partway between suspicious and demanding.

The Storm King’s smile does little to mollify the pegasus. “Companion.”

“...Right.” Rainbow Dash turns to Doug, sniffing him distrustfully. “You okay?”

“He’s fine,” Raikou says, grabbing Doug with one arm and gripping him in a tight hug against his chest. He rubs at Doug’s short-cropped hair, fending off the cursory attempts to break free. “Just needs to loosen up a little. He tried one of these.” He pulls out a flask, tossing it to Rainbow Dash as he pushes Doug away.

“You drank something he gave you?” she deadpans, catching it with a frown.

“It seemed like a good idea,” Doug says as he regains his balance, trailing off as the shuttle pulls up next to the embassy. It’s a miniature airship, with space for a dozen creatures, powered by a single propeller jutting off the back and a balloon that seems far oversized. Two storm guards, armored with the standard teal insignias, welcome them aboard while a hippogriff salutes from the helm.

“Sam! Ralph!” Raikou greets the guards with hearty slaps across the back. It’s hard to tell with their helmets, but judging by the way their beady eyes light up they seem elated to meet their king.

Doug notices a weird flash on the first guard’s shoulder, the same spot as Raikou. At first he thinks it’s a trick of the light, but sees the same on the second one. He walks up to the guard, who merely watches him curiously. “What’s that?” he blurts out, pointing.

“This?” comes the muffled reply. The guard transfers his spear to his shield hand, then runs a large hand through his fur. Going slowly, it appears to be a tattoo of some kind, teal twin lightning bolts surrounded by a dark storm cloud, with a six digit number on the bottom and ‘Heri Clarum Caelum’ on the bottom. “Means, ‘clear sky was yesterday’.”

“Huh,” Doug says, curious that furred creatures would get such a design.

As soon as the conversation is over Raikou cheerfully waves at the hippogriff. “Kay! Didn’t expect you to come down to get us!”

“Oh?” The hippogriff’s regal, commanding voice reaches Doug easily as he snaps a rigid salute. He offers the human a courteous bow as he steps aboard. “Incoming royalty should be greeted by the commanding officer, yes?”

“Oh, right,” Raikou says, bopping himself on the head. “Temp isn’t back yet, is she?”

“Commander Tempest Shadow is not aboard, correct.” The hippogriff spins the wheel and raises a bar, the shuttle slowly rising into the air. He turns to Doug and Rainbow Dash, deftly ignoring how the human is curiously regarding him. “Lieutenant Commander Kay Ay, at your service. You must be the Prince?”

“One of them,” Doug replies, barely managing a smile. “Prince Consort Doug Apple and Rainbow Dash, third mare and Element of Loyalty.” Rainbow Dash gives a curt nod. “You know, I think Pinkie Pie mentioned you.”

At the mention of the name both storm guards turn, ears flicking and gauntlets moving to rub at their bellies.

“Ah! The one affectionately referred to as ‘The Pink Menace’.” Kay Ay points at the front of the warship, still coated in a pink layer of cake. “Her hoofwork has proven difficult to expunge, to say nothing of her party! I dare say, she could oust His Majesty himself with a few more of those!”

“Hey, I’m not trying to start a mutiny here,” Doug says, holding his hands up and grinning.

“Shame,” Kay Ay returns with a wink. “Still, you must have some purpose coming aboard our finest vessel. Come for some sort of inspection?” He eyes Doug with a growing curiosity. “I didn’t realize you had such varied interests.”

“I’m fascinated by the stuff,” Doug replies eagerly, a bit of his funk disappearing. He peers at the various weaponry. “Like, your cannons. And are those harpoon guns?”

“You have a keen eye!” Kay Ay grins. “But more important than the weapons is the branding. After all, if our opponents know exactly what we are capable of, and, how shall I say, how readily those weapons might turn on them? It just makes everycreatures job easier.”

“You don’t say,” Doug says, scratching at his chin.

“He’s just trying to forget about a mare,” Raikou teases, drawing closer to Doug and ignoring how Rainbow Dash eyes him defensively.

“Hey!” Doug retorts, shaking his head. “I’m not trying to forget about her, I’m trying to get to know her better. And remind myself to do that.”

“Urgh,” the Storm King moans, rubbing at his head.

“...Problem?” Doug asks, sighing.

“Look.” Raikou glances away, then returns to Doug, a low growl in his voice. “You want me to be honest with you? Fine. What you have with these mares, these Friendships? It’s a distraction. They’re just using you to get what they want.”

Doug nods. “That’s right.”

“And they-” The Storm King stops, staring at Doug. “Wait, what?”

“That’s right,” Doug repeats. Rainbow Dash glances at him, unsure, cocking her head to the side. “You’re right, they are using me to get what they want.”

“And you go along with it?” The Storm King throws his arms in the air. “It’ll just make you forget your own goals! And focus on making them better! And that makes you weak!”

“In some ways,” Doug agrees. His conciliatory tone seems to make Raikou even more furious. “It makes me vulnerable to them, certainly. It increases their power over me.”

“But what about your ambitions? Your goals?” The Storm King turns to Rainbow Dash. “You wanted to be a Wonderfilly, right?”

“Wonderbolt,” Rainbow Dash says through gritted teeth, though her aggravation is directed at Doug.

“How’s that working out for you, huh?” Raikou motions at her belly, just barely showing the signs of her pregnancy. “You gonna be one any time soon?”

Rainbow Dash gathers her strength, turning to face the Storm King. She takes to the air, having to keep rising to stay level with him. “Yeah. I am. And you know what?” She bares her teeth, almost at a snarl. “If my dreams got delayed? It was for something greater. And he’s been there to help me see it.”

“Aww, look who’s so loyal!” Raikou’s high-pitched sneer grates on Rainbow Dash.

“I would say you’re just as loyal,” Doug interrupts before Rainbow Dash can start something. “Your crew, they put their trust and loyalty in you. And you prove yourself worthy of that trust by working for their benefit. Yes?”

“Yeah,” the Storm King says curtly. “I reciprocate. That’s not friendship. These guys put their lives on the line for me, I do the same for them.”

“I think that’s a big part of friendship,” Doug argues. “It’s not the only part. Your troops mean a lot to you. And while you may not view them as friends, and maybe you shouldn’t view them as friends, exactly, a lot of the traits carry over. Honesty, Generosity, Loyalty. Even Kindness, in that treating them harshly can be the kind thing in the end, when what you say needs to be followed without question. And Laughter, that optimism, that never-leave-a-man-behind attitude.”

Raikou eyes Doug curiously. “And you see your mares the same way?”

Doug nods firmly. “I do. My interests, my ambitions, coincide with theirs. We have a mutually beneficial relationship that empowers both of us. The power of friendship.”

A grin curls on Raikou’s face. “Then I know just the thing to show them.”

Next Chapter: Ch. 48 - Tempered Flesh, Part Three Estimated time remaining: 24 Hours, 19 Minutes