Chapter 4

“Pausing for Breath”

    “Good afternoon, Princess.”

    “You may rise,” Celestia answered with a wave of her wing.

    “Are you alright?” the cyan unicorn asked as she stood from the bow, her head cocking to one side. “You look a bit pale, even for you. If you wish to put off my lessons for this afternoon…”

    “That will not be necessary, Trixie, I am fine,” she lied and turned to face her pupil with a smile she didn’t truly feel. She hated to admit it, but she dearly missed her “Faithful Student”, and found herself increasingly compelled to draw comparisons between her new pupil and the late Twilight Sparkle.

    Trixie nodded, but a nervous expression touched her features. Something was obviously on her mind, and Celestia had a good guess as to what…

    “Your latest friendship report was enlightening, Trixie,” she said softly, hovering an open scroll off the table. “I will admit to some surprise that you had Galaxi co-author it.”

    The unicorn’s expression was at once hopeful and conflicted as she looked to Celestia, “Trixie remembered --“

    “We do not refer to ourselves in third person when speaking to the Princess.”

    “Er…  I mean…” Trixie stammered, “…I remembered the story you told me about a problem Lady Sparkle once had with her friendship reports, and how you extended her reports to include her friends and what they had learned.”

    “Yes, I do recall telling you that story,” Celestia answered with an inscrutable smile.

    “And… well…” Trixie faltered, “…after what happened with Clockwork the other day, Galaxi helped me sort out my thoughts on how to approach it, as well as brainstorm what might be wrong. Luna hasn’t been able to ascertain what the problem is, according to Galaxi, so I hoped that maybe you might…”

    “Trixie, I want you to go to the shelves and find the book entitled ‘The Aftermath of the Lunar War’,” Celestia instructed when the unicorn’s words drifted off. Trixie blinked and, for a moment, seemed about to question the Princess before acquiescing. With two walls of the cozy sitting room lined with bookshelves, every book hoof picked by Celestia herself for teaching her pupil, the Princess anticipated a bit of a search. She couldn’t help but remember testing Twilight Sparkle in much the same manner so many years ago.

    It took Trixie several minutes to find and return with the book held in her magic. Celestia gently took it with her own magic and set it down on the heavy table before motioning to the cushion across from her own. Trixie nodded and settled herself in place, sitting upright upon the soft pillow as she looked expectantly to the Princess.

    “I was not able to speak with Clockwork Key about your concerns before she left for the Unregistered territories,” Celestia informed the unicorn, who frowned deeply with worry. “That said, I understand completely why my sister would not recognize the symptoms that Lady Key is suffering through. Unfortunately, given my limited interactions with her, I was not aware of this problem.”

    Trixie’s head snapped up. “Then you know what is wrong?” she asked, trying hard not to sound too hopeful.

    Celestia motioned to the book. “Page two-hundred and fourteen.”

    Trixie frowned again, but her magic quickly opened and riffled through the pages of the book in question. After a moment or two of searching the unicorn found the page in question in the closing chapters.

    “Read the passage aloud,” Celestia instructed, “starting from the second paragraph.”

    “For the majority of this dissertation, I have focused predominantly on the changes to our way of life the infamous Lunar War and the ‘Week of Night’ caused,” Trixie read. “However, there is a less publicized and even less understood mark the war left upon us ponies. As a result of the conflict, many returned home with psychological disorders the likes of which had never been seen before by pony kind.

    “The most recognizable of these came from ponies who were victimized by sudden violence during the conflict, which came to be thought of as a type of shock. Named ‘Aftershock Disorder’ by the medical community, it is believed that the mind of the victim refuses to accept that they are safe, and brace for any sort of assault or attack at all times. This was usually punctuated by extreme bouts of paranoia and isolationism, and the pony in question would go out of their way to make sure he or she was ‘safe’. Fortunately this faded in most ponies relatively quickly after the war, but there were a hoof-full of unfortunate cases that either sealed themselves away so completely that they passed away with no pony realizing for weeks, or they lashed out violently at a society that they were no longer capable of understanding. I would be remiss as a historian if I failed to mention that the extreme paranoia shown by the perpetrator of the infamous ‘Hoofington Murders’, a former soldier in the Lunar Army, was quite possibly an extreme example of this disorder. However, the legal system of the day was ill equipped for handling someone so mentally disturbed, and any confirmation or denial of her mental status is lost to history.”

    “I… don’t see what this has to do with--?” Trixie paused in the reading long enough to ask.

    “Keep reading, my pupil,” interrupted Celestia. Trixie looked annoyed but, after a brief pause to lick her lips, continued to read.

    “While the aforementioned problem was widespread but lead only to the rare incident, there was a less prevalent disorder that was far more harmful to those afflicted. Due to the rarity of reported incidents, it was only discovered upon researching medical and service records years later. Unfortunately, this means a vast majority of these ponies suffered in the shadows. Many of them became solitary, pushing away any and all attempts by family and friends to be close to them. Known later as ‘Acclimation Disorder’, a majority of these individuals fought in the front lines of the war before returning home.

    “Most doctors agree that the disorder comes from the pony becoming too acclimated with the state of war, hence the name. The more immersed in the conflict an individual pony was, the more likely they were to become acclimated to the constant stresses of war. Unfortunately, these stressors create an imprint upon the mind, which the lowered stress of ‘normal’ life after the war simply did not coincide with. Thus, unable to acclimate to a life of peace, they would become steadily more lost in their own mind. A sufferer would often pick fights, respond out of proportion to perceived threats or stressors, and frequently succumb to the unfortunate lure of suicide.

    “Please do not misunderstand; a majority of Equestria’s most valorous soldiers were perfectly healthy. But a number of ponies from both sides suffered these poorly understood disorders, and there are still very few answers about them.”

    “That is enough, Trixie,” Celestia said when the unicorn paused in comprehension.

    “Why… why wouldn’t Princess Luna know about this?” she asked in a small voice.

    “Where was Luna after the Lunar War?” the Princess asked simply, nodding to a servant who had nosed in to check on the Princess. The maid dipped her head and slipped back out.

    “She was… the mare in the moon,” Trixie answered.

    Celestia nodded. “Precisely, she could not know about this because it was only rarely seen outside of the years immediately after the war. We spent much of the next millennia at peace with ourselves and our neighbors. By the time my sister was returned to me, these disorders had long since faded from our land. Of course the Imp Invasion began shortly after her return and was constant for two generations of ponies. It pains me that some ponies have spent their entire foal-hood without ever knowing peace. But now… at long last, we have achieved it. Tell me, my pupil, who were the frontline soldiers of this past war?”

    “The Agency and the Guard… we were the frontline soldiers of this war. The imps were too strong; they would destroy almost anypony who didn’t have special abilities or training. Only the Royal Guard and the specials working under The Agency were able to combat them effectively.”

    “Correct again,” Celestia confirmed, and smiled as the maid returned with pitcher of tea and a glass for each of them. Celestia thanked the maid and waited until she had slipped back out before magically pouring each of them some of the cook’s special Iced Tea (with just a twist of lime). “Now tell me, Trixie, who among your team would be the most vulnerable to this, knowing that the longer one has been on the front lines of the war would increase the risk?”

    Trixie frowned darkly at that, “Myself… Skillet… maybe Filigree given her unusual history in the gryphon clans.”

    “Have any of those you mentioned been afflicted with these disorders?”

    “Filigree,” Trixie answered immediately. “My problem could be an extension of it, but is more likely a result of my… torment at The Nightmare’s hooves. Skillet never showed any outward signs of a problem; he remains just as cheerful as ever.”

    “What does that tell you?” Celestia asked, and took a sip of her tea.

    Trixie frowned as she pondered that, and finally shook her head.

    “It means I was watching the three ponies amongst your group whom I felt would be the most vulnerable to this disorder,” she answered for the unicorn, and smiled sadly when she saw realization wash over Trixie’s features. “This means I was not watching the rest of the group as carefully as I should have been.”

    “So you… missed it?”

    “Until you sent me this letter, yes,” she admitted with a pained look. “Clockwork was part of the Agency for a long time, but only joined the frontline fighting with my sister’s Project Moonbeam. In hindsight, I should have understood that her role as a coordinator for so long would have had the level of immersion in the mindset many frontline ponies encountered. It is also possible that the conclusions drawn in this book are mistaken; I confess that I have done my utmost not to give doctors an abundance of patients to diagnose.”

    Trixie stared at the Princess for several long minutes, uncertain how to respond. She watched as the Princess took another sip of her drink, and then watched her in return. It seemed like forever before Trixie found her voice. “Why? Why would it take so long for any of us to notice?”

    “What was happening right after the Nightmare was defeated and the Imps freed of her influence?”

    “Personally or politically?”

    Celestia smiled sadly. “That is exactly the issue, my pupil. Politically, with the Nightmare felled, I was forced to mend a lot of fences and re-establish ties with species and lands that the Imps had subjugated or threatened. With the loss of the dragons, one of our staunchest allies, we have been left in a position of weakness which the specials only partially cover. No offense to you and your friends, but not even the strongest of you would have been a match to a dragon, a majority of whom had lived for centuries and studied a great deal of magic in addition to their natural gifts. If not for their isolationist tendencies, they could have easily ruled this world. Only my sister and I, to my knowledge, could have stood up to one them. It was a master stroke, if truly an abhorrent one, that led the Nightmare to eliminate them one by one. Thus, having lost one of our largest allies, if you will pardon my pun, we are forced into a protectionist stance. Fortunately, most lands we have spoken to are in agreement; after the long invasion from the Imps, we all need a break from the fighting.

    “This means I was not as focused at home as I would have wished. I watched you mares initially, and only noted problems with Filigree and yourself. You had Clockwork and Galaxi to lean on, and Filigree had Rainbow Star and the gryphons she knew for support, and thus I turned my attention elsewhere. You both came through your individual ordeals admirably, I might add. Additionally, I must point out, that Clockwork did not exhibit any signs of difficulty when she was with you and Galaxi.”

    “Are you saying my conclusion was incorrect?” Trixie asked.

    “Only in part,” Celestia answered. “Clockwork did not show any symptoms for a simple reason: she had the support of two close friends. You and Galaxi were her constant companions, but she only saw herself as helping you. Because she was focused on assisting you, she ignored her own growing problem.”

    “So when she was sent away, she was without the support of her friends and no longer had any distractions from the disorder.” Trixie chewed her lip thoughtfully before continuing, “She was no longer able to ignore it, and it had gotten worse because she had just shoved it into a closet and ignored it.”

    Celestia nodded. “That seems the most likely conclusion.”

    “But, what do we do now? Now that we know what the problem is, how do we fix it?”

    “Did they ‘fix’ you, Trixie?” asked Celestia, her eyes meeting the unicorn’s.

    “N-no,” Trixie stammered, “I still have nightmares.”

    “Clockwork cannot be ‘fixed’ or simply repaired like one of her machines, no more than you could be. She will need somepony with her constantly, she will need support, and somepony there for her. This will go against her desire to withdraw from those around her, and cause her to respond to things disproportionately.” Celestia paused to lean forward, nuzzling just under Trixie’s horn. “You, of all ponies, should understand this necessity.”

    Trixie took in a slow breath and gave a short nod. “I understand. I’m just not sure how--”

    “Friendship cannot exist if it is untested,” Celestia interrupted gently, “more wisdom to consider from your predecessor.”

    “I… I’ll do what I can, Princess.”

    “That is all I shall ever ask of you, my pupil.” Celestia nodded towards the book on the table. “If you wish, you may show the passage to Galaxi and my sister, so that they may understand what it is we face.”

    “I don’t want to embarrass--“

    Celestia made a dismissive noise. “My pride is unimportant in the face of another’s pain. It is more important that you make efforts to help your friend when she returns. If an excuse presents itself, I will send you and Galaxi up to the Northern Reaches to join her. For now we must assume you will see her next when she returns.”

    Trixie nodded and blushed. “Thank you, Princess.”

    “Don’t thank me, my pupil,” Celestia answered, her eyes gazing far into the distance, “it is my failure that this was not noticed earlier. “

    Trixie seemed momentarily at a loss how to respond, and Celestia wasn’t helping as she continued to stare off into space. A creeping sense of dread trickled down the unicorn’s spine, her eyes widening as seemingly disparate thoughts began to coalesce into a rather disturbing picture before her. A powerful hurt accompanied the thoughts, but she carefully reigned it in; she needed to broach this topic carefully.

    “Princess, has there been any word yet from Filigree or Clockwork?”

    Celestia blinked, and stirred from her reverie. “Nothing yet, from either of them, and I will admit to some growing concern. Clockwork is understandable, she likely won’t arrive yet until later this evening, but Filigree should have easily been there and sent word back.”

    Trixie carefully kept her expression neutral as she spoke, “You suspect trouble, then?”

    “I do,” the Princess sighed. “I may just be getting paranoid in my old age, but I fear for both of them. The gryphons have made their dislike of Filigree, and their distaste for my ponies general, well known. But the entire call for Filigree to come a week early feels very wrong to me.”

    “And the Unregistered?”

    “The timing of Scootaloo’s stroke is a bit too convenient for my tastes. I fear we may be witnessing the early stages of a political coup,” she answered with a frown. She turned to gaze at her pupil, only to find her gaze steadily returned.

    Trixie took a slow breath and plowed ahead, praying she didn’t make a fool of herself. “I think, Princess, that there may be another who is suffering this illness, other than those we’ve already identified,” she stated softly.

    Celestia shook her head before answering, “I was careful to observe my younger sister for any such problems. Admittedly, I would be a thousand years too late to assist her if it had happened as a result of the Lunar War, but --“

    “I’m not referring to Princess Luna,” Trixie interrupted, “another pony found them-selves suddenly on the front line in this war. The Imps attacked her home, threatened those she cared about, and even succeeded in killing one who was very dear to her heart.”

    Celestia paused and looked to her student for several long minutes. Finally she gave a sad smile before answering, “You are more observant than I have given you credit for.”

    Trixie blinked in surprise. “Then you --“

    “Yes, Trixie, I know,” she interrupted gently. “I have known for over a millennium. It is one of the reasons I know the passage I had you read like the back of my hoof, and know the exact extent to which my ponies have come to understand those disorders.”

    “But, how…?” Trixie tried to ask, a million questions surfacing in her mind.

    “I became what you see now,” the alicorn said with a gentle smile. “I became the gentle ruler that took every pony in Equestria under her wing. Every pony became my little pony, my responsibility… my family. In short, I did the one thing I am unable to do biologically; I had children. It also marked the first time I took on a personal protégé or student, a practice I would repeat every few generations. Never close enough together for them to be in direct competition with each other, but not so far apart that the precedent was forgotten.”

    “So I’m over a thousand years too late,” Trixie said sourly.

    “Not at all,” Celestia answered, and took a sip from her iced tea before continuing, “I had to learn how to handle those intervening years after the Lunar war. It was a struggle to find my way through the crushing loneliness that pervaded after losing my sister, and I spent almost a decade lost in guilt and self-pity. Finally, I found a way to cope, and the aloof ruler-ship that Luna and I had founded when we overthrew Discord was abandoned for the closer and more personal style you are familiar with. But I suffered new losses in this war with the Imps, and I am finding it more difficult than I expected to move on.”

    “Twilight Sparkle.”

    “In a word, yes,” Celestia sighed and looked into the unicorn’s eyes. “I do hope you can forgive me, Trixie. It is not my intent to hurt you, and it never was, but her loss has affected me far more than I could have ever anticipated. Couple that with the near loss of my sister, twice, to the same monster who took her from me once before and…”

    Celestia’s voice hitched and, for the first time Trixie could remember, she saw the hints of tears in the Princess’ eyes. The alicorn turned her head and tried to quell the emotions raging within, but the brief crack in her façade was all the unicorn needed to see. She rose from her place without a word, and leaned close to the Princess. Celestia was caught off-guard, but leaned down and nuzzled the unicorn, who had wrapped her forelegs about the base of the alicorn’s broad neck in a hug.

    “Your Element was fairly earned,” Celestia said in an uncharacteristically husky voice. “I know you find my affections unsettling, but thank you. I needed that.”

    “Yes… well,” Trixie stammered, “I tend find them a little strange and unexpected. Until a year ago, you were the instructor of my greatest rival. You had every reason to dislike me. To be shown affection by you is taking some getting used to. You are one of the living Goddesses after all.”

    “No, Trixie,” the Princess corrected gently, “I am not some fragile piece of living divinity. I am merely a pony with an abnormal connection to the necessary workings of our world. There is not a single thing I do that could not be done by a cabal of powerful unicorns. I dare say that Twilight, had she wished to, could have taken my job from me, especially after she earned the Element of Magic. If the elements had been unable to save my sister, as I had gambled, I was prepared to attempt an apotheosis upon her so that she might stand in Luna’s place by my side. While I am thankful that my sister was returned to me, there are times I regret not imposing that upon her anyway.”

    Trixie winced at the revelations. “Is that why I am your student, Princess? Is it because that, unlike Twilight, I cannot die? Am I just a stand in for her?”

    The alicorn sighed and nuzzled Trixie gently. “Rest assured, Trixie, that you are here by your own merits. I admit that I handle the worst of my pain by taking on students, by finding a pony whom I could take under my wing and care for, and becoming almost another parent to them. Twilight and I may have been separated by the war, but I always held out hope that she would be able to come home… Is it odd that, despite the fact she made her home in Ponyville, I still considered Canterlot and the Palace her home? Regardless, I still held out hope that I would be able to see her off in the end; that I would be able to shepherd my student into the Summerlands as I had done with every student I had taken prior to her. Every student holds a special place in my heart, but Twilight was the first to be torn from me by the ravages of war, and I would be foalish to think that means nothing. I did not even get to see her soul off in the manner I wished… the Elements took that from me, preventing me from saying any more than a brief goodbye.

    “To answer your question, no you are not here to take Twilight Sparkle’s place. I would be lying if I did not say that I did take you on in hopes to fill a hole… a painful void in my very long life. My solution to my disorder, as I said earlier, is to take on a student and to draw my little ponies closer about me so that I might subtly lean on them even while they rely on me. You are the first to pierce into the why of it, but then you are also much older than my usual student, and your potential is so much greater. I feel it is, now that you have discovered your virtue, your destiny to ascend. The elements have chosen you twice now, and I would be a foal to ignore that.”

    “Wait… twice?” Trixie asked, confused.

    “The Elements granted you immortality as your power, an ability that was always the exclusive province of my sister and myself,” Celestia pointed out. “Consider it a blessing or a curse, and after a few centuries I assure you that it will feel like a curse, it is your ability. The Elements chose you a second time to bear the Element of Generosity, which you have proven worthy of time and time again. Much like your predecessor, Lady Rarity, you struggle with your own innate selfishness at times, but your age and wisdom has given you an advantage, the ability to grasp the true nature of your Element. It is not about the commonly understood generosity of giving bits and things, but about the giving of your self to others; your time, your being, your presence, your love… yourself. I know the fact that your struggle against the shadow of Twilight Sparkle still burns you, and I know it pains you to think that you might be here as a replacement for her. Yet you still hugged me, giving of yourself, because you saw my pain.”

    “Yes… well…” the unicorn stammered, flushing.

    Celestia smiled and nuzzled the unicorn before tucking a wing over her. “You are chosen by powers far greater than even myself, Trixie. Had I found you when you were younger, perhaps much of this discomfort you feel could have been alleviated. Perhaps I might have had two students. Perhaps parasprites might turn into apples, for that is as much use as wishing for such things would be. Part of why I took you on was to help me with my own disorder, a disorder which has been renewed thanks to the Nightmare.”

    “And to help you get over the death of Twilight Sparkle,” Trixie pointed out softly.

    “I will not have you think you are standing in her shadow….”

    “You’re a bit late for that, Princess,” Trixie noted with a smile. Despite the words, that smile spoke volumes to the Princess, far more than she could have hoped for. “I take it I’ll be spending more time with you in the future then?”

    Celestia’s answering smile was as relieved as it was overjoyed. “Yes, my insightful pupil, I would have you at my side as much as possible in the days to come.”

    “Glad ya’ll got here so quick.”

    Clockwork took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air as she trotted beside her companion, an elder pony who defied the natural order of things by refusing to slow down as she got older. Her fire red mane was streaked with gray where it fell out from under the old cowpony hat she wore at a jaunty angle.

    “When the Princess got your letter, she was understandably concerned,” Clockwork answered. “I was too, when I heard Scootaloo was in the hospital.”

    “Yeah, that’s a bad bushel o’ apples no matter how ya figure it,” she sighed. “Accordin’ ta the doctor, she’s stabilized an’ the main danger has passed… but…”

    “But?”

    “She’s inna coma. Doc don’ know when, or even if, she’s gonna… she’s gonna wake up,” the elder pony managed to spit out, the words distasteful to her.

    “I’m sorry, Apple Bloom,” Clockwork said, and gave the pale yellow pony a one legged hug, “if there’s anything I can do…”

    “That’s why I sent that there mail to Celestia,” Apple Bloom answered, tugging the hat further down on her brow. “Y’see, the council don’ think too highly of us Crusaders right now. Now I ain’t got any proof, but I got a gut feelin’ that Scoot’s ‘stroke’ wasn’ as natural as them doctahs keep tryin’ ta’ tell us.”

    Clockwork frowned and started turning things over in her head. “Aside from the obvious tensions, what makes you think that?”

    “Ya’ll remember Councilpony Marmalade?”

    “How could I forget her?” Clockwork made a sour face. “As I recall, she tried to have me arrested as a spy. When that fell through, she filed false reports that I had threatened and accosted her. Oh, and let’s not forget the fact she hired those thugs to try and rough us up… Correction, we suspect but have no proof that she hired those thugs.”

    “Eyup, that’s the one,” Apple Bloom spat. “Well she up and shows the day after Scoots is admitted inta’ the hospital, an’ starts actin’ all friendly like. She starts sayin’ how sorry she is that Scoots fell ill, and then talkin’ ‘bout how she figures we’ll have to stop pushin’ for reunification. Horseapples, I tells her, we ain’t stopping jus’ cause Scoots got sick. If… when she recovers, she’d kick our flanks if we backed down now! Well Marmalade dun like tha’ much, gets this dark look in ‘er eyes, an’ storms off. It’s like she was expectin’ us ta’ just fold ‘cause one o’ us is in trouble.”

    Clockwork frowned and shook her head, and recalled voicing that very same belief only a few days ago. She barely paid the homes they passed any attention as they followed the dirt path that served as the main “road” there in the territory. It was like stepping back in time, and a reminder of the home that was once abandoned much farther to the south in a little town named Ponyville.

    “It sounds ghoulish, if you ask me,” Clockwork finally answered, “but it’s not proof that she’s doing something shady.”

    Apple Bloom seemed to deflate. “Well, shoot--“

    “But,” Clockwork interrupted, “I see no harm in doing a bit of independent investigation.”

    Clockwork was swept off her hooves by the energetic elder hugging her. “Ah knew I could count on ya!!”

    Clockwork laughed and managed to extract herself from the hug after a few moments. “My chariot has some of the best sensors I’ve been able to build, and I’ve got a set of goggles I can use so I don’t have to break out the Dragonfly armour just to scan a few areas. It’s something I was working on before my last visit. If I can grab the goggles tomorrow morning, we should be able to get right to work.”

    “You mean that flyin’ doohickey that you came in with? I gotta admit, I wasn’ expectin’ anythin’ that big when I sent word.”

    “My custom chariot was designed to carry the entire team, but I used it to expand on the sensor arrays I had in the armour,” Clockwork noted. “I just hope it’s safe in the barn…”

    “My nieces and nephews won’ mess with it. Well, the young ’uns might try, but their folks’ll scold ‘em right good for tryin’ ta’ get inta it,” assured Bloom.

    “So long as it all stays locked up,” Clockwork commented, “I have my armour in there. It’s my baby, you know?”

    “Don’ fret none about it Clockwork, mah kin will take right good care of it.”

    “Speaking of kin, where’s Sweetie Belle?” Clockwork asked curiously. “She’s usually right out here with you….”

    “Well, I know yer last time up here ya stayed with her, but right now she’s got a house fulla Scoot’s family an’ she’s runnin’ her tail off,” Apple Bloom noted. “This means ya’ll be stayin’ with me this time.”

    “You sure? I mean, I’m pretty sure I’d just get in the way on your farm…”

    Apple Bloom couldn’t help but laugh. “I ain’t no farmer myself, sugah. My brother, before he passed, an’ his family run the orchard out there. Me? I useta’ do home repair an’ buildin’ an’ such, but I’m a bit old fer construction these days, so I just leave it to my ‘prentices and jes’ approve the blueprints. That, an’ my mate owns the local candy store, which together earns us enough to live in the cozy little place right above it.”

    “I wondered where we were heading,” Clockwork admitted.

    “Yeah. I didn’ introduce you two last time, an’ she ain’t let me live it down yet,” Bloom added sheepishly, but something caught Clockwork’s attention about that statement.

    “She didn’t?”

    Apple Bloom nodded, oblivious to the sudden discomfort from the younger pony. “Ayup.”

    Clockwork didn’t question further, not wanting to offend Apple Bloom, but the thought of two mares living together hadn’t even occurred to her. Sort of like the thought of two stallions, it’s just not something that she ever really considered. She remained quiet the rest of the walk, ignoring the picturesque town as it was painted by the hues of twilight, as she tried to figure out how to not look like an idiot in front of Apple Bloom’s “mate”.

    The pair quickly found themselves confronted by a brightly colored building, much of which was painted to look like a gingerbread house with columns of peppermint as the main supports at each corner. Clockwork frowned at it, but Apple Bloom couldn’t help but laugh.

    “When I tried to recreate Ponyville up here,” Apple Bloom noted, “I couldn’ forget Sugarcube Corner. I never quite got it ta look the same as the Cakes and Pinkie Pie managed, but I’d like to think I got close.”

    “It’s… something,” Clockwork managed.

    Apple Bloom poked her with a hoof. “It’s silly an’ ugly an’ gaudy. It’s supposed ta’ look that way, that’s what ponies want when they think of candy an’ cakes an’ sweets. They think nostalgia, like I did when I tried ta’ recreate my home up here…”

    Clockwork glanced over at the elder pony, and thought she saw the glint of a tear before the pony wiped it away and offered a broad smile. Taking the lead, the elder pony led them into the explosion of garish colors and into a more relaxed, but still brightly colored, interior. Clockwork couldn’t help but notice how large the main room was, with an entire section set aside to display the massive amounts of confectionary, while a smattering of tables and chairs were set before a large bay window. One entire side of the shop seemed devoted to fresh pastries, cakes, and muffins. The other side was set up for more classic staples of candy and sweets, with dispensers for everything from candied fish to rock candy to jawbreakers. Even Clockwork couldn’t help but grin as she looked over the display, noticing a few of her favorites from when she was but a filly.

    “How the hay do you manage to stay skinny?” Clockwork finally had to ask. “If I lived here, I’d weigh a thousand pounds!”

    Apple Bloom laughed, “Ya’ll’d be amazed how much exercise I get as one ‘o them Crusaders.”

    “Bloom? Ith that you?” called a voice from the back, and a pony pushed her way through a wide swinging door, followed by a sweet smelling cloud of fresh baked pastries.

    “Hey there Sugar-cube.” Bloom smiled and trotted about the display counter to nuzzle the newcomer’s unkempt red mane. Her mane was frizzy to the point of uncontrollable, and yet she had wrangled the wild curls into a sort of ponytail, which in turn made the streaks of grey through her mane twist around in a way that resembled a candy cane. Bright eyes peered at Clockwork through a pair of heavy glasses even as she nuzzled Apple Bloom in return.

    “Thith ith the infamouth friend you didn’ wan’ to introduth me to?” she lisped heavily.

    “Uh… Sugah? Ya’ll forgot yer dentures again,” Apple Bloom teased gently.

    “Huh?” the other pony asked intelligently, then grumbled something that Clockwork couldn’t make out, but made Apple Bloom laugh as she vanished back into the kitchen. She returned moments later, clacking her “teeth” as she set them in place.

    “Try two,” she said peevishly, and poked Bloom when she giggled. “So you’re the infamous character my mate didn’t want to introduce me to?”

    Clockwork looked sheepish for a moment before stepping forward. “Clockwork Key, ma’am. Pleasure to meet you…”

    The elder pony seemed to study her with a critical eye for several minutes, making Clockwork steadily less confident, before finally breaking into a broad smile and offering a hoof. “I’m Twist, nice to meet you Clockwork. Bloom said you’ll be stayin’ with us for a little while, so I set up the guest bedroom, just down the hall from us upstairs.”

    Clockwork relaxed visibly and shook the hoof of the elder pony, only to have the wind knocked out of her from a slap on the back from Apple Bloom. “T-thank you for putting me up,” she managed to squeak out.

    “I’ll let Bloom show you where to set up,” Twist answered with a smile. “I gotta get this batch of cupcakes done for little Candlewick’s Cutecenara tomorrow.”

    Bloom looked worried for a moment, “Oh hay, that’s this week?!”

    Twist nodded with a smirk. “Yes. Fortunately they’re holding it at home instead of here, so we won’t have to dodge foals tomorrow… at least no more foals than normal,” she nickered, and nodded to a unicorn foal running through the store with a dripping cone of ice cream. “And don’t worry; I’ve got Strawberry Swirl coming by tomorrow morning to help with the delivery.”

    Apple Bloom looked relieved, “Oh good. I didn’ wanna leave ya in the lurch like that.”

    Twist laughed and waved it off, “At least I get to meet the ‘other girl’ now.” She laughed only harder when Bloom began to blush and Clockwork fidgeted uncomfortably. “I better get back in the kitchen. Nice meeting you Clockwork.” With that, she vanished back through the swinging door.

    Apple Bloom nudged Clockwork with a grin. “She liked ya. I’d say that there’s a good sign. C’mon, lemme show ya where you can bunk, and I’ll rustle us up some dinner. After all them sweets, Twist’ll need something hearty in her belly tonight…”

    Clockwork nodded, and followed Apple Bloom past a counter towards a partially hidden staircase in the back. She couldn’t help but look back at the doorway that Twist had vanished through, her brows knitting in thought. Finally she just shook her head and trotted up the stairs to catch up to the elder pony.

    “Did we lose them?”

    “Only for the moment,” he answered with a pant. The pair had managed to take refuge in a low, natural, cave that probably once belonged to a young dragon. It was rough hewn, with loose rocks that occasionally crumbled down from the “roof” with loud clacking sounds that made the ponies jump.

    “We should ditch the armour,” the mare said softly, shaking off the helmet and scratching at her helmet mane irritably.

    “I’m not so sure, Lieutenant...”

    “Lieutenant Commander,” she corrected, trying hard to sound cross.

    The stallion scoffed with a half-hearted smirk. “I still outrank you, Swan Dive.”

    She smiled weakly at the attempted humor. “We knew we might have to flee from the Clans, but that was way more patrols than we saw on the flight in.”

    “I agree,” he answered softly, “which means that this was a far larger trap than the Princess anticipated.”

    “I think we realized that the moment the King showed up, Fleethoof” she grumbled in reply.

    “Yes, we did,” he agreed, and hunched down to peer cautiously out of the cave entrance. “Any reason you think shedding the armour would be a good idea?”

    “In the moonlight, and Princess Luna has blessed us with a full moon tonight, the glint of light off the armour will give our position away. More, it’s slowing us down; the added weight is enough to prevent us from hitting our best speeds.”

    “But if the gryphons catch up to us, we might need the added defense,” he argued, and ducked back in as the shadow of patrol passed overhead.

    Swan Dive paused, waiting for several breathless moments to ensure the patrol had truly passed them by. Her voice was barely above a whisper when she continued, “The armour won’t protect against those spears they’re carrying. I’m not even sure wingblades would be all that effective in combat against them.”

    “Noticed that too, did you?” he asked with a grim smile. “They’re prepared to fight ponies. Those spears will give them the edge in reach, and the design would work well to counter and pin a wing. I suspect King Goldtalon has been working on these plans for a long time, long before his father passed away.”

    “The only advantages we ponies have over the gryphons are unicorn magic,” she said softly, “and the fact they are slower and heavier. I got a good look at their armour when they escorted us; it’s a heavy scale design. It’s weighty and will slow them down, no matter how well made it is or how strong the individual gryphon is. If we ditch our armour, we have a chance to use our speed over their power.”

    “I’m not sold that we’d be better without it, Dive,” the stallion said softly, “but you’ve made a strong case.”

    “It’s your call, sir,” she said softly, causing him to look worriedly at her.

    “Don’t you dare start deferring to me now,” he said with a heartfelt smile, “we’re in this together.”

    “So what’s your take then?” she asked.

    “My take is that we’re in for a lot of turbulence,” he sighed softly, shrugged off his own helmet, and ran a hoof through his blue mane. “Even if we survive intact, the Princess will have to send a force to rescue Liaison Filigree from the gryphons, and that will cause an incident no matter how you cut it. It seems intentionally designed to be a no win situation to me.”

    “No matter what, the Gryphon Clans are going to war with us, aren’t they?” she asked in a tiny voice. “Just when it was finally over with the Imps…”

    “I hear you, Dive,” he sighed. “The Imps are finally gone, and now we find out the gryphon clans are preparing for war. What I don’t get is how they were able to build all this up without somepony noticing…”

    “Commander?”

    “Well, look at it this way,” he explained, “the gryphons spent the Imp invasion cowed after the destruction of a few clan aeries. What we saw on display in that throne room was the culmination of plans for a war against the ponies that began long before the Imps were gone. Why would that be?”

    Swan Dive frowned darkly. “Do you think it’s possible that they were cooperating with the Nightmare?”

    “I don’t think King Goldbeak was. I met him once; he was a hard but honorable gryphon. But Goldtalon? I wouldn’t put anything past him,” he answered. “Just seeing the way he delighted in pushing the Liaison’s buttons makes me think he’d sell his own mother if it gave him an edge.”

    “Yeah, he ruffled my feathers the wrong way too,” she grumbled. After a moment she stuck her head forward, squinting in the moonlight as she looked about carefully. “I think we’re clear for the moment.”

    “Good,” the Commander answered, followed by a soft clank as his armour was dropped to the stone floor. “Keep your wingblades, in case we have to fight, but you’re right; we’ll stand a better chance if we go for speed.”

    Swan Dive nodded and bit at the straps holding the armour tight to her. After a moment’s worth of work, she had it loose enough to squirm out of, where it made a few soft clanks on the stone as it fell. After a minute to stretch, she grabbed the armour and dragged it further back into the cave, well out of sight of the entrance.

    “Good idea,” said the Commander, and pulled his own armour to join hers.

    “The longer they think we’re reflective targets in the moonlight, the better our chance to sneak through those valleys.”

    “Right. We’ll stay in the valley going South-East, parallel to the river. It’s a bit slower, but it should provide more cover, which means less chance of being spotted. Come the morning’s light, we should be far enough south to make a dash over the hills towards the borders,” he outlined, drawing it in the air with a hoof. “With luck, we’ll be able to find one of the border towers. I don’t think the gryphons will pursue past the border, but we’ll need additional support if they try.”

    Swan Dive nodded and ducked her head to check the set of her wingblades. Once certain they were in place, she flexed her wings and nodded to her partner. He returned the nod and the pair edged up to the cave entrance, scanning the night sky for gryphon patrols. Seeing none, they launched silently into the air and dropped down into the valley between the mountains surrounding them, quickly becoming lost in the deep shadows.

    Unlike the flight out, which had been relatively quick thanks to the magicked chariot and been done mostly above the cloud level, the flight back was a tense and quiet affair. The ponies could not fly at their top speeds, no matter how much they wanted to, within the winding valley. Following the course of the river seemed like a good idea when viewed from overhead from a map, but at the ground level it twisted and turned all over the place. At times the path seemed to literally go the wrong way, badly confusing the pegasi. This was, of course, aside from the gryphon patrols. Every time one passed, the pair would drop down into the valley and hide in the shadows, where they would wait until the patrol moved on.

    They had not made nearly the distance they had hoped to when the first rays of the dawn streaked across the open sky, and with it went their nighttime advantage. They were coated in sweat as they pushed tired bodies and wings onward, trying to use the fading shadows to their advantage. Their only hope was that they had travelled far enough that the patrols would be diminished to nearly nothing.

    It was, by their estimation, two hours after the dawn that a cry told them they had been discovered. A trio of gryphons descended from a remote mountain top, diving towards the escaping pegasi.

    “Jig’s up!” the stallion cried, and all efforts of subterfuge were immediately dropped. Pushing her exhausted body, Swan Dive followed her partner out of the valley and into the open air roughly level with the mountain tops. Horror washed over her as she realized exactly how far away they still were from the northern border, and it felt as if her wings had been dipped in ice water. They flapped leadenly at her sides as she struggled to keep up with Fleethoof.

    “Don’t you dare give up on me now, Lieutenant!” he called back to her.

    “Lieutenant COMMANDER!” she answered angrily.

    “By order of King Goldtalon, you are trespassing in gryphon territory!” the leader of the gryphon wing called to them. “Surrender or you will be killed!”

    Swan Dive responded in a way that made her partner blush and the gryphon gawp in shock. Swan Dive was surprised to find within herself the capacity for such profanity, but at least the gryphon didn’t bother asking for their surrender again.

    Gritting her teeth, Swan Dive wove about the mountain-tops as the pair headed almost due south. With the warmth of Celestia’s Sun washing over them, she found herself reinvigorated… or maybe that was the fear of the enemy nipping at her tail. Adrenalin throbbed with her heartbeat as she forced herself faster and faster, and only when she noticed Fleethoof was beginning to fall behind did she flag her speed to stay abreast of him. He huffed angrily in a show of pride, but she was not about to abandon her friend, just as he hadn’t left her behind.

    The wing of gryphons slowly fell further and further behind the longer the chase lasted. The combination of using the mountains as obstacles and their lighter weight allowed the pegasi to outpace the larger gryphons.

    Unfortunately, so focused were they on the pursuit that they missed the outpost ahead of them until it was too late.

    A screech ripped through the sky above them, startling the ponies. Only long hours of training caused them to split apart in mid air, and a wing of gryphons dropped straight through the new opening, claws and spears tearing into the air mere inches away from each of the pegasi. Two additional, fully rested, wings of gryphons dropped from the mountain-top and dove their way. More wary than the first group, one wing chose to focus on each pegasi. Swan Dive managed to avoid their approach by cutting her body under their dive and going vertical past them, a spear missing her by millimeters.

    She barely had time to check on her partner as she circled the mountain, who had swung into a spiraling bank too tight for the gryphons to follow before pulling a sharp reversal that left the less maneuverable gryphons struggling to close the gap. The pair wordlessly closed ranks again as the gryphon wings renewed the chase of the tired pegasi.

    A horn sounded from the outpost, loud and echoing. It was answered by other horns from surrounding mountain tops.

    “We’re bucked,” Fleethoof panted.

    “I… figured out… that part,” Swan Dive managed to answer between gulps of air. She flinched reflexively as small rock hurtled past her head. “Crap, slings!”

    “Any ideas?” he asked, and twisted to avoid a pair of rocks flung at him. The sling-using gryphons would force them to spend so much time dodging that they wouldn’t be able to take advantage of their higher speed, which would allow the gryphons to close the distance.

    “S-sorry… I’m tapped--” she started, yelping when a stone bounced off her flank. Pain lanced down through her rear leg, but she did her best to ignore it.

    “Climb. It’ll keep the slingers at a disadvantage,” he ordered. Swan Dive swallowed a whimper and began to climb with her Commander. The clouds had been shredded for as far as the eye could see, leaving the pair no cover at all, which left Swan Dive wondering what Fleethoof had planned.

    “A-aren’t we playing to their strength?” she managed to gasp between pumps of her wings, her eyes watering and straining joints complained loudly. The climb may have forced the slingers to stop, but the upward angle was better suited for the stronger gryphons.

    “Trust me, Lieutenant Commander” he growled, and Swan Dive got a sick feeling in her stomach…

    Wing muscles screamed in complaint at her efforts, straining as she pushed herself higher and higher. The level the clouds would normally gather at came and went, and still the pair climbed. Swan Dive dared not to look back at the pursuing gryphons for fear they would be all but on top of her, and focused just on each wing beat. She concentrated on each beat of her heart, as it pounded in her ears and drowned out the calls from the gryphons behind them, now assured of their victory.

    “DIVE!” he cried, breaking her reverie.

    “What?!”

    “That’s an order, Lieutenant Commander Swan Dive!”

    “B-but… what about you?!” she cried, suddenly realizing what he planned, and hoped to Celestia she was wrong.

    “I’m going to stall them,” he answered with uncharacteristic tenderness.

    “Commander… Fleethoof… please don’t…”

    “It was a pleasure serving with you, Dive,” he called, “but one of us must make it back, and you’re faster than I am. Now DIVE!!”

    Swan Dive turned to look over her shoulder, and saw him bank into place. Muscles along his lean body flexed, pinioning his wings forward as he brought wingblades to bear. With an acrobatic twist, he met the first gryphon by spiraling out of the way of his spear, and brought down a hoof sharply on its haft to shatter it. She then lost sight of him amidst the swarm of angry gryphons.

    She clenched her eyes shut, folded her ears back, and adjusted her flight path. With a pump of her wings she began a controlled plummet straight down. She didn’t see the approaching mountains and their resemblance to the teeth of a dragon that earned them their name. She ignored the screeches of gryphons that dove in pursuit of her. She ignored the screaming desire to go back for her partner, her friend, and forced herself to follow his last order.

    She felt the pressure begin to build at the tip of her outstretched hooves. Telltale streamers arced from them, forming a cone of air before her as she pumped her wings faster and faster. She knew the trick… but she’d never done it successfully. She’d seen the Wonderbolts perform it before, who gained permission from its creator, the late Lady Dash, to use it in their performances. She’d tried multiple times to join the Wonderbolts, and to complete this move, but she always came up short.

    Tears filled her eyes as she heard a cry from above. A stallion screamed out in pain, then fell silent, and a gryphon roared in victory. Her body felt like ice, their failure was a certainty that froze her heart. There was nothing more she could do… nothing…

    NO!

    His sacrifice would not be in vain! Her teeth ground as she shook her wings to dislodge the wingblades, not even sparing them a glance as they fell away from her. She screamed at the air before her, just as her body screamed at her for the renewed effort. She pumped her wings faster and faster. She would not give up! She would not let him die in vain!

    Like a teardrop striking the surface of a still pool, the sky exploded with color.

    She hurt.

    She hurt a lot, but the fact she hurt meant she was still alive. A grim sense of amusement struck her as she realized that pain was the first of her senses to wake. Her sense of smell woke next, and she could smell the salty tinge of blood, the sharp tang of disinfectant, the slight hint of ozone that signified magic, the earthy smell of hay, and the fresh scent of mountain air mingling through it all. Her hearing came alive to the hushed motions of another in the room with her, the clicking of claws across stone and the subtle drag of chain. A more refined sense of touch woke next, and she realized that despite the aches and pains that lanced her, she hurt far less than she had any right to. She felt a tingling wherever she recalled an open wound, a slight stinging and itching of flesh knit by magic. It was then that she felt the weight of the shackles and collar, at once horrifying and familiar, securing her.

    Only then did she try to open her eyes. She wanted to be silent, to try and get a feel for things before new aches and pains could be added. Only one eye opened properly, the other was swollen nearly shut. Not that there was much to see, as she had suspected. She was laid out on her side upon a thin nest of straw, facing towards a door carved out of a small plain chamber. It wasn’t the dungeon, but she was no less a prisoner. One of her forelegs extended out before her, and she could see the harsh iron band just above her claw, with chains extending from it to the dais she was placed upon.  There was an additional chain that lead to the door, lose and scraping along the stones around her prone body. It took a moment for her to realize that it wasn’t attached to her, which reminded her…

    With a groan, she attempted to look over her shoulder, and her neck flared in pain.

    “Y-you shouldn’t do that!” a small voice cried, and she felt a body press to her side and gently push her head back down. She didn’t fight it; she had seen what she wanted. A glimpse of a young gryphoness with tawny fur and a white crest with some mottling along the sides of her neck and face told her exactly who was in the cell with her.

    “Why…” she rasped, “why are you in here with me?”

    “T-they told me to be,” she answered, fear lacing her voice.

    “You’re… the little gryphon from the throne room, yes?”

    “Y-yes,” the small gryphon answered.

    “You got a name, cub?”

    “V-verdigris.”

    “Nice to meet you Verdigris, I’m Filigree,” the older gryphoness said softly, “I wish we’d met under better circumstances, little sister.”

    That seemed to surprise the small gryphon. “Little sister?!”

    Filigree groaned. “They never told you? I was sure Father would have spoken about ‘that freak’ at least a few times.”

    “I… I only heard a little about it when the… the guard arrested us all,” she whimpered softly.

    Filigree knew she shouldn’t, her body told her she couldn’t, but she did anyway. The cub gasped as the larger gryphon unsteadily made her way to her claws, body swaying before she sat down hard, and her rear legs refused to listen when she told them to stand. Filigree ignored them and turned to face Verdigris, looking into face the small gryphoness, to her obvious surprise. Carefully, with a shaking foreleg, she reached out towards her.

    Verdigris ducked, shying away from her claw, but did not pull back out of reach. With focused care, Filigree opened the claw widely, and slowly lowered it, stroking down the side of her cheek to rest it on her shoulder. The young gryphon blinked at the tender touch, her eyes wide as she looked down at the claw for a long moment.

     “I promise I’ll protect you,” Filigree rasped softly.

    “W-why?”

    Filigree blinked. “Why?”

    “Why would you help me? Why did you help me?” she asked again, her body trembling with barely contained emotions. “All they did was hurt you worse. Why…?”

    “Because, long ago, I was in your claws,” Filigree answered, “and there was no one there to rescue me. I desperately begged and cried and prayed and wished for someone to save me, but no one did. Mother and Father sold me when I was your age, and I was put in shackles just like you have been, and was beaten and bruised and abused, just as you have been. All the while I pleaded for rescue, and everyone turned their backs on me because it was my ‘place’. I couldn’t let them do that to you…”

    “Would you have really let them torture Mommy and Daddy?” Verdigris asked, her voice almost lost amidst the struggle not to break down in tears.

    “No,” Filigree answered honestly. “I might have lasted longer; a part of me will never truly forgive them for selling me, but I know now that I couldn’t have done it. The King called my bluff.”

    Verdigris seemed to be on the edge of saying something else, but all that came from her beak were hiccupping sobs. Gently, the older gryphon tugged her close, wrapping her good foreleg about Verdigris’ trembling form and hugged her. The younger sister answered in kind a moment later, hugging her tightly as fear and pain and hopelessness poured from her in the form of tears and snotty sobs.

    “T-thank you,” Verdigris managed after almost ten minutes of crying, “for… from the… whip, thank you.”

    “I promise I will get you out of this,” Filigree answered softly. “You deserve to be free. You deserve to play with ponies and gryphons your own age.”

    “You’re not in much condition to do much of anything, right now,” the younger answered, offering a weak smile. It was as if the sun peaked through the clouds to the elder of the two.

    “Speaking of which, I really should lie back down,” Filigree admitted weakly, “before I--“

    Filigree only half heard the young gryphon’s cry as she fell over on her side, sliding from the embrace and half pulling the smaller gryphon with her. Pain flared through her side and her eyes drifted closed. The younger gryphon was yelling… something.

    She forced her eyes open again, sure she’d only just fallen over, but the room was darker now. Verdigris was standing over her with a damp rag and a bucket, washing her off.

    “H-how long was I out?” Filigree croaked, badly startling the younger gryphon.

    “A f-few hours,” she answered, clutching her breast as if to hold in her wildly beating heart.

    “Anything happen while I was out?”

    Verdigris gave a weak smile. “No, nothing this time.”

    “This time?”

    “Before you woke up the first time that… the King was here with some gryphon I didn’t recognize,” Verdigris answered as she went back to washing the elder gryphon’s side with the damp rag.

    “Can you describe him?”

    “Um…” Verdigris stammered and thought, “He had white fur, matching crest, amber eyes. I didn’t hear his name, but he was mad at the King. I kinda… hid behind you. I didn’t want them to see me…” The little gryphon looked at her claws and shuffled them cutely with the admission.

    “Interesting,” Filigree said with a frown. Why did that description sound familiar to her? She shook her head to clear it, but was only rewarded with a renewed pounding between her ears. “Did you hear what they were arguing about?”

    “Something about how you got so hurt,” she answered, “the white one was yelling because you were hurt, and the King kept saying you wouldn’t surrender. The white one demanded medical attention for you… I guess he won that one. There were healers in here a little while after that, before you woke up.”

    Filigree snorted and closed her eyes for just a moment, but when she opened them again, it was dark. She could make out Verdigris sleeping a few feet away, curled up in a cold and miserable little ball. She sighed softly, looked at the foreleg she could move properly, and checked length of chain shackled to it. At one time, this sort of chain would have easily restrained her, but she’d grown since then. She came to understand exactly how much of it was in her head; she had believed she couldn’t break the chains, so she couldn’t. Now, she knew she could but didn’t want to. Not yet. It was too soon to start destroying things. She was still physically hurt, she had no way to prevent the beat-down from recurring, and she had no way to protect a family she shouldn’t care about.

    She put the claw to the ground, and with a quiet grunt, forced herself up. She knew she couldn’t do much in her injured state, and was certain that the chains were supposed to keep her on the dais, but she was strong enough to close the distance between herself and the bundle of fur and feathers that was her younger sister.

    More than anything else, she desperately wanted to protect Verdigris. She hadn’t even been able to stand the thought of a whip harming the little gryphon. Was it wrong to worry about protecting her while the same thing happens to hundreds of other gryphons the same age? A bitter taste filled her beak as she contemplated that, and lowered herself to lie down by the small gryphon. Instinctively the younger gryphon snuggled closer, seeking her body-heat even as Filigree draped her wing over her. Her very feathered and un-metal wing, she noticed. But then, it had been a pretty sure bet that they were going to use a collar that was magicked against her powers. It wasn’t as elegant as the Nightmare’s cages had been during their “visit” to the moon, which had forced all of her powers to “turn off”. The gryphon method just made it painful to activate her abilities, and the pain would escalate the longer she struggled against it. She must have shut her power off reflexively in her sleep the moment the collar was locked in place. Unlike the Nightmare’s cages, however, it did little to limit her strength. It was an advantage she would have to wield carefully.

    Gently, Filigree stroked a claw over her younger sister, almost petting her. As much as she wanted to tell the little gryphon that they would be rescued and that everything would be fine, nothing was certain right now. Would the Princess send a force to reclaim them? Doubtful, more likely she’d send the team, at the least Spectrum. She’d have to rescue her family as well, get them out of this hell and into the ponylands. At least Verdigris would be happy there, but how would Father and Mother take it? She doubted Fracture or Pyrite would like it. There wouldn’t be enough gryphons to seduce and toy with for Pyrite’s tastes, and Fracture was too dim to realize the possibilities he would have open to him.

    Filigree groaned at herself. She’d do better to just leave them here. She should hate them enough to abandon them. But her heart wouldn’t let her even consider the thought, and the small figure huddled against her sealed the deal. For all her bravado with the Princess, she was unable to truly carry through when it counted. At the least she could keep Verdigris safe with her…

    As if responding to her thought, the chain out the doorway pulled tight, yanking Verdigris awake by the collar with a choking start. Filigree frowned, and with far more force than she intended, slammed the claws of her good foreleg down on the chain, pinning it to the floor with a grip that refused to be moved.

    “Must be caught on something,” a tired voice came from the doorway, and Filigree looked to see who owned it. The form of another gryphon, a guard she assumed, looked in. His eyes widened in shock when Filigree’s blue eyes met his.

    “What. Do. You. Want?” she asked in a dark growl.

    “The little one’s got duties elsewhere,” he answered, quickly regaining his composure in the face of another chained gryphon. “Be thankful we can’t put you to work too.”

    “She stays with me,” Filigree said, her tone brokering no argument.

    “Say what now?” the gryphon asked in shock. Filigree’s eyes never left his, but her talons caught in the chain, lifting it from where she had pinned it to the floor. She carefully unwound her injured foreleg from about Verdigris and wrapped the chain once about that claw. With a sharp yank of her claws, the chain fell apart; a short chain still hung from Verdigris’ collar, while the rest fell before the wide eyed guard.

    “Find another gryphon to do it,” she stated bluntly and laid back down, her good foreleg looped protectively over the small gryphon. Verdigris’ bright green eyes watched the guard stare at the end of the chain before lowering her head into the crook of Filigree’s chest.

    For the first time since winter, Verdigris felt safe.

    She couldn’t stop.

    Her body complained, aches and pains hounded her every motion, but somehow she continued to pump her wings. She dared not look back, terrified she would see a wing of gryphons gaining on her. She was spent, exhausted, completely played out; easy prey if they caught up to her now. She could barely see where she was going, her eyes watered so badly…

    No, that wasn’t accurate; she was crying. She actually had to think for a moment to remember why she was crying, and the memory of her partner’s sacrifice swam to the forefront of her mind. Her heart clutched in her chest, tightening until it all but drove the breath from her. He was the closest friend she had; she had known him since basic training, gone to flight school with him, stood by him as they each were given officer’s stripes, dragged him along to cheer for her at every Wonderbolts try-out, and was even the “best mare” at his wedding.

    “Oh… oh Goddess… I have to tell… tell Cloudy that he… he…” she choked. A new wave of despair washed over her. Why? Why was she doing this to herself?

    No, she knew why. He had sacrificed himself to make sure she made it. He gave himself as bait to the gryphons to make sure that she could get free, and he trusted her to get away. She would not forget that. But why? Why had he sacrificed himself for her? He had a family! He had a foal on the way! He was on the fast track to his own command! All she was…

    She was just a screw-up. She was an aspirant to the Wonderbolts who never made the cut. She was a perpetual bachelorette who never quite found the right stallion. She was the big mouth with a habit of shooting off at exactly the wrong times. She was no hero…

    The sudden dip of her flight path brought her attention back to flying. She forced each flap of her wings as she looked out over the growing dusk of the land. Where had the pursuit gone? Did they give up when she hit the Sonic Rainboom? Were they waiting ahead, in the tall hills that signified the shared border of pony and gryphon lands? No, no place to hide there…

    Her bloodshot eyes searched in the rising moonlight for something, for any sign of hope. She dare not stop, but she couldn’t keep going either. Sooner or later, her body would just give out and she would fall from the air like a stone. She shivered and struggled to regain some altitude. A pegasus that fell to her death, that would be ironic. One more way she could screw up, one last legendary failure.

    A glint of something caught her eye, and she tried to focus on it. She wiped her eyes with her foreleg, and stared in shock. Was that… a town? Way out here? Was that… a guard tower! Yes, finally!

    It was still in the distance, but she felt a surge of energy help buoy her towards it. But it was a long way, and the energy didn’t last, leaving her sagging in the air. She started to count the flaps of her wings, but shook herself when she realized she had almost fallen asleep in mid-air. How long had it been since she slept? The realization that she’d now been awake almost two full days sent a cold realization through her; if she didn’t pass out from physical exhaustion, she’d pass out from mental exhaustion!

    Her eyes strained as she saw the tower… suddenly it felt so far away. Her wings felt like lead and her stomach weak. Her entire body began to tremble as her eyes watered once more. She couldn’t make it!

    She had to make it!

    But it’s so far away!

    Swan Dive hoof-slapped herself. She just travelled deep into the gryphon lands, and now back out; a few dozen miles was nothing compared to that!

    “One flap at a time,” she told herself, recalling the old endurance drills from training, how Fleethoof had always been right by her side chanting that. Speed was her forte, as endurance had been his. The stallion could fly for hours without showing any fatigue. She grit her teeth and lowered her head…

    One flap at a time…

    One flap at a time…

    One… flap… at… a… time…

    She growled at herself, the pain in her wings were like nails driven through the joints. What she didn’t expect was the cry of surprise in response. She lifted her head and forced her eyes to focus, which revealed the tower almost directly in front of her, the startled guard staring at her with wide eyes. Relief flooded her; she made it!

    She barely noticed anything beyond the green jacket of the border guard, and set down on the platform. Her wings refused to fold and hung limply to each side while a white hot pain flared up her hind leg, and she lifted it off the ground. A glance showed her of the ugly bruise the gryphon slingers had left from their assault, and lifted her bloodshot gaze to meet the guard’s, a meek looking stallion with a dark blue coat and silvery mane.

    “W-who goes--?!?” he managed to stammer.

    “I’m Lieutenant Commander Swan Dive,” she rasped, “under special assignment. I need an immediate message sent to Princess Celestia, top priority.”

    “I-I don’t have… authority to do that,” the buck managed.

    “Then find somepony who does,” she ordered. The stallion started to stammer, but she didn’t catch what he said. Her body was done, and she was done. The stonework floor looked nice, and she decided that a nap would do her some good. She heard him scream and call for help as her body gave out and she dropped onto her side. What was the big deal?

    It was just a nap…