>To be honest, you don’t know what you should have expected
>But it wasn’t what you got
>The room was modestly small
>In the back, an elderly diamond dog sat on what looked like a cushion seat
>There are no guards
>Just the old dog in an average room
>Scratch that, average-sized room
>You realize that on the walls are beautiful paintings
>Each one seems to depict an event
>Some show wars
>Others show treaties being signed
>Still more show what look like ancient cities
>Each one was done in oil, and seemed to reveal the essence of the event it depicted
“Impressive works, are they not?”
>Shit
>You must have spaced out
>You nod
>The old dog is watching you with a kind gaze
>Much like Celestia, the few times you’ve caught a glimpse of her
>Wonder why she never noticed you?
>Surely Twilight said something
>She was, after all, the one who started the town against you
>Your thoughts are broken by the leader speaking again
“My name is Dux, the last King of the Diamond Dogs. What is your name, newcomer?”
>Damn!
>Royalty?
>You should’ve dressed up
Anon. Pleased to meet your highness
>Not that you could have, but still
>With him being the leader of at least the three that you’ve met, is seems appropriate
“Ah, please. No formalities. They make me seem less… relatable”
>You suppose you can understand that
>Being called your highness must get tiring sometimes
“Anon, I’d like to hear your story”
>Your story?
What do you mean?
>You barely stop yourself from adding sir
“How did you come to be with my friends outside?”
>Oh
>That's... not a fun story
>It almost hurts to think about it
>But who are you to refuse him?
>And what good reason would you even have?
>Nothing to lose [spoiler]though there hasn't been for a while[/spoiler]
 
>Better start from the beginning…
It started with a party….
>You tell him what you can remember
>Everything from before was…. hazy
>You were heading home from a party
>There was a wreck
>A huge wreck
>Flames everywhere
>Next thing you knew, you awoke in the streets of Ponyville
>For the first few days, you lived on pity
That was my start here. I had planned to restart my life from a fresh perspective
>And you did
>Just not the one you wanted
>What little was given to you should have been enough to get you started
>But nobody would hire you for a job
>Nobody would even give you the time of day
>And pity ran out
>Living turned into surviving
>Ponies were pretty good about using up what they buy, so there wasn’t too much in the dumpsters
>Random berries and fruits from the forest sustained you
>That and the occasional apple theft [spoiler]they taste so damned good[/spoiler]
>Then Twilight Sparkle got everyone in town for a meeting
>That’s when surviving became much harder
>Literal mobs were constantly after you
>You learned to sleep fast and light
>You learned all the good places to hide
>You would have just left for another town, but they’d probably treat you the same
>Besides, you don’t know where anything is in this world
>Eventually they got you
>Chased you to the lake before they finally got you and tied you up
>Threw you into the lake
I ran out of breath and passed out. When I came to, I was here
>Silence reigns for what seems like an eternity
>But couldn’t have been more than a few seconds
 
>…
>Somehow, you feel good
>Lighter, as though some great weight was lifted from you
>From sharing your struggles?
>Who knows
“Ah. Spot had simply told me he found you at the entrance to our caves.”
>Wait
>How’d you get there?
>You were at the bottom of the lake
>If anything, you would have floated to the top
“You have told your story. In return, I shall tell mine”
>This could be… interesting to say the least
>If he’s as old a leader as he looks, he could probably tell you in detail what every painting meant
“In the beginning…”