Chapter Four: Just Another Night

Hex usually began her night in the exact same way. She strolled out of her clinic/house and onto the boardwalk to enjoy cool humid air. She closed her predatory gold eyes and focused purely on the click of wood under her hooves and the distant chime of river buoys. Even the chatter of complete strangers was relaxing.

The historical buildings that cropped up over hundreds of years crowded closer and closer until only narrow alleys separated them; and hidden in their shadows were surely lovers up to illicit fun or a cut-purse up to no good. This eventually gave into brightly lit restaurants and open tables littering the peer. Hex bowed her head to a lavender mare in a puffy dress she had known within one of those allies, then kindly nodded her head to her husband.

The tourist-friendly venues passed her by as she strolled thirty minutes down wooden planks. Moonlight shimmered across the river to her left and cobblestone avenues on her right. Soon came the rustic brick facades with large loading docs and smoke stacks. Next came the shoddy pubs that real LastHarbor citizens went to.

Old squat cottages with white walls and timber frames sat with windows lit, some by modern amber crystals and other via good old-fashioned kerosene lamps. Not far ahead was the end of the pier, the most eastward anyone was stupid enough to build. A few kilometers down the river was a place no Equis would go.

She finally turned to her destination. The 'Last Pub' was a two level cottage with a stone foundation and small round windows. She walked up a few creaky oak steps and slipped into a smokey and ruckus room with a tall ceiling and the oldest kerosene lamps a building could still legally use.

Ten Round tables hosted groups up to six, some just crusty sailors, some far shadier and leather-bound. The former mind their own business while the latter sized up the black mare in flirtatious clothing. A practiced smile in Hex's muzzle that both enticed and flashed a few pointed canines their way.

"Not wearing your leathers tonight?."

A husky voice spoke from behind her before large maroon arms curled around Arcane's waist. The heavy tits that framed her neck assured Arcane who it was. The mare behind her was a fellow mundane who truly lived up to the stature of Arcane's race, the nearly two-meter tall mare known simply as 'Brick'.

"Yeah, not hunting tonight, but I did come in for a bounty."

"Oh? Any plans after that?"

She leaned into the hold and let herself feel safe and submissive against the gentle giant. As forward as her 'night' side was, Hex wasn't against others being forward to her.

"Get back to the door. I don't pay ya' to sex up the customers", a salty voice barked out from a crotchety green stallion behind the bar.

The tall mare made an angry snort as she moved back to the entrance, but not before giving a firm spank to Arcane's left ass cheek. With her butt still stinging She finally made it to one of the many barstools and slowly lowered her backside.

"Watch yer' right side", the old stallion said, prompting Arcane to look. She only saw it when she peered up. A mumbling and very intoxicated Celestial hugged the ceiling in absolute defiance of gravity.

"Poor twit is going to fall like a bag of shit when he's finally sober. So, what can I get ya?"

She leaned onto the bar with a soft sigh, "Bourbon on the rocks and your finest two-star bounties, good sir."

He grunted as his hands moved with a practiced ease. One hand grabbed a glass tumbler and the other poured bourbon from a dark brown bottle. She didn't even see where he got the ice from when it plinked into her drink.

"Okay, hear me out. I got something that is perfect for you and worth your while."

The old stallion hobbled over to the back wall behind the bar. Where bottles would normally be kept was a wide gallery of papers tacked on cork board. Each of them had a prominent number as the first line with an expertly drawn image or photograph in the dead center. His own special touch to each document was a stamp in the lower right corner of one to five stars. His personal rating system of how hard it would be to catch and/or kill said target.

Arcane didn't have a death wish like some of the grizzled ex-military behind her. Two-star contracts were fine by her. Runaways. Locating lost artifacts (her speciality due to her particular gift). Last but not least, non-superpowered criminals.

Her eyes glazed over with a skeptical stare as the one-eyed bartender, a stallion so covered in scars that he looked like the wooden practice dummy for an axe thrower, began his spiel.

"Take a look at this beauty.", he started after fetching a bounty from the higher portion of his board. She entertained the fool, but the presence of five stars was an instant no. Then it became so much worse. Two Million bits for a live capture, wanted for interrogation. Name unknown.

The sketch depicted a dragon, not a draconic skeleton animated with unholy magic fire, but a flesh and blood emerald dragon with s-shaped jade horns pointed backward. Her clothes were tattered and dirty. Her trousers were more a collection of patches and loose v-neck top perhaps once a men's nightshirt in a better life.

Despite the desolate clothing she was, indeed, a beaut. Her head had a slick backed crown of short black feathers that seemed far too soft and flowing to be of any use besides decoration. She was short, perhaps 1.5 meters, but her strength made up for stature. Toned arms, slender waist, wide muscular hips ending in wide bluntly clawed feet. Last but far from least was those damn eyes. The sketch artist spent way too much love on them, probably because they were as dazed by their beauty. Mocha, like coffee with cream surrounded by black sclera. Darker feather-like fur substituted for eyebrows and with them was a fierce stare that showed an intelligent and unmistakably dangerous warning. Not quite a threat. Not quite like a mugger with his knife drawn. More like someone who knows what killing feels like and doesn't want to, but knows where hesitation gets you.

"Yeah, she's very pretty", was her single response before taking a long swig. The old stallion furrowed his one fully intact brow and looked at her with his mouth unhinged.

"I meant the damn bounty."

She smirked and looked down at her drink as she swirled it about, watching the ice dance. Just beside her the celestial finally fell like a sack of shit, his fall broken by a collapsing barstool.

"Well, dead Equis can't cash bounties. I don't do dead dragons and I sure as hell won't mess with a live one."

The old stallion let out a curse strewn grumble as he put the poster back on his wall. A moment later he returned and slapped a stack of bounties down marked with only two stars.

"All you gotta do is find where she is camping and relay it to the guard. A confirmed catch and you won't need this place anymore. Trust me, Hex, you act like a badass but you'll be me before you know it. My fucking face looks like meatloaf and I piss blood most days. Get that bounty before your smug ass gets mangled.

Also, don't think your little strategy is going to keep you safe. I've lost friends to two-star bounties. Even morons get lucky."

She wasn't listening. All her attention went into reading the description of law-breakers and runaway recruits. One seemed easy but far too low, 1200 bits for two tax evading brothers and their traveling wagon of scams. They didn't seem like the kind that could fight or use magic all that well, but locating them would be an ordeal. Another talked about some runaway creation of the Infamous Discord. Mostly non-violent yet didn't operate according to Euclidean logic. Her gift would make that one a breeze if she didn't mind the head-cracking migraine that chaos magic gave her. Hard pass on that one.

Two true beauties finally emerged from the stack of disappointments. The first was practically made for her. A ridiculous ninety five thousand bits to recover an ancient relic in the old Canterbury ruins. The sketch depicted a grey stone sphere with a very familiar design etched into it, eight wavy rays of a sun seemingly divided like a yin-yang. The element of 'Mercy'. As for the second, it was more of a bonus. An awol recruit of the royal guard, just some young mare who got in over her head and ran from her duties.

"Sweet Celeste, I'm guessing this one has a death wish."

Arcane slid the bounty of a young astral deserter towards the crusty bartender.

He made a curious grunt and nodded. "That's going to be a fun one. An Astral entering the ruins. Not sure if she's stupid or just desperate."

"Hmm, well, the plants will probably keep away so long as she never uses her horn. Think I should bring a bucket in case she does?"

The old stallion cocked his head. Arcane smirked, happy he didn't get the joke.

"You know, to bring back whatever the forest leaves behind."

"It's quitting' time"

The husky voice spoke only three words as an arm wrapped around Arcane's waist and hoisted her onto a steady shoulder. From her high perch she had the perfect view of a toned bubble but in thick blue denim and a dark maroon tail. Her point of view pivoted back to facing the bartender now crossing his arms with a smirk so wide it looked like one of his cheek scars threatened to reopen.

Whistles and catcalls from the rough crowd rose to a clamor as mugs banged tables in rhythm. This quickly evolved into a choir as one, then many belted out a song.

"Bang the bed, bang the floor, the ship is swaying, man the ores! Full pace ahead, the cannon blows, full pace ahead, the Captain crows!"

Arcane only smiled wide and flipped off everyone as the bigger mare walked to the far left of the bar where an archway led upstairs.

Just before the main bar area was out of view she could hear the old bartender calling out.

"I'll arrange transportation, regular fee! Plus a night for the room! You're welcome!"

-

She was dropped like a sack of potatoes on a, thankfully, soft down-feather bed sturdy enough for a mare Like Brick. The small room was cozy but not at all roomy. Just two and a half meters by four at the largest. Still, Brick made good use of her space. Near a small fireplace were iron weights she, no doubt, used every day. Near this was a bookshelf absolutely littered with books about self improvement and self confidence, showing the solid mare wasn't hard all the way through.

The two-meter mare herself was beautiful in a spartan sense. Her face was feminine yet handsome with yellow eyes almost always hidden by a mass of shaggy maroon hair, much akin to a Clydesdale. Also like a Clydesdale, she was thick. Wide shoulders, tapering but solid midsection, heavy chest, and legs with shaggy fur below the knee.

Arcane undid her trousers and wiggled out of them before peeling off jacket and top. After tossing her panties to the side she was fully natural. The gear symbols on her limbs and the larger fate-mark along her hip contrasted her dark fur in off white hues. Her silky lavender hair fanned out against the sheets as she bent her knees and parted her dark thighs.

Fourteen inches of dark plum flesh throbbed across Arcane's belly, yet she knew Brick too well. The large girl wanted what was just below it. She looked down on Brick's form as the tall mare made short work of a simple black shirt and denim trousers. Heavy breasts, a lovely six pack, a cute tuft of shaggy fur along her pubic region, and a dark maroon love-bat fit for someone her stature.

Arcane felt goosebumps as she anticipated being spread around Brick once again. What happened came as a surprise. Brick slid beside her and flooped onto her back. The tall mare smiled as her thighs spread, mimicking Arcane perfectly.

She rolled to lay across the bigger mare's stomach and rest hands on Brick's larger chest. Only then did she realize her tap gloves were still on. Perhaps for the best, one never knew when magic would come in handy.

Brick gave a brilliant smile and pointed down. Not a hard thing to interpret for Arcane. She left a trail of kisses as she slowly inched backwards. Over the washboard stomach, over the cute belly button hiding in the red fur, over the firm pubis. Her trail needed to veer around the tall obstruction, choosing to kiss along the left side of her hilt as it twitched in the rhythm of a strong heartbeat.

She took a few moments to truly appreciate the anatomy Brick and her shared. Below the length wasn't the furry yams science calls the 'testicles'. Those were safely inside their body and far less wasteful with sperm production or unnecessary heat. The twin hills of a vulva hugged under the length and framed the lips of their pussy. Between folds and the cock's base was a small hood that provided extra elasticity and aesthetically looked like a proper clit-hood.

"You're lucky I trust you, big girl."

Arcane wouldn't go down on just anyone. There was sex, and then their was love making. Sex was a condom, the lack of names, and a promise never to see anyone again. Lovemaking was detail, care. It didn't mean love, necessarily. Neither 'Hex' nor Brick were the type that could stand permanence of that sort. Permanence was death, and as for any sane being, to be avoided.

Arcane's nose pressed between length and mound before pressing in. Her dark plum colored tongue eased into the pink and blindly searched about. Her tongue firmly grazed the convex roof of Brick's pussy. The pressure against that roof shifted blood around and made Brick's tip bulge, it also grazed over a small bump only a few centimeters wide and perhaps eight cm long. In that little bump was as many nerve endings as her entire prick bunched up. That little button served one major function. Pressing it caused reflexes in pelvic muscles to contract and tightly grip whatever slipped inside.

She wrapped a hand under the ridge of Brick's flat prick as repeated lapping forced the large mare's pussy to 'swallow' and force blood into her prick. There was no resistance as the heavy mare wiggled and moaned. Arcane felt her body nudged side to side between Brick's thighs as moans grew louder. As a mercy, Arcane broke up the action with suckles to Brick's 'hood'

She felt a heavy hand grip her shoulder and give a tug Arcane couldn't fight, even if she had a mind to. 'Hex' prepared to raise a thigh and slide into the bigger mare's lap. Brick pushed the leg away and gave a wide grin.

"Are… are you absolutely sure about this?", Arcane asked with a hint of disbelief, "Unless you planned all this in advance and bought a rubber in my size…"

"Nope, decided this when you walked through the door."

"I'm flattered but-"

"It's okay. The apartment already has a tenant, so to speak. Remember Tall Pines?"

She felt her length brushing up against Bricks. It refused to soften despite what Brick was getting at. If Hex could feel fear right now then perhaps she would be afraid. Without that handy warning system it just came out as confusion.

"The lumberjack stallion?"

Brick gave a small nod and a little smile, one of those 'adult' smiles. A smile belonging to a person who didn't want what was coming, but worked to find some happiness in a difficult situation.

"Well, we were fucking around and the rubber broke. It was confirmed last week."

Her lips parted. Arcane wanted to say something comforting yet it was all numbness and blank thoughts. She knew this was the moment to be kind, to think of something to show she cared. She knew she cared, knew, yet couldn't feel a fucking thing. Brick continued.

"I wanted it to be one of us. Mom and dad, just like my mom and dad."

Arcane leaned forward and lay on Brick. Under that shaggy hair the tears were welling up. Arcane thought about what 'Bless' would do in this moment, besides running away in a panic. She reached up and cupped Brick's face and wiped the tears with her thumbs.

"Both my parents are like us too. In fact, I'm a seventh generation 'stalmare'"

Brick chuckled through the sobs, "That's the dumbest name for our sex."

"How about we pretend tonight? You and I, lovers, -ready to start a family."

Brick paused, giving it thought.

"Lovers don't fuck and run, Hex."

"Arcane."

"What?"

"Arcane Gears. -That's my real name."

Brick paused as she searched her mind. A moment of recognition.

"Wait! You're the filly that-"

"The very one."

"But why tell me all that?"

Arcane leaned in and pressed her muzzle to Bricks. The ridges of her lips were surprisingly soft and the larger mare eagerly pressed back. Their soft tongues danced in each other's mouth and those strong arms closed around Arcane with a hug that nearly stole her breath.

A large hand gripped her hip and directed thighs. Arcane answered the insistence by pushing herself inside. She first felt the heat of Brick's insides before the tight clench. With every motion she could feel the other length jump between their stomachs.

The kiss was broken so both could gasp in a badly needed breath.

"Because when I'm like this I'm stupid and wreckless." She said through a smile.

She leaned back and looked down at the powerful sight under her. Her hands smoothed down along Brick's waist. Her left hand smoothed over the flat stomach that would curve out and grow heavy in a matter of months.

Arcane swayed her hips and steadily moved inside her friend, feeling every powerful grip and every twitch. Her gift creeped up on her. Arcane saw lights dancing under Brick's skin. It was so faint, so subtle, but there was a magic swirling and dancing deep inside Brick. There were no words that could describe what she saw. It was simply light and the way it shimmered that spoke to her, that communicated in vague concepts, sensations, and intuitions. It felt so familiar, but it took a moment for her mind to understand.

"Brick, She's going to be a Stalmare.", the words were colored by a moan as Arcane's slender waist showed its strength. Her back arched as her head tilted up. Heat rushed into Brick. Arcane felt the quiver over her own length, a warning her friend was on the edge. Her head lowered and lips curled around the dark maroon length. Brick's heat rushed into her mouth. Arcane's gold eyes burned in the low light as she looked back, swallowing it down before licking Brick clean.

She fell forward into strong arms and slid to her side. Sweat and heat pressed between their bodies yet Brick held close.

Arcane wanted to feel the tenderness that her friend radiated. She wanted to feel comfort, love. She would, eventually, but not now. She only knew what Brick needed. Perhaps she would regret all of this in the morning, but that was the morning's problem.

"So, you know how Stallmares can't have twins unless they're identical? Funny thing about that…", Hex began to say as Brick's eyes grew heavy. A story for another day, perhaps.