Episode 11

孤児

The orphan gang!


I woke up, gasping for air. But it was impossible, as if there was simply no air. Suddenly, air came rushing back in my lungs. I coughed several times, almost barfing up. I looked around to find a smiling David.

"Really funny..." I said in a rough voice.

David shook his head.

"Come on. We need to go. By the way, what's your name? Human name, I mean."

"Noah White."

David nodded and I got up. I levitated the saddlebag on my back, and we walked out of the room. Twilight was waiting outside. She turned around, and we followed her as she guided us through the castle.

Once outside, she stopped and looked at me.

"Be careful."

I nodded, and she went back inside.

"Where to now?" I asked David.

David smirked and walked away in what seemed like a random direction.


After what seemed like an eternity, we finally reached a small town, much smaller than Ponyville. The sun was low, almost entirely behind the horizon.

"There's an inn. We will sleep there for the night." David told me as he went for a building with a sign hanging from the façade.

The sign said 'Glorious Dragon Inn'. David and I walked in. Ponies were seated around some tables, some with a fizzy drink in front of them. They all looked tired and unhappy. The place had the distinctive smell of alcohol, and even though I was only sixteen, given Markus was twenty-one, I knew the scent of alcohol.

David walked to the counter and talked to the barman/inn keeper.

"We'd like a room with two beds. And some cider for me."

David then put some golden coins on the counter, and the pony on the other side took them. He then gave David a mug filled with a dark liquid that had the smell of apples and alcohol. He took the mug and chugged it down. Once it was empty, he put the mug down and took the keys the barman had put for David to take.

He came back to me and pointed at the stairs.

"We should go to sleep now. We leave first thing in the morning tomorrow."

I nodded and I followed him up the stairs to our room to get some sleep.


I gasped for air as cold water was splashed on my face. I rubbed my eyes with my hooves, then I looked outside.

"Sun's not even up. Too early. Goin' back ta sleep..." I mumbled.

As soon as my head hit the pillow, I was greeted with another splash of cold water. I got up and moaned.

"Alright, alright. No need to be brutal."

I went to the bathroom to freshen up, but I stopped as I remembered the cold water that woke me up. I sighed and I put the saddlebag back on.

"We can leave now. Oh, and you might wanna eat before we go. There's some bits in your saddlebag, thanks to me." David said as he walked towards the door. "I'll be waiting for you outside the inn."

He left the room. I followed shortly, and I got down to the counter where the inn keeper was.

"What's for breakfast?" I asked.

"This." He said while pointing at a tray with sandwiches on it. " A bit for two sandwiches."

I took my bits out and put them on the counter.

"Then I'll take six."

The inn keeper let out a sigh and gave me six sandwiches. I ate them quickly, and I left the inn. Outside was very dark.

"Well, it's very dark."

I looked around, trying to find David. Suddenly, a pony walked out of the shadows and into the light of the lantern hanging above the inn's door.

"You know what they say. The darkest hour is just before sunrise."

I nodded, not scared at all. After all, Markus kept pulling pranks like these on me every summer during the courage test.

"Lead the way." I said, and we walked away.

We were about a hundred feet away from the inn when I heard somepony move in the shadows.

"Wait. Someone's following us."

David and I stopped walking, waiting for more. After a few seconds, a Pegasus tackled David to the ground. I charged a teleportation spell, waiting to cast it. I didn't have to wait for long as another Pegasus was coming for me. At the last possible second, I casted the teleportation spell, teleporting myself about a foot to my right, the equivalent of sidestepping. I charged up another spell, this one to cast light.

Light spilled out of my horn, Showing the two Pegasus in a heap, David smirking while having a hoof on top of the pile. Then, something it me on the head and I blacked out.


I opened my eyes. There were voices around.

"What are we to do of them?" Feminine. Somewhat old, about sixteen or seventeen.

"We keep them here until we are sure they aren't worth anythin'." Masculine. Older than the first voice, about eighteen.

"I am hungry, and my sis too!" Masculine. Quite young, about thirteen.

"Quit it, would ya?" Feminine. Slightly younger than the third voice, about eleven.

"But she really needs to eat, or else she'll die!" Voice three said.

"What do I have to do with it?" Voice four replied.

"Emily! Rush! Enough!" Voice two ordered.

"Yes, Boss!" Voice three and four said.

"I'm hungry too." Masculine. Deep and older than voice two, about twenty.

"I know, Dom. We all are." Voice two said with concern.

Something then poked my left hind hoof.

"Are you awake?" A really young feminine voice asked. The owner of that voice had to be around twelve.

I opened one eye, but one eye was too much. The owner of the first voice, one of the two Pegasus that attacked David and I, looked at me and spoke.

"Looks like one of our prisoners is awake. Thanks Lilac."

The unicorn filly that had poked my hoof gave the Pegasus a big smile before trotting away from me. She had a lilac coat, big pale blue eyes, and a dark lilac mane and tail. She had no cutie mark, and she was filthy, mud covering her coat in some places. The other Pegasus that attacked us walked to me.

"What's your name?"

I didn't answer right away. I thought for a few minutes. Since I knew at least one had a human name, I decided to play safe and give them my human name.

"Noah White."

"So you're a human too?"

I nodded, and he signaled to the Earth pony filly called Emily. She had a dark blue coat, brown eyes, and a brown mane and tail. Her cutie mark was a molotov cocktail. She walked to me and she cut the rope that was holding me up. I fell to the ground.

"Sorry for that." She said. "Name's Emily Brown."

I then heard a moan. I looked around to see David hanging from the ceiling the same way I was.

"Hang in there, David." I said as I giggled.

"Real funny." David replied sarcastically.

Emily then went to David and cut his rope, making him fall to the ground just like me.

"So... Who are you guys?"

"You now know Emily. I'm Keith MacDonald, that is my marefriend Shadow Daze."

The owner of the first voice bowed slightly. She had a dark grey coat, dark yellow eyes, and a dark red messy and slightly long mane and tail. Her cutie mark was a cloud with speed streaks behind.

"Over there is Dominic Wagner." Keith continued.

He was pointing at a big Earth pony stallion. He had a dull yellow coat, dull blue eyes, and a dull blond mane and tail kept short and clean like military's haircut. His cutie mark was a bald eagle, similar to the one on the US's emblem.

"The filly that poked you is Lilac. And over there is her brother Fire Rush."

Fire Rush the unicorn had a dark purple coat, pale blue eyes, and a bright red mane and tail with orange highlights. His cutie mark was a tornado.

Keith had a dark green coat, green eyes, and a slightly long brown mane and tail. His cutie mark was a four-leafed clover. Like the others, he was dirty, with mud sticking to his coat in some places.

"And we are the orphan gang!" The chorused together.

"We are all orphans. All of our parents died in strange ways, even for here. My parents by suffocation when the ground beneath them opened up then caved in on them. I was five." Keith said with a slight Irish accent.

"My parents died when our house burned down. I was three, and I was the cause of the fire." Emily said while she wiggled her flank.

"Our parents when they were struck by lightning. I was four and Lilac was three." Rush said.

"My parents died because they were hung by vines in a forest. I was ten, and I saw it happen." Dom said in his deep, yet innocent voice.

"My parents drowned in the house. I was four, and just outside playing with a cloud I had turned back to water. Our house collapsed on them, the clouds back to water." Daze said, tears rolling on her cheek.

"Wait... This means some of you, of not all of you, have an elemental affinity!"

"You don't say Noah!" Emily said, a flame dancing on her hoof.

"Emily, Dom and I ended being pursued by The River for our affinities. And we ended here, finding three ponies like us. So we founded our little gang."

Suddenly, knocks sounded throughout the hideout.

"Damn... The River's here!"

Soon, cloaked ponies rushed in. They quickly found Emily. She was grinning in a disturbing way. She then jumped and kick in the air, causing fire to shoot out of her hoof and burn the closest ponies. Stone pillars then rose from the ground, impaling two more ponies. David and I looked at each other, and we both nodded.

I ran out of my hiding place.

"Over here!"

The River ponies looked at me, then they ran towards me. I immediately charged my horn before I yelled.

"NOW!"

I teleported away with the orphan gang. We reappeared in front of their hideout.

"ANNIHILATE"

There was then something sounding like an explosion. David then walked out of the hideout.

"No more problem with The River." He said.

"Are you gonna stay here?" Lilac asked.

"Unfortunately, no. We are going back to Earth. You can come if you want." I said.

"Why not? Anyway, our hideout is now busted." Daze said as she made her way to Keith.

"Then let's get movin'!" David said as he began to walk away.

I followed him, the orphan gang right behind me. The sun was high in the sky.


We were all sitting around a campfire. David and Daze were singing a duet, and everyone around the fire was happy. I walked to Keith. He was looking at the night sky.

"Reminds me of the nights back home." He said.

"I'm sure everything will be all right. I have friends to help me, and I am sure they will help you as well."

"Thanks, buddy. I never had real friends until I ended here and met Dom and Emily."

"Now you can add me to your friends." I told him.

He smiled. He then went back to observing the night sky, and I joined him, the laughing coming from around the campfire far away and close by at the same time. My thoughts wandered all the way to Earth and Sakura. 'I will be back real soon...' I thought.

"Keith! Noah! Why don't you join us! It'll be fun!" Daze said.

"Why not? Last to the campfire as to do the first guard round!" Keith said as he darted back to the camp fire.

"Not on my watch!" I said as I ran passed him, the years of practice of running to be on time when I was late paying up.


Next episode: "With my new friends, I am finally going back to Earth! After some many delays, I can't wait to see Sakura again. I hope she's not too sad... Next episode:

Episode 12

開始

The beginning

Don't miss it!"

(c) 2014 The master of the game