"Equestria is a grand place, it truly is, who'd have thought that the continent could be so diverse? If you where to take a glance at the map of Celestia's kingdom, up in the far north would be Stalliongrad, arguably the coldest and depressing city you'd ever grace your eyes on, and in the far south would be the sprawling deserts of the Great Plains, where small settlements such as Appleloosa toiled away on the frontier. However this is not where this story begins, no, it begins in the mid-west, in a large valley which rests in the shadow of Canterlot and it's mighty castle, it begins in Ponyville.
I breathed in deeply, taking in the fresh air; it made a nice change from Manechester. It had to be at least 3 times the size of Ponyville, and the air is just... Musty. The fumes from the many factories in the city seem to fill the air with a musk that you don't seem to notice until you've left the city. I may be Mercenary to some, but it doesn't mean I can't appreciate the little things in life now and again does it?
Celestia's sun sat high in the sky, basking the small town in it's warm rays, banishing away the coldness of the night, and thus many of Ponyville's residents where up and about enjoying the sunshine. I walked the busy streets of the town, a dark brown Chupalla sat neatly upon my head as to block the sun's rays, unintentionally casting a dark shadow onto my face. The set of saddle bags sat on my back, the pouches packed full to the brim, clanked and rattled every time I took a step. I glanced in a passing window, my reflection showed my midnight green coat, my Cobblestone colour mane... And that I looked rather dishevelled and messy, I can't even remember the last time I had a proper wash, it maybe explains some of the looks I'm getting from the townsfolk.
However this wasn't the time for such trivialities, I was here to find one Pony and one Pony only. Somepony back in Manechaster offered a hefty sum for this Stallion, and I intended to bring him in. From what the buyer told me, the Stallion that I'm after had recently moved to Ponyville as to escape his would-be captors. I stopped in the middle of the street and shoved a hoof into my saddlebags and withdrew a sheet of paper, on the paper was a drawing that I had been given along with the assignment. The Pony I was looking for was a bright yellow Earth Pony, with a fiery orange mane, and the Cutie-mark of compass. Apparently, he'd been dodging payments from the wrong Ponies and now they wanted to "Meet up and 'discuss' the lack of Bits"...
This job seemed easily enough, find the Stallion, either get him to come quietly or beat the manure out of him until he 'agrees'. Then bundle him along to the nearest train station where my employers will be waiting, I get my Bits, they get their Stallion, every pony wins... Well, except for that yellow Pony, but to be fair, who gives a buck? I stuffed the note back into the saddlebags and ambled along the street, keeping my eyes peeled for my target. The sooner I can leave this town the better
I jumped slightly, moving my saddlebags further up my back as they were slipping down, it rattled and clinked as I did so. Sometimes I wish I had a place I could just dump all of this stuff, beats carrying it around all day, however if you do the job I do, you have to be on the move constantly. I need to travel to look for work, and it isn't as easy as bucking down the front door of a local bar and screaming "I'M A BADASS MERC, WHO NEEDS SOMEONE DEAD?" It doesn't work like that... Although I admit you'd get a lot of business from bedraggled Mares who have been cheated on by 'their' Stallions!
Scanning the crowd of Ponies around me, I figured that if I was going to track down this Stallion I needed to go to a local hotspot and hope for the best. If that didn't work I may have to resort to taking a trip to the Mayor's office and putting out a notice. It may sound foolish, but you'd be surprised how many Mayors are willing to help find my long lost brother! I grin at my own little joke, most Ponies are easily lead on in such a manner, I don't know whether it's naivety or just plain stupidity, but it works almost all the ti-
"HEY! I don't think I've seen you before! Are you new?"
My train of thought is interrupted as a ball of pink and purple hops in place in front of me. I nod slightly, my attention focused past the excited Mare, still searching for my target. I could hear her, still babbling at me about "Parties" or some other nonsense, I cast my gaze over to my left, coincidentally a Stallion bumps into another Pony just as he enters my field of vision, I watched as he quickly apologised to the Mare. The Stallion lifted a yellow hoof and rubbed his head ruffled his orange mane in embarrassment, when she berated him about watching where he was going.
Wait, yellow coat, orange mane... What's his Cutie-mark?
A Compass.
"Are you even listening to me?" The pink Pony in front of him questioned, a confused look upon her face.
"No." I replied before dashing past her and sprinting towards my target.
The yellow Stallion had only managed to look up before I ploughed into him at full force, knocking him to the ground, the Mare he'd been talking to yelped and backed away. I felt my Chupalla fall off my head as I landed on top of him, my hooves on his arms, pinning him to the floor, my actions drew the attention of many other Ponies who began to form a crowd around us. The Stallion looked up at me, fear evident in the Pony's eyes, he knew he'd been caught.
"You've been running long enough, I think." I growled, "Perhaps it's time to repay those Bits huh?"
"D-did Alfresco send you?" The Stallion gulped.
I say nothing, presuming that 'Alfresco' was the name of my employer, the silence answered the Stallion's question as he furiously tried to escape my clutches.
"So... We gonna do this the easy way or the hard way?" I grin.
There's a phrase involving 'Cornered Rats'... I can't really remember it too well... Anyway.
The Stallion bucks me in the gut in response, I wasn't expecting that, I fall flat on my flank as the Stallion gallops off into the town. My saddlebags had fallen to the floor when I did, but thankfully their contents weren't spilt. I clamber to my hooves, infuriated I let him get away so easily.
"You, pink Pony! Watch my gear!" I charge after my target, I faintly hear a confused "Okey Dokey Lokey" faintly as I swerve around the corner hot on the heels of the yellow Stallion.
"He's serving erratically through the streets, he thinks he can through me off..." I mumbled to myself.
I chase him through the streets of Ponyville, he swerves in-between passers-by trying to loose me, however he doesn't appreciate two things. One: I'm fast, I may just be a simple Earth Pony, but some of my contracts have involved Pegasi in the past, as such I've had practice at keeping up with a fast-moving object. Second: I've been to Ponyville many times during my life, as it is one of the stops on the main train line to Canterlot. So I know almost all the streets like the back of my hoof, he will not be getting away.
He swerves and dives over objects in his way as I chase him, this Stallion is desperate to escape me, I wonder how many Bits he owes? I bash my way through a group of Ponies in my pursuit of him, enticing shouts of anger from some passing Ponies. I'm close as he rounds the corner towards one of the open plaza sections of Ponyville, this one in particular houses 'Sugercube corner', the local confectionery and bakers. I see the yellow Stallion turn around the corner of Sugercube corner in an attempt to loose me. He clearly doesn't know Ponyville as he would have kept on running if he knew his mistake. As the shop sits dead centre of the plaza, rather not in the corner as it's name suggests, so as he turns the corner, I dash into the shop, inciting surprised and angry yells from the owners and customers as I speed through the shop and into the kitchen. I burst out of the back door of the kitchen and, just as I had planned, tackled the Stallion as he passed the door, sending us both sprawling to the ground. I roll on top of him, rearing my hoof back behind my head, his cry of protest is cut short as my hoof impacts with his jaw.
"That's for running," I hit him again, this time in the side of the head, "And that's for bucking me. You ready to pay up now?"
I see him weakly nod, a small amount of blood trickling down from his mouth. I shake my head and promptly throw the battered Pony over my back, and carry him to the train station where my employer for the day will be waiting.
Along with my payment.
After much walking, I dump the Stallion off my back in front of three other Ponies just outside the train station, the two larger Ponies swiftly grab the yellow Stallion and carry him towards one of the cars. I was approached by a chocolate coloured Unicorn with his white mane slicked back over his brow, it appeared his Cutie-mark was an Easel on a hill. It seemed that this 'Alfresco' was aptly named.
"Excellent work, your reputation does in fact hold more than a kernel of truth, Mr. Valour," He places a large bag, encapsulated in his magic, into my hooves, "Here's your payment, as promised, we'll get in contact with you again if we ever need your services Mr. Valour. Have a pleasant day."
I nod the Unicorn as he boards the train with his associates, I turn and weigh the bag, it contained a little more than initially offered by him... heh, no skin off my nose, more Bits for me! I look up to see the pink Pony from before spring up in my vision, wearing both my Chupalla and my saddlebags, she shrugs off the bags as I swipe my hat from her head and place it on my own, ignoring the fact she simply appeared out of nowhere.
"What's the big deal? You can't just go beating up other Ponies for Bits, that's mean!" She pouted as I hefted on my saddlebags and stuffed the bag of Bits inside one of the pouches.
"Kid, the sooner you learn the world ain't all 'magic and friendship'" I say with a snort, "The better, thanks for my stuff though, I'll be seeing you around."
I turn and trot out of the train station, leaving the naïve Pony to mull over what I said to her. I grinned to myself slightly as the realisation of the amount of Bits I've just earned hit me. Steeping out into the outside air, I spot a 'watering hole' across the street... Another contract well done, I might as well reward myself with a drink or five, these Bits are burning a hole in my saddlebags..."
My name is Gallant Valour, but most Ponies call me Val.
Of course, the Ponies that do are few and far between. Mainly because in my line of work, you don't let anyone get to friendly with you.
You see, I'm... What you call, a "Pony for Hire" per-say, you need a job need doing, you come to me. Let's say this job ain't strictly... Legal, you come to me. What if the job involves a little... Violence? Like I said, come to me.
Being constantly on the move is hard, as such I try to live by 7 rules:
1: Don't ask questions, they'll get you killed.
2: What others think of you is none of your business.
3: Never turn down a good drink.
4: Don't compare your life with others, you have no idea what their journey is about.
5: Stop thinking so much, it's normal to not know all the answers.
6: You don't own all the problems in the world, so don't go trying to fix them.
7: No job isn't worth doing if the bag of Bits is heavy enough.
I'll admit, rules are made to be broken, so it's only natural to bend them from time to time. Hell, it's what I'm good at, making the impossible possible.
I've got nothing but the saddle bags on my back and the hat on my head, and... I like it this way.
The year is 995 of Celestia's rule, I'm a Stallion of Fortune, and this is my story.
"... And I guess that sums it up really," Valour mumbled as he swirled what's left of the brown liquid around his glass before looking up, "That answer your question?"
The Unicorn bartender simply swiped up his collection of glasses with his magic and walked off in response, muttering something about "Not handling the drink..." However Valour didn't care, as his attention was more focused on the cute Mare across the bar, Earth Pony like him, she was sort of a maroon colour, nice golden mane...
Curves in all the right places too. Eh, I'll take my chances...
He gulped down the rest of his drink before ambling over to her, clearing his throat as he neared drawing the Mare's attention to him.
"Hey can I borrow 70 bits?" Valour leant on the bar for support as he attempted his poor pick-up attempt.
"What?... No." She frowned and looked him over, a look of scorn present on her features, Valour took no notice however.
"Well how about 69?... I'm sure you can offer 69."
Gallant Valour was never any good with the fairer sex.
He seated himself back in his stool at the end of the bar as she trotted out of the bar, the only thing Valour had to remember the Mare by was a now stinging left cheek and a wet face as she threw her beverage over him. Valour grabbed the bartender's attention and ordered himself another Cider, he figured the Apple farm he saw on the way into town must supply these guys with the stuff, as it seems it's the only drink on tap. The Bartender levitated a full glass over in Valour's direction and dumped it down in front of him, he threw over some Bits in response, mumbling an incoherent "Keep the change". The Bartender examined the Bits Valour had given him, raised his eyebrows in surprise at the amount, and quickly scurried off to take another order.
The sun had lowered itself in the sky a considerable degree by the time Valour staggered out of the bar, feeling rather tipsy and a bit light-headed, he breathed in deeply before adjusting his Chupalla on his head and walking slowly through the now not so busy streets. Now that his job was done he could leave Ponyville, it was too nice a place for Pony for hire, however he reckoned that if he took the east road out of the town and ended up in Phillydelphia... Yeah, there would be defiantly work there.
The thing that troubled Valour the most was the lack of law enforcement in Ponyville, normally he wouldn't be thinking such things, as those Ponies intrude on his line of work, however it was the lack of Police that was strange. Was Ponyville a pretty crime-free area? Judging by the shouts and screams earlier today it probably was, surprising really for a town that receives quite a lot of visitors a day.
As he crossed a small wooden bridge which sat over a small stream near the outskirts of Ponyville, Valour heard the faint sound music being played, it sounded like some kind of string instrument he wasn't sure though. Taken over by a bout of curiosity, he decided to follow the sound of music to it's source. After a while of walking, he poked his head over the top of the shrub and the source of the music was revealed.
It was a mint coloured Pony, and although her back was turned, Valour could tell she was a Mare. The Pony seemed to be a Unicorn as she held her instrument in front via her magic, the instrument in question, which seemed to be a sort of harp, was encapsulated in the green glow of her magic. The Mare was extremely talented at her craft, and was sat near the water's edge as she played her instrument. Valour, now satisfied that he knew where the music was coming from, turned to leave, but as he did so, he unintentionally stepped on a twig, causing a large -crack- to sound throughout the clearing.
The Mare stopped playing and turned, she leapt to her feet when she saw Valour stood in the thicket watching her. Her golden eyes seemed to pierce Valour's very soul as she glared at Valour, he hadn't received a look of similar ferocity since when he used to get in trouble with his Sire as a Colt. Valour, for the first time in many a year, felt slightly apprehensive at what was going to happen next.
"Where... Where you watching me?" The Mare asked, as she floated her Harp-like instrument over to a case nearby.
"Wha, well no! Well I was-but, no. Argh!" Valour shook his head, he frowned, "Look I just heard some interesting music and I thought I'd check it out okay? Jeez..."
The Mare's expression softened slightly during Valour's explanation, almost taking amusement out of his discomfort. She turned and secured the case her harp... Thing resided in before placing it on her back, she turned and walked toward Valour.
"Hey it's cool, I just thought you where one of those creeps who stalk Mares at night and- Oh never mind!" She extended a hoof, "Lyra Heartstrings, pleasure to meet you."
"Gallant Valour," He shook her hoof, he nodded toward the instrument on her back, "What's that you where playing?"
Lyra craned her neck to look at the music case sat on her back, "It's my Lyre, my pride and joy, it's how I got my Cutie-mark."
She turned slightly, and sure enough, Valour could spy a golden Lyre imprinted on her flank. He mentally stopped himself from staring any longer than necessary, hey, what can he say? He was a pure red-blooded Stallion...
"Speaking of Cutie-marks..." Lyra raised a brow, "What's yours supposed to be? No offence."
Valour internally sighed, all conversations with other Ponies turned to this. It was only natural really, as you could find out a lot about a Pony from their Cutie-mark, and as such it was a common topic among Ponies who are talking for the first time. Valour turned and looked at his own mark, a bag of bits, a sheet of parchment, and a single dagger stabbed through said parchment.
"I'm a 'Pony for Hire' per say..." He revived a blank look, "Mercenary/ Bounty Hunter/ Odd job-doer. Anything for Bits."
The was a short silence, last time Valour had explained this story to someone, they had berated him for nearly half-an-hour over how "Killing is wrong", "You should choose a better path in life". Yada yada yada, stuff he'd heard before.
"Cool," Lyra replied with a smirk, surprising Valour to no end, "You live by your own rules, follow your own path." She laughed a little, "Wish I could do the same."
Don't say it
I'm going to ask
Don't!
I'm going to.
DON'T
Here we go.
I SWEAR TO CELESTIA IF YOU ASK HER I WILL-
"Well..." Valour sheepishly scratched the back of his head, "You could come with me if you like?"
"What? Just travelling from city to city?" He nodded, "Doing odd jobs for people" Another nod, "Some involve... Violence at times?" Nod, "With you?" Nod, "A complete stranger who I've only just met within the last 5 minutes who was spying on me from the brush?" A hesitant nod. "You're asking me to just drop everything I have here and go with you?" Nod.
Lyra tapped the hoof against her chin for a moment in mock thought.
"Yeah I guess, let's go." She trotted off, a small grin on her face.
Valour was dumbstruck.
What just happened?
"W-Wait up!" Valour jogged to catch up to the mint Mare. "You're just going to drop everything and leave?"
"I'm a travelling musician." Lyra winked at him, "A Minstrel if you like, all I've got is my Lyre. I was trying to busk for Bits to catch the train to Canterlot for my big break... I guess that it can wait though, it's not like I've got anything going for me right now."
"Okay... But what makes you think I'm trustworthy?" Valour stopped, shrugging his saddlebags forward into a more comfortable position. "What makes you think I won't try anything?"
"First off, you seem nice, I'd presume you have some sense of honour in you." Lyra narrowed her eyes, "Besides, I'd like to see you actually try something, I can handle myself y'know!" She paused, "What's that on your head by the way?"
"A Chupalla," Valour looked up to the hat which sat perched on his head, "Picked it up in La Sorraia down south, you needed something to keep the heat off your head down there or you where a goner."
As he spoke, Valour dug into his packed Saddlebags and withdrew his map of Equestria, he studied it intently, muttering to himself as he turned the map in one hoof. Suddenly, it was wrenched from his grip and floated in the air surrounded by a green glow, Lyra appeared by his side, a smug look across her face, Valour shook his head and continued planning his route. Lyra looked at his map, it was covered in numerous marks where Valour had scrawled something, places where circled, paths where marked, near the north there where numerous crude drawings of Pony skulls, presumably no-go areas. Along with the drawings and notes, the map was covered in numerous stains, coffee being the most prominent, along with a few burn stains on the edges. It was evident that Valour had owned this map for a long, long time.
"So where we headed, boss?" Lyra asked, looking to the Stallion.
"There," Valour jabbed a hoof at Phillydelphia, due east of Ponyville, "We'll find work there."
He snatched up the map and hastily folded it up and stuffed it into his Saddlebags, he looked up to his new companion.
"You ready?" He asked with a quick nod.
"Always" She replied.
And so, the two Ponies began their journey together, and travelled away from the setting sun.
Hey, TRW here.
Let's be frank here, I don't think LoM is going to be finished any time soon, I've just fallen out of love with the story, sorry guys!
In the mean-time, have a new story!
I tried a very cinematic/ James Bond-esque opening here, did it work? If not, tell me why!
Oh and La Sorraia? Yeah it's a mix of La Serena, a Chilean city (Where the Chupalla hat is from) and the horse breed Sorraia. Clever if I do say so myself!
Some things to note:
1) This takes place 5 years before the very first episode of FiM.
2) Another thing to note is that it's set in a Alternate Universe , things will happen that didn't happen in the show, but I will try and fit them in with the mythos as best as possible.
3) The Mane 6 are not going to appear at all. That first scene with Pinkie is the only time you are going to see or hear them! You have been warned!
Another thing I should note is that you should check out my FIM Fiction account! While content uploaded there is mostly the same, you can get an insider view from my blog posts, and the stories themselves will have more interactive ( Images? Quite possibly). And besides, I could do with the followers! ;)
Take care everyone!
~TRW