Twilight stalked into the sub-tranium town, a heavy cloak over her back and over her head hiding her in shadow as she looked around the dark place, a single column of lava dripped lazily down from the high cavern ceiling overhead into a wide round pool in the middle Orcs, Strong Bipeds with green skin and bad teeth, used metal buckets and simple magic to drain metal and other useful elements from the molten earth, around the Lava pit where a ring of stalls, shops and Taverns, all filled with creatures of the Underworld and behind the circle of utilities was a ring of homes filled with many creatures that Twilight identified from her short training with her new mentor.

"You are looking for weak creatures at the moment, try to find a tribe of Goblins or a few sellswords" Twilight Contemplated the advice and moved to the Tavern stepping deftly out of the way as a drunk human exited the place and tripped on the first step, falling face first into the hard rock and crying out in shock and pain as three of his teeth bounced into the closeby lava much to the delight of some Goblin Children.

The Tavern itself was a smoky, loud place filled creatures just passing the time or conspiring together about things that must seem very important to them, moving to the bar she lifted her forelegs and settled them down on the old wood surface, scowling as she felt the thin layer of spilt alcohol stick to her fur.

"What can I get you?" a large Orc in a clean looking vest asked her cleaning a iron tankard with a shockingly clean looking cloth.

"Information" Twilight responded glancing about as a few people in the crowded room showed interest in the newcomer looking her over.

"Information's gonna cost you a drink lass" the Orc replied "It's my policy" Drawing a gold coin with her face on one side and cutie mark on the other Twilight dropped it onto the table.

"I am looking for people interested in work" Twilight waited for the Orc to check the coin just like Heras had advised her, after a moment he handed her a small, leather bound, book and pointed to a door leading to a back room.

"Here are the people looking for... work, you can interview them here My Lady" he bowed his head as Twilight left without a word, entering the back room and settling down onto the seat as she flicked through the book, each page had a person, employment history, Qualifications, Hobbies, place of education, to be fair most were embarrassingly crude and Twilight could be sure that some of the people in this book where here because they could not survive a peaceful life.

A few pages caught her interest for high ranking minions, people she could delegate tasks too, Twilight also piled up around forty pages for minions who she could hand a sword and point at someone she wanted removed, something she had a feeling that quite a few of the people in the small book where unqualified for.

Each page had a drop of blood from the person that Twilight could feed magic into to get the attention of the person, once the person was alerted to Twilights interest she simply had to wait for them to arrive so she could speak to them in person.


"We sense Twilight is safe, but our vision fails us, we cannot see her" Luna, the Princess of the night spoke softly to her sister.

"I too, find my sight unable to pierce the black earth, we can only trust our senses and speak to the new creatures that Honesty has found." Celestia, Princess of the Sun replied.

"Laughter has impressed upon them, I trust that friendship will come"

"Yes sister, I agree, we must use the knowledge our new potential friends bring, we cannot lose Twilight"


"Name?"

"Can't you read? Oh nevermind, its formality right? Well I have many names, you, you may call me... Tim" Twilight Blinked

"Tim?"

"Tim The conjurer!" the human grinned widely lifting his hands as sparks flew from his fingertips, Twilight was not impressed.

"I see, you have a masters in history and arts from the university of Foss? can you explain how this will help with your preferred role. 'Beer taster' and why I would need one in the first place?" Twilight folded her hooves rolling her neck as she waited for the man to respond.

"I did not expect you to read the whole thing... Most Keepers just hire anyone with an ounce of magic and chuck us in the library" he smiled sheepishly.

"I will consider your application" Tim paused to reply but thought better of it and left without a word.

"Now lets see..." Looking through the pile she had left Twilight was shocked when a loud rapping came from the door, looking up she called out "Come in"

The last thing she expected was a Dragon to walk into the cramped room.


Lenora liked marching much to the annoyance of her friends, standing in the fourth row in her detachment marching forward to the rhythm of the forward leftmost person, a awkward looking young man with a helmet too big for his head, her sword hitting her leg with each footfall, her shield in her offhand a constant companion as her boots impacted the rich earth.

Lenora is a mercenary, and a damn good one at that, part of her dutchess first heavy infantry division she was a model soldier and a well paid one, she was marching forward now to help the dwarves fighting the evil keepers deep under the earth, Lenora had been given so much gold that her family had been able to pay off all the debt they owed and buy new livestock just for joining this expedition!

Hooves thundered to her right and Lenora glanced back expertly keeping step to see a column of elves riding stag, no less than a hundred of them, keeping just shy of the road in which the human column marched, turning her head back to the road the mercenary grinned widely, a force of humans, dwarves and elves must be unstoppable.


"You want to be a researcher?" Twilight scratched her head with a hoof.

"Yes please" replied the large black reptile sat before her, nervously patting a small bag filled with the unmistakable bulge of books.

"And you are willing to get paid in... knowledge?" again the unicorn had no idea how to respond to this.

"Well, books, scrolls, tablets, anything like that..." the Dragon smiled shyly.

"this is a fantastic opportunity to gain a powerful follower, Dragons are smart, powerfull and saying no now could be the worst choice you will ever make Keeper!" wincing slightly at the voice Twilight smiled softly and nodded touching her horn to the paper with Avrae the dragonesses blood on it, accepting the contract offered.

"Congratulations, just wait a moment I have a shortcut" the purple mare got out of her seat packing up her things and looking around before turning back to her newest dragon suppressing a ping of homesickness "Are you ready?"

"Yes Keeper, I am ready."