Chapter 7

“Silent but deadly”

    “Well, the good news is nothing is broken.”

    Clockwork and Twist both looked up at the clinic doctor from their less than comfortable and threadbare seats. The berry colored doctor smiled as she led the limping form of Apple Bloom into the brightly lit waiting room, who was promptly knocked off her hooves by Twist rushing up to hug her.

    “And the bad news?” Clockwork asked, looking to the doctor.

    “She’s going to be limping for a few weeks,” the doctor stated, fluttering her wings to quickly retrieve a nearby clipboard. “There’s a large amount of swelling around her knee. It’s possibly a sprain, but that doesn’t seem likely to me given the nature of the bruising. Unfortunately, until the swelling goes down, we can’t be certain. I’d like her come around for a few tests over the next few weeks so I can make sure there isn’t any nerve damage. For now, here’s a prescription for a painkiller and another for an anti-inflammatory, and keep her off her hooves as much as possible.”

    “I knew something was wrong,” Twist sighed as she took the slip of paper from the pegasus. “I could only find a bruise that didn’t seem consistent with all that swelling, and our salves weren’t working.”

    “Buckin’ ninja…” Apple Bloom grumbled.

    “I mean it, Miss Bloom,” the pegasus noted, pointing a hoof at the elder pony, “Stay off your hooves. It’ll heal that much faster if you can keep from stressing it any more than you already have.”

    “That assumes our new friend gives us a chance to rest,” Clockwork noted.

    “Y’know, if you two hadn’t corroborated her story, I would have advised some senility tests,” the pegasus doctor confided in Clockwork as she watched Twist fussing over her mate. “The whole ninja thing is a bit difficult to swallow…”

    “We don’t know she was actually a ninja,” the smaller mare admitted, “but whoever the pony was, she was skilled in martial arts and has a habit of getting into places she shouldn’t be, which is suitably ninja-like to fit the description.”

    The doctor sighed, “If it were any other pony… but she is a Crusader, so I suppose she tends to find trouble.”

    “Or the trouble finds her,” Clockwork joked with a weak smile.

    “Thank you for seeing us on such short notice, Doctor Blackberry,” Twist said as she braced Apple Bloom to help her walk.

    “No worries, Twist,” the pegasus answered with a smile. “Just keep your mate off her hooves as much as possible; she needs to rest that leg.”

    “I will, doctor, thank you.” Twist gently began steering the grumbling Apple Bloom towards the door.

    Doctor Blackberry snorted softly. “I give ten to one odds against her actually keeping that mare in bed…” she muttered under her breath before fluttering away, leaving Clockwork alone to regard the slow progression the elder mares made towards the exit. She trotted after, catching up in time to hold open the door for them.

    Crisp cool air rushed to greet them, a far cry from the dry recycled air inside the clinic. Clockwork may not have cared for the antiseptic smell and polished white tiles of the Canterlot hospital, but it seemed far more comforting to her than that clinic, with its yellowing tiles, ratty chairs, and wooden counters gouged from years of use. If Twist thought they were professional there, she could only imagine what the elder mare would have thought of the Canterlot Memorial Hospital. Still, the town there was a fair bit smaller than Canterlot, so it hardly needed a huge multi-story state-of-the-art hospital. The ugly squat two story building served its purpose, she supposed…

    “We done missed that Cutecenara today,” Apple Bloom sighed apologetically. “I reckon’ little Candlewick was mighty disappointed.”

    “Not at all,” Twist answered with a smile. “I had Clockwork stay with you at the clinic while I ducked out to wrangle our helpers and get the delivery made with time to spare. I had to pay them a little extra, since I wouldn’t be there to oversee it personally, but I’m sure Strawberry Swirl could handle it just fine.”

    Apple Bloom sighed and looked relieved. “Well that’s good. I was right worried I ruined some poor little colt’s special day.”

    “I think a medical emergency usually counts as an understandable delay,” Clockwork put in.

    “Still, we have to pay the bills somehow,” Twist noted with a lopsided grin. “Besides, it’s not Candlewick’s fault we got into a losing fight with a strange mare.”

    Clockwork considered that, but was interrupted when her stomach rumbled. “Are you girls hungry? It’s after lunch and we haven’t eaten since our interrupted breakfast…”

    “I ain’t sure I trust anywhere,” Apple Bloom grumbled. “The fact that there ninja filly done showed up in our house, pretty as you please, an’ attacked while we was eatin’ breakfast is makin’ me a little paranoid. We done saw what she c’n do in Scoot’s home, what if she done somethin’ like that at a restaurant? What about at home? I may not drink tea, but what if’n she accidentally gets Twist here by mistake?”

    “Oh no, I know what I signed on for,” Twist spoke up. “You do not get to pull the ‘she might hurt my mate’ card with me!”

    “I’m serious here, Twist,” Apple Bloom protested. “What if’n she gets it inta her fool head ta use ya’ll ta get at me?”

    “You are not going to send me away like some common servant!” Twist almost shouted. “You run and get your friends every time there’s even a whisper of trouble…”

    “Twist, they got powahs--” Apple Bloom said softly.

    “That sure helped Scootaloo, didn’t it?” Twist answered pointedly, making Apple Bloom wince.

    “I think we should keep Twist close,” Clockwork spoke up finally, ignoring the glare from Apple Bloom. “Even if I sat in my armour twenty-four seven, which is so very tempting right now, my sensors can only pick up so much. An extra pair of eyes would help immensely, especially with as sneaky as our mystery mare is proving to be.”

    “Maybe she turns invisible?” Twist considered.

    “While that would explain some things,” Clockwork answered, “it wouldn’t explain everything. I have heartbeat and audio sensors in the Dragonfly, not to mention heat sensors and infrared spotlights that I designed to handle a pony with Apple Bloom’s powers, and she didn’t register on any of them. She’s either that damned good, or there’s something else going on. Regardless, that means we need all the eyes we can.”

    “’Cause that worked so well this mornin’” Apple Bloom grumbled.

    “Out of curiosity, what was she doing in Scootaloo’s place, anyway?” Twist asked.

    “I thought you told her?” Clockwork asked Apple Bloom, who looked sheepish.

    “I plum fergot,” the elder pony admitted, “We found one ‘o Scoot’s teapots.”

    “What’s so special about that?” Twist pressed.

    “What was so special was that my sensors picked up a granulated substance of unknown type on and in the spout of the teapot. My scanner couldn’t identify it, and I think it might have been a poison of some sort,” Clockwork answered.

    “Clockwork went on this Sheerluck Hooves deduction rant right outta one o’ them books, I swear,” Apple Bloom giggled. “Then we turn around an’ boom. The ninja is jus’ standin’ there, every bit as surprised ta’ see us as we were her.”

    “Wait, so where’s the teapot?” Twist asked.

    “That was the problem,” Clockwork sighed. “She made me look like a foal; I couldn’t even touch her and got tossed clear across the room for my trouble. Bloom did better but… well, she got baited by the mare.”

    “With what?”

    “My hat,” Apple Bloom growled. “That danged filly done took my hat while we was fightin’!”

    “Y’know, given your rant at breakfast, I think I understand why you got so angry when she did that,” Clockwork considered.

    “No pony messes with my hat!” Apple Bloom crowed proudly, then grew more melancholy. “It’s the last thing I have left of my family, of Applejack an’ mom an’ dad an’ Granny Smith an’ Big Macintosh...” She didn’t even notice her support had stopped walking until she slid off her side and fell into the grass.

    “You did WHAT?!” Twist cried.

    “What?” Clockwork squeaked, startled.

    “What what?” Apple Bloom echoed from her position on the ground.

    “You fought over a hat, and lost the potential cure for Scootaloo?” Twist demanded… loudly.

    “Er… oops?” Apple Bloom answered tepidly as she climbed to her hooves. Her mate marched forward and shoved her nose into Apple Bloom’s, forcing the mare back on her haunches.

    “Did I miss something?” Clockwork interjected. “I mean, I get that we might have been able to find the poison from a proper in depth scan of the granules. A good doctor could design a life saving regimen from that knowledge, but isn’t it a bit of a leap to say you could cure her from it?”

    “You don’t know alchemy, dear,” Twist said sweetly to Clockwork, then her voice dipped dangerously as she pushed a hoof at Apple Bloom’s chest. “My mate, however, does. She could have used it to make a cure from the poison. It’s not like she doesn’t have the equipment or hasn’t done it before.”

    “Ah heh… that Zecora was a danged good teacher,” Apple Bloom gulped.

    “Well…” Clockwork tried, pausing as she tried to think of something to say, only to come up empty. “…buck.”

    “You said it, Sugah.”

    “As you command, Princess.”

    Luna ducked the militaristic pegasus as he swooped out from the room she was entering, leaving the meeting chamber an empty husk of what it was mere hours ago. The “Emergency Briefing Room” hadn’t seen much use since the abolishment of “The Nightmare”, but it served its purpose today. Tables designed for the high ranking members of the Guard, senior senators, and “lords of the realm” ringed a flattened circular map of Equestria at the lowest point of the room. The circle of tables were interrupted only by a regal podium at the east end of the room, and upon which slumped the exhausted figure of Celestia, her head resting on the rich wood as if she intended to use it as a pillow.

    “The last time you fell asleep like that,” Luna chuckled as she trotted up, “you had a crick in your neck that took weeks to get out.”

    Celestia snorted and closed her eyes. “Seventeen hours of briefings and debriefings will do that to even a Princess,” the elder sister answered in a tired voice. “I trust you didn’t have any trouble handling the sunrise this morning?”

    Luna lowered a steaming mug of tea onto the podium near Celestia’s nose before answering, “No problem at all. It helps that Filigree dozed off, so I was able to put my full concentration into it. I trust you got my late update?”

    The elder sister nodded slowly and sniffed at the air, smelling the tea. The Princess cracked an eye and smiled when she saw the steaming mug. She gripped the cup with her magic and, with a groan, forced herself to sit up. “Your report on the Arch-duke’s death? Yes.”

    “Did you…?”

    “See him off to the afterlife?” Celestia asked before taking a sip of tea. “Ooh, thank you, Luna. That hits the spot.”

    “I still remember your favorite blends,” Luna answered with a tepid smile.

    “Yes, I did see his soul off,” Celestia answered after another sip. “I did not have to, and he did not expect me to come, but still… he was an old friend and I remember him as he once was. He was such a dashing gryphon when he was younger…”

    “Why sister, I do believe you’re blushing,” Luna teased.

    Celestia smiled and splayed her ears. “Even I have my weaknesses and occasional dalliances, little sister. But he was a gentle-gryphon, and we became fast friends until later in his life. We lost touch when he took the Arch-duke position from his father. So it was nice to spend a few moments together before I escorted him to the entrance of the Sunrise Aerie for his final departure.”

    “Ah, so he still earned passage into the gryphon’s version of the Summerlands, did he? I wasn’t sure, given what we heard about him from Filigree,” Luna said softly. “Speaking of the late Arch-duke, has the King responded to his death yet?”

    Celestia nodded. “We got the courier from the clans some hours later, demanding Filigree be returned to them to stand trial for her crimes.”

    “I do hope you told them to sit on your horn…”

    Celestia waved a hoof. “Not in so many words, but yes. I was, of course, politic about it. I told them we would launch our own investigation, and if we found proof of wrongdoing, we would consider extradition.”

    “Which, of course, is so much hot air,” the younger Princess snorted. “I am sure that is exactly what Goldtalon believes too.”

    “He is going through the motions,” Celestia agreed, taking another long sip of tea. “This was simply so he could make it look like a peaceful attempt was made, should it be scrutinized by an outside eye.”

    Luna frowned. “Who would care anymore? It’s not like there are dragon lawyers going over such things and playing mediator anymore these days.”

    “You never know,” Celestia sighed softly. “Last I heard the Minotaurs are sending emissaries to various nations in an attempt to fill that role. As one of the strongest and most imposing races still active in the world, they would make good mediators. I do worry that, being a shorter lived species, they will not have the time to truly understand the complex system that the more intellectually inclined dragons created.”

    “I still remember the time I tried to figure it out…”

    Celestia smiled and wing-hugged her sister, “I do as well, little sister. I also remember having to coax you out of your room and even then it took nearly three hours trying to calm you down.”

    Luna smiled sheepishly. “I can’t remember ever being more frustrated in my long life….”

    Celestia chuckled softly and hugged her sister again. She took a final sip of her tea as the companionable silence stretched for several moments. “I suppose I should get to--”

    “I already cancelled court for today,” Luna interrupted. “You only need some time off your hooves to relax. You’re in a frightful state right now, and you could really use some time to rest.”

    “How bad am I?” Celestia asked softly. Luna answered by reaching around with a hoof to Celestia’s mane, pulling a naturally pink clump of mane about to show her. The elder Princess made a face. “When a glamour that I long ago lost control of fades, it is safe to say my reserves are running low.”

    “I can field any major concerns for today,” Luna said. “Get some rest, if you can, and I’ll disturb you if anything major happens.”

    Celestia nodded. “That, indeed, sounds like a plan. To bring you up to speed, the generals are going to fortify our border, especially at the towns. There is some talk about trying to relocate the civilians, but when Filigree returns we can attempt to force a stalemate. I dislike the idea of pulling ponies from their homes on merely a suspicion, so right now any evacuation is voluntary. The Nobles are happy to bury their heads in the sand, and believe that we ponies are somehow perfectly safe from the gryphons. The Senate is, as always, deadlocked and undecided as they quibble amongst themselves pointlessly. Sometimes I don’t know why we bother with them; one of us always has to break their stalemates.”

    “That whole pony run government was your idea, Celestia,” Luna reminded her sister teasingly.

    “And some days I truly regret it,” she admitted with a weak smile. “The guard is already moving, so any new information you come across should be forwarded to the ranking officers. My big concern right now is the Northern Reaches, specifically the unregistered colonies there. We don’t have the pony-power to protect them as well, not that they would accept it, and they are in a contentious area right now.”

    “Are the gryphons still claiming that’s disputed territory?” Luna asked worriedly.

    “It always was, but the previous King was willing to ignore it so long as the settlers were no threat. Goldtalon, however, seems far more likely to renew old conflicts of that nature. Fortunately his focus is elsewhere… for now,” Celestia answered. “We will need to encourage Clockwork to resolve her business there as quickly as possible. If the gryphons were to discover another Element Bearer within easy reach…”

    “It could encourage them to either assault the Ponylands now, or move on the territories to take them and Clockwork.” Luna frowned. “Maybe we should pull her out…”

    “No,” the elder sister answered. “Her work is important right now, especially with Scootaloo in a coma. There are suspicions of foul play, and Clockwork is as close to an expert on such things as we have, at least that they would trust. However, I do think we need her in communication more frequently now. She’s getting used to being rather autonomous, but with this threat looming, we need to keep closer tabs on her.”

    “I can’t see that going over well, given her disorder,” Luna said softly, then moved quickly to hug her sister when she winced. “I’m sorry, Celly, that was not meant as a stab at--”

    “I did not take it as an indictment, little sister,” Celestia interrupted. “But it was a failure on my part, and I missed the symptoms in Lady Key. I trust that Trixie and Galaxi shared the book with you, then? How much did Trixie tell you…?”

    Guilt washed over the face of the Lunar Princess. “She didn’t tell me, but when I read the passage…” Luna managed in a strangled little voice, and clenched her eyes shut on the tears that threatened to force their way through. The younger sister moved to hug Celestia tightly, whispering softly, “I’m so, so sorry….”

    “That is why I did not tell you,” Celestia said soothingly, petting a hoof lovingly over her sister’s head, smoothing her ethereal mane. “I knew you would blame yourself. It is the Nightmare who was at fault, little sister, not you.”

    “No…” Luna choked softly. “No, it’s not just her fault. Nightmare Moon was both of us merged together. You have to… I let it in. I let the Nightmare possess me. It feeds on negative emotions until… until it completely devours you. A normal pony, maybe even an imp, could only last a year or two. A strong willed one, maybe longer. Because I was eternal, it had an eternal feast… and towards the end, I lost track of where I ended and it began. My jealousy was so… so overpowering that we targeted your weaknesses mercilessly.”

    Celestia sighed softly and hugged her sister tightly. “War is an ugly thing, little sister. The Nightmare has visited it upon us twice, and twice you have been returned to me afterwards. I would say that we have won.”

    “At what cost?” Luna demanded, clutching to her sister. “Is the cost worth it? Look at the pain it’s caused our ponies… hell, look at what it cost you!”

    “The Nightmare surely rots in Tartarus now,” Celestia comforted, “and the cost was worth it. I would have given anything to have my sister back. Now please, let us not dwell on what is past. Know you are forgiven of any transgressions, little sister. For now, we must focus on the present and future.”

    “Here I came to take some of the pressure off you, and I end up the one needing to be comforted. I’m starting to feel this relationship might be a bit one sided,” the younger alicorn joked weakly, sniffling slightly.

    Celestia smiled warmly. “Just having you here at all buoys my spirits, Luna. I spent a millennium without you by my side, and I missed you for every second of it. I know it’s been decades since you returned, but a thousand years are not so easily forgotten.”

    “Have you ever wondered, even for a moment, what would have happened if the Nightmare had targeted you?” Luna asked softly as she wiped her eyes with a foreleg.

    “Unfortunately, yes,” Celestia answered in a distant voice. “I do not know if I could have returned as gracefully as you did. You were the protector to my teacher, the warrior to my scholar. My magic was greater than yours, but your skill in combat and tactics were superior to my own. You were a shrewd opponent, building your powerbase as you expanded across Equestria. I would have been far less patient or subtle than you, and likely would have worked my way across Equestria by brute force. ‘Submit or burn’… I could easily see a Nightmare fueled version of myself saying those words, and it terrifies me.”

    “It scares me too,” Luna said softly, “but mostly because I don’t think I would have been as lenient as you were.”

    “I wasn’t,” Celestia answered honestly. “I genuinely didn’t know what the Elements would do, or even if I could use them by myself. I was desperate, and had no idea what else to do, but I had to stop you and your army before you reached the heart of the Ponylands. Had you won that battle, the war would have been yours, of that I have no doubt. In the end, the Elements chose your fate, not I.”

    Luna considered that for a moment, and gave a short nod. “That would explain where some of your theories about them being self-determining originate from.”

    Celestia smiled gently. “Hopefully, in a few more generations, our little ponies will trust you enough to take command of the military again. I can deal with Politicians and Lords and Ladies… but the Guard is like talking to another species sometimes. Their minds just don’t seem to work the same way as everypony else’s.”

    Luna shook her head. “After the Nightmare, I’m not sure I’d trust myself to be in charge of the Guard and Military wings again. But we will see what the future holds. For now, I’ll just keep steering what’s left of the Agency and Project Moonbeam, and steering you towards your bedroom…”

    “Maybe a stop by the kitchen for some food…” Celestia considered as her sister nudged.

    “Oh no, you can send a maid to get some food for you,” Luna said firmly. “For now, you need rest.”

    Celestia couldn’t help but giggle. “Yes ma’am.”

    “So what now?”

    “That’s the question of the hour, isn’t it?” Twist answered and took another bite of her alfalfa sandwich, wiping at an escaping dribble of blue cheese dressing on her chin. Clockwork glanced to Apple Bloom, who was hunched over and attempting to determine if her sandwich was poisoned or not by alternately poking at and nibbling along the edge. Clockwork shook her head, turning her attention to her own meal, and paused to put a bit more dressing on her daisy and dandelion sub. The mares had stopped at a small outdoor café, hunger winning out over Apple Bloom’s concerns, and were presently seated at a circular table with a flower shaped umbrella seeming to sprout from it, protecting them from the afternoon sun. A hoof-full of other ponies lounged at their tables while slowly devouring their late lunches, and a pair of waitresses worked their way around to make sure everypony was happy and fed.

    “Aside from getting into my armour and sitting in it until our ‘friend’ makes another attempt at Apple Bloom, I’m at a loss,” the small khaki mare admitted before taking a large bite of her sub. She opened it up and put even more dressing on it, still finding it still far too dry for her tastes.

    “That’d really tear up my hardwood floor,” Twist pointed out before using a hoof to wipe a dribble of sauce from the corner of her mouth. “Bloom, will you please stop doing that? You look like a little filly!”

    The normally vocal Apple Bloom just grunted at the accusation and sat up, mumbling something under her breath that sounded like “I’mma big pony” to Clockwork. She glared at the sandwich before lifting it between her hooves and taking a tentative bite, and had to quickly lean over her plate as red barbeque sauce spilled out the back, accompanied by chopped onions, green peppers, and tomatoes… all of which the elder mare eyed suspiciously.

    “You weren’t kidding when you said the grill was a trifle messy here,” Clockwork teased as Apple Bloom took another careful bite.

    “You get used to it,” Twist chuckled. “She’s developed a taste for grilled peppers and barbeque sauce, heavy on the onions. I make her spend some time brushing her teeth before she’s allowed to kiss me again after that, though. I really don’t care for her dragon breath.”

    “Ya’ll done pickin’ on what I like ta’ eat?” Apple Bloom complained as she took another bite, apparently satisfied it wasn’t poison… for now.

    “No, love, but you knew that already.” Twist grinned and patted Apple Bloom’s hip affectionately.

    “Y’know, I can’t help but think we’re forgetting something,” Clockwork said out of the blue, rubbing her chin as she chewed thoughtfully on another bite of her sub. “It’s on the tip of my tongue, but…”

    “Oh! That reminds me...” Twist said, and dug into her saddlebag. A moment later she plopped a scroll in front of Clockwork. “The mailmare stopped by while I was at home organizing our assistants for the Cutecenara. She dropped this off for you, along with our usual mail.”

    “We get anythin’ interestin’?” Apple Bloom asked Twist, though curiously eyed the scroll as Clockwork snatched it up and quickly unrolled it. Her eyes were almost frantic as they skimmed the letter before she seemed to relax, tension bleeding from diminutive mare.

    “No, just the usual bills and ads really, nothing that would get that sort of reaction from either of us,” Twist giggled, motioning to Clockwork.

    With a squeak, Clockwork sat up again and rolled the scroll with her hooves. “Sorry, a bit of private correspondence. A stallion I met at the agency memorial was having some real trouble adjusting after the war. His family died in the fighting in Canterlot while he was elsewhere on a mission. I’ve been helping him through some of the grief…” she said, glossing over some of the details.

    “Yeah, I c’n see that bein’ important,” Apple Bloom agreed, and finished off her burger. She licked the sauce off her hooves, to which Twist made a face that she tried to hide behind her sandwich.

    “I was kinda worried about leaving him alone to make the trip up here,” Clockwork noted as she tucked the scroll into her bag.

    “I’m sure he’ll be fine,” Apple Bloom confided before turning to munch on some of her hay-fries.

    “Still eating junk food, even at her age,” Twist sighed and looked at her own unsweetened iced tea. Clockwork could half imagine the elder mare wishing it were some sort of heavy milkshake like Apple Bloom had ordered.

    “Well, she can obviously handle it,” Clockwork chuckled. “All that fighting probably keeps her trim and in shape. I know if I ate like that I’d never fit into my power armour.”

    “Some ponies like a little bit more curves on a gal,” Apple Bloom chuckled and slapped Clockwork’s shoulder companionably.

    “More curves should not include a second chin,” Clockwork responded, much to Twist’s amusement.

    “Ya know, now that ya mentioned it, sugah, I can’ shake th’ feelin’ of forgettin’ somethin’ myself,” Apple Bloom grumbled as she crossed her forelegs across her chest.

    “Well, let’s handle this logically,” Twist inserted as she finished off her sandwich.

    Clockwork snorted, “There’s no real logical way to remember something that has been forgotten. That’s like trying to notice something by the lack of its inclusion.”

    “…Lack of…?” Apple Bloom mumbled to herself.

    “You can sort things into groups, however,” Twist countered. “Once you have the group it’s supposed to belong to, it can usually trigger a reminder.”

    “…group? ...lack of…?” the elder mare continued to mumble.

    “Not really. That’s like trying to remember a team of ponies when it’s the name of one member you keep forgetting,” Clockwork countered.

    “…team?  …group?  …lack of?” Apple Bloom mumbled, then her eyes widened.

    “I’m sure if you--”Twist began.

    “Sweetie Belle!” Apple Bloom cried and grabbed Clockwork by her shoulders, “We done forgot to warn Sweetie Belle!”

    Bits were all but thrown onto the table as the trio ran off as fast as Apple Bloom’s injured leg would allow.

    “I thaid, go ‘way!”

    The ground thrummed with energy as the small foal stood amidst the chaos. He was barely old enough to be in school, with a white coat and grape purple mane that threatened to fall into his eyes. A stub of a horn poked through the fall of his mane as yellow eyes tracked his opponent slowly moving about the room, forcing the colt to shift to keep between her and the mare he was protecting.

    “T-tempo… run… leave me…” A voice choked from behind him, an elderly white unicorn mare with pink, purple, and white streaking her mane as it fell in curls about her head and neck. She held one hoof to her neck, her voice lost amidst a renewed fit of coughing.

    The white suited pony with a large zero on her flank circled predatorily. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to skirt to the colt’s left, but the moment she closed more than a step the ground rumbled and the earth seemed to churn itself apart in a line from the young pony. The colt gasped and gulped down air as best he could, his small form trembling with the effort. He was exhausted, near to giving out, and she knew it. With renewed confidence, she began to move in for the kill…

    “Don’t you dare take another step,” a mechanized voice growled from behind. Slowly the suited mare turned, and her pale eyes met glowing blue ones staring back at her from the helm of power armour. In the muted light, the green and gold of the power armor was almost lost, but the glowing blue eyes and wings easily made up for it, and the glowing hollows in her armour’s forehooves pointed towards the “guest” made her intentions clear

    “M-mith Key?” the colt lisped uncertainly as an additional pair of ponies, one yellow and one cream colored, piled into the room. “Aunt Bloom! Aunt Twitht!” the young colt cried, “The’th tryin’ to hurt Granny!”

    “Twist, get Tempo and Echo out of here,” Clockwork ordered. “Bloom, if you can help with your injury, do so. As for you, Miss Zero, you’ve got one chance to explain yourself before I turn you into a smear on the wall.”

    Apple Bloom frowned and did a quick survey of the room. It was a storage garage built into an old barn that Sweetie Belle’s late husband used for personal projects. After he lost the ability to fly, he started working on some motorized flying machines, which he used to keep stored there. They never really worked, but he used them to supplement his failing wing-power in order to fly again. But he passed away many years ago, and his projects and tools were sold to interested parties ages ago. Instead Sweetie Belle turned it into a sort of practice room for little Tempo, who had shown early signs of being a Special himself, and kept it relatively clean aside from a scattering of straw mannequins for target practice. This, of course, ignored the churned up ground that would make footing unstable, a left over from Tempo’s attempts to protect his grandmother. Being built into a barn meant it was spacious… for normal ponies. For armour like Clockwork’s, it was too enclosed and would hamper her maneuverability.

    The suited mare seemed almost amused by Clockwork’s ultimatum, and lifted a hoof to draw it in a sharp line across her neck. Clockwork growled, taking it for a threat, but Apple Bloom…

    “Yer not gonna git anythin’ from ‘er,” Apple Bloom interjected. “I dun’ think she c’n talk.” To confirm Apple Bloom’s statement, the suited pony nodded and motioned towards the elder pony.

    “So much for getting an explanation why she’s been attacking the Crusaders,” Clockwork grumbled. All eyes were suddenly drawn to the colt when he cried out and stumbled. Twist rushed to his side and continued to shepherd him and his grandmare out of the old barn. Clockwork shifted her battle stance to lock the suited mare more fully in her sites even as the unknown mare took a step towards the group. Clockwork let out a hissed breath as she prepared to fire…

    What happened next was too fast for her eye to track, but the Dragonfly’s sensors recorded the strike even as it impacted upon her shields. The suited mare feinted towards the foal, then dashed forward under Clockwork’s line of fire to pummel at her shields before the first shot was even fired. Plasma bolts launched from her hooves, her shots going wide as she was knocked off balance by the unknown mare. Her wings flared and she rose up, her sensors tracking the suited mare as she fired a series of shots after her. Unfortunately she was simply too fast for the Dragonfly’s software. Adding predictive multipliers and multi-pathing proved useless; the suited mare managed to escape every attack unscathed.

    Then, suddenly, she was right up on the Dragonfly and inside her firing range once more. Clockwork would never admit that her reflexes were not the best in Equestria but the unknown mare made her response time look downright glacial as she slammed hooves into the armour again and again, the shields flaring desperately to keep up with the assault. Clockwork flailed, trying futilely to repel the assailant, but her moves were so easily dodged by the other mare that she might as well not have bothered.

    “Back off, ya buckin’ ninja!” Apple Bloom cried, and with a hard hoof drove the suited mare away. The two began their familiar dance again, with hooves and legs striking out at one another, but the suited mare had an obvious advantage thanks to Apple Bloom’s injury. Clockwork frowned behind the helm and a sudden idea flitted past her mind, and she quickly went to work on the math…

    With a flick of her hoof, Clockwork changed the firing mode of her plasma ejector to a constant beam, and hovered higher in the room to line up her shot. As she predicted, the “ninja” rolled away in the direction that was most obviously beneficial when she opened fire. Clockwork didn’t chase her with the beam, instead looping it about in a wider circle as she triggered a second beam, moving it the opposite way. When the suited mare moved to dodge that one when she added a third from her rear hoof, and almost immediately a fourth with her other rear hoof. Her energy reserves were screaming, but it was working, the four beams had the “ninja” trapped and were converging on her…

    A flash of light in the shape of a ring surrounded the suited mare, and she dropped through it, vanishing from sight.

    Apple Bloom’s jaw fell open. “No… buckin’… way,” she whispered.

    “We suspected she was a special,” Clockwork grumbled, shaking off her own shock to deactivate her ejectors, “now we know how she kept escaping us.”

    “She done been toyin’ with us this entire--”

    Apple Bloom never finished the thought as a hoof caught her across the jaw, and pulled back through a small floating portal. Another portal appeared behind Apple Bloom, and a bucking hoof caught her square in the back. Apple Bloom turned to defend, only to be caught from behind by another hoof.

    And just like that, the fight became a rout. The unknown mare used her portals with supernatural precision, ducking in and out of view, attacking the elderly mare with little to no risk of retaliation. Her hooves blurred in the air as she struck at Apple Bloom from every angle, often from multiple directions at once, sending the elderly mare reeling… usually right into another attack.

    Clockwork now regretted the power consumption of the trap, and fired off a volley of plasma bolts to interrupt the mare, sending her teleporting across the garage and away from the collapsing Apple Bloom.

    When the unknown assailant renewed her attack, Clockwork knew she would be the target. With the Dragonfly already running low on power, she ignored the warning light for her failing shields and pumped all available power into her propulsion. She clenched her jaw as she heard metal protest under the far too effective attacks. Dents formed on the armour, even as she powered across the “garage”, using her forelegs to scoop up Apple Bloom and crash through the barn doors and out into the open air. Her wings flared, gathering up the sunlight to recharge her reserves as she dumped Apple Bloom on the grass near Twist and the others. She opened her scanners wide, desperate to find a sign of the unknown mare. If she was lucky she might be able to lock onto an energy signature before…

    Clockwork’s spotted the mare standing atop the garage/barn. She seemed to be smiling, almost amusedly, as she stared down at the collection of defeated mares. But instead of finishing them off, she vanished from sight once more.

    “Buckin’ ninja,” Apple Bloom growled as Twist fretted over the multitude of new bruises. Clockwork set down nearby, looking concerned at Sweetie Belle, who was hoarsely comforting young Tempo.

    “She’s a teleporter,” Clockwork answered. “That’s much worse than a ninja.”

    “You were right, I needed this.”

    Luna smiled at her elder sister’s admission, who was nibbling on a small bit of cake while lying in repose on her massive plush bed. Celestia was already starting to look a little better; spending the afternoon off helped her immensely. Luna was pleased enough to abandon the “I told you so” speech she had prepared over the course of the day while she fielded the generals and captains and politicians, and instead settled on a cream colored divan before the roaring fireplace. A beam of late day sunlight played over her coat, slipping through the diaphanous curtains before one of Celestia’s many bay windows. Leave it to the Princess of the sun to make a room designed to catch every last second of sunlight possible.

    “P-princess?” a maid asked as she stuck her nose in around a heavy wooden door. “I know you aren’t to be disturbed, but I can’t find Princess… Luna? Oh! Princess Luna, there you are. I have a message for you from Lord Skillet.”

    “Does he need me?” Luna asked, climbing to her hooves and trotting over to the nervous maid.

    “Not as such, Princess,” she hedged slightly. “He simply asked that you contact him via something he called ‘the network’ as soon as possible, regarding Lady Key?”

    Luna frowned and looked to her sister before nodding, “I know what he means. Thank you.” The maid looked relieved and slipped back out of the room with a bow. Luna quickly moved to the computer on Celestia’s nearby desk and tapped a button or two. She felt more than heard her sister sidle up behind her.

    “Skillet?” Luna asked into the microphone mounted by the computer.

    “Ya! I am hearink’ you Princess,” Skillet’s voice called out over the speakers. “Am glad message finally reach you.”

    “What’s the problem, Skillet?” Luna asked, “You’ve interrupted a very important meeting.” Celestia rolled her eyes at her sister, who just grinned in response.

    “Am puttink’ her on now, Princess. You will want to hear this for yourself, ya?” Skillet answered.

    “Am I on Skillet?” Clockwork’s familiar voice came across the line.

    “Indeed you are,” Luna answered, tweaking the audio settings slightly to make up for some minor static on the line. “I’m sorry it took so long to respond.”

    “As long as I got through,” Clockwork answered, her tone oddly strained. “I’ve got a problem, a big one. Apple Bloom was right, the Crusaders are being targeted. The problem is this is no ordinary thug or assassin. We just discovered the hard way that she is not only a very skilled martial artist, but a skilled teleporter. We thought she was just a clever spy or ninja at first, but it turns out she’s spent the past few days toying with us. When I managed to corner her just a few hours ago, she opened up on us and really let us have it.”

    “I take it that didn’t go so well?” Luna asked, frowning hard.

    “Princess, she took both of us without breaking a sweat. I don’t know who this mare is, but she’s beyond skilled. She can create portals and redirect them in any way she wants. I watched her just punch her hooves into the same two portals, while the ‘out’ portals kept appearing all over the place around me. She took down Apple Bloom, took out my shields, and walked away without so much as a scratch.”

    “You need back-up then?”

    “Flourish, if at all possible. I figure our best bet is to fight fire with fire,” Clockwork answered

    “Unfortunately she’s unavailable. Filigree’s mission went poorly,” Luna explained. “Spectrum and Flourish were sent on the rescue mission. We almost recalled you, and now it sounds like that was a good thing we did not.”

    “I’m not sure if Trixie or Galaxi could handle this one,” Clockwork answered honestly, “but I’m in no position to turn down assistance. She used what we believe was a poison to quietly take down Scootaloo, and seemed set to cover her tracks when Apple Bloom and I stumbled across her. Now, in just two days, she’s abandoned all pretense of subtlety and struck at Bloom twice and Sweetie Belle once. Echo is unhurt thanks to her grandson holding this unknown mare off until we could arrive, and Apple Bloom took a bad leg injury and a hell of a beating.”

    “I will brief Trixie and Galaxi now, and have them on their way as soon as possible. They should be there shortly after sundown, or tomorrow morning at the latest,” Luna answered.

    “10-4.”

    Luna looked to her sister as the link closed, who in turn sighed softly.

    “My paranoia sometimes is not so paranoid,” Celestia said softly. “At least Galaxi and Trixie will have their promised chance to try and help Clockwork Key.”

    “Too bad the situation is so dire,” Luna answered, “but she is right. A trio of ranged specialists against a powerful melee opponent like that won’t go well.”

    “Give them a chance first. If it doesn’t work, we can recall one of them, probably Trixie since she knows a teleportation spell now, and send Flourish out to them,” Celestia counseled. “Give them a chance, however. They may surprise you.”

    “I hope so, but considering your concerns about how close they are to gryphon territory…” Luna hedged, biting her lip.

    “I know, sending additional element bearers seems like a foolish idea, but would you leave the Crusaders to face this threat alone?” Celestia asked softly.

    Luna sighed and shook her head. “No. Even though everything I know tells me this is a bad idea, I can’t just abandon our allies. Not when they’re turning to us for help.”

    Celestia nodded and gave her sister a wing hug, “Then go tell Trixie and Galaxi the good news.”

    “Good news?! You’re kidding, right?” Luna snorted.

    “They wanted to help their friend,” Celestia said softly, “now is their chance.”

    “AIR!”

    Filigree watched bemusedly as Flourish dove from the chariot the moment the wheels touched the ground, gulping down the sweet smelling air of the grotto as if she could literally drink it.

    “What’s your problem?!?” one of the gryphons demanded. Filigree didn’t even have to look to identify the reedy and demanding voice as her father’s.

    “Put simply, you stink!!” Flourish cried. “All of you! I’ve been in better smelling barns!”

    “Slavery does that to a gryphon,” Filigree pointed out, cutting off any indignant responses from her family. Verdigris sniffed under a wing self-consciously…

    “There’s a river nearby we can use to wash off,” Spectrum commented as she freed herself from the chariot’s harness. “I know I could use a dip myself, and a chance to rest my wings. This is as good a place as any to take a break.”

    “Where are we, Spectrum?” Filigree asked.

    “Near a gryphon settlement Scarlet told me about,” Spectrum said, trotting towards the river in question. It was a beautiful streak of blue amidst the verdant green of the forest edge. A few wild fruit trees grew nearby, along with a soft bed of flowers that splashed the countryside with varied colors. Flourish was quick to take advantage of the fruit trees, picking a few wild apples and tossing one to Verdigris, who tried it tentatively. She got all of two bites into it before Shale, her father, swatted it away.

    “She did mention hailing from a northern gryphon settlement, didn’t she?” Filigree considered, rubbing her beak. Verdigris looked forlornly at where the apple had fallen when Flourish hissed at her from behind a few bushes, and motioned her over. Hidden from the sight of her father the unicorn gave her another apple, which the little gryphon dug into with abandon. Flourish grinned as she munched on her own fruit.

    “I can’t think of a better place to leave them,” Spectrum added.

    “I’m not so sure,” Filigree answered with a frown. “This far North… what’s to stop the King from sending a force across the border to kidnap them again?”

    “It’s a town of gryphons, and I’m sure that if we let the Princesses know, they can add a contingent of guard to help keep the town secure,” Spectrum said softly.

    “I’d rather keep them close by--” Filigree started.

    “How well do you think that would work?” Spectrum asked.

    “What do you mean?”

    Spectrum sighed and rolled a hoof at the gaggle of gryphons, “Could you imagine them, any of them, doing well in Canterlot?”

    “No,” Filigree said after a moment of thought, “I can’t see that going well at all.”

    “It would be even worse if the Princesses kept them in the Palace,” Spectrum pointed out.

    Filigree snorted, “She’d have them in the dungeon by the end of the week. Maybe she’d try to hook Pyrite up with that ‘Blueblood’ character she talks about from time to time, they seem molted from the same wing…”

    “I think he’s an old stallion now,” the pegasus added with a sigh. “It’s your call, Filigree. But honestly, I can’t think of a better place for them to be. It’s relatively distant from the central ponylands, so they would have minimal interaction with us ponies, but it’s close enough to protect them from the King. It even borders the northern edge of the Everfree Forest, so there’s a legal hunting ground for the more carnivorous palette. That is, assuming they were brought up like you to eat only meat.”

    “They were,” Filigree noted. She watched as her mother, Patina, scrubbed down her elder sister with shaking claws, trying desperately to get the dried blood out of her feathers. “It was part of clan culture, and is considered a sign of abject poverty and an inability to hunt for yourself to eat anything other than meat. I didn’t even know we were omnivorous until Skillet convinced me to try a few dishes.”

    “I don’t think your kid sister got the memo,” Spectrum teased gently, motioning with her head to the small gryphoness as she devoured a second apple.

    “She’s the main reason I’m doing all of this, Rainbow,” Filigree confided, heading for the river. “I couldn’t leave her there. I may have no real love for my family, but she was innocent of every sin they may have committed. And to see done to her what once happened to me? I just couldn’t handle that…”

    The pony lightly hugged her larger friend, “It’s alright. Even though I want to throttle them myself, I couldn’t have left them there either, and I’ve only heard the few times you’ve been willing to talk about… er… you know.”

    The gryphoness smiled sadly to her friend, “It’s not something I wish to remember, much less relive. I want to leave it where it belongs, buried in the past.”

    Rainbow Star nodded as her gryphoness friend slipped into the water, and moved to follow. She reached the deepest portion and dunked her head, letting the gentle flow wash away the sweat that she worked up from pulling the chariot and now clung stubbornly to her coat and mane. Being a special with greater than average endurance meant she could hold her breath longer than the average pony, so she opted to remain submerged. The burbling of the creek filled her ears and washed away her fears, finally loosening that tense knot of worry that had nestled itself between her wings. She flapped her wings in the current as she would in a calm updraft, the simple motion and cool rush of water filling her with a sense of serene peace and calm.

    Unfortunately, that serenity was shattered when she resurfaced. The gryphons were arrayed behind the “alpha male” of the family, the tawny and brown feathered Shale, as he poked at Filigree with a claw. It would have been amusing in any other circumstance; Filigree towered over her father and possessed a commanding presence the male lacked. But she stood passively, her eyes locked on his as he repeatedly poked her with his claw.

    “When were you planning on telling me you were going to abandon us here?!?” he demanded.

    “There’s no civilization around for miles!” the golden colored gryphoness behind him whined… Pyrite if Spectrum recalled properly, Filigree’s elder sister.

    “I-I’m sure there’s an e-explanation…” an older gryphoness wheedled, still scrubbing Pyrite’s feathers to get the blood out.

    “Shut up, Patina,” Shale growled, and then wheeled on Filigree. He flared his wings in a laughable attempt to make himself threatening. “Well?!?”

    “There’s a settlement of gryphons that have fled the clans just north of here,” Filigree stated with immeasurable patience. “They are familiar with refugees from the clans, and should welcome you.”

    “I want to stay with you!” Verdigris cried, splashing into the water towards her sister. Filigree didn’t look away from her father, but she folded a metallic wing protectively over her younger sister.

    “V-Verdigris!!” Patina cried, horrified.

    “Get your tail over here right now, cub!” the father ordered. Verdigris seemed unwilling to let go of her sister, until Filigree gently nudged her towards them.

    “But… but…” Verdigris stammered in a hurt little voice.

    Filigree’s eyes shifted to meet her sister’s. “They’re our parents. I may not agree with them, I won’t claim to like them, but I had to make sure you could live free. I live a dangerous life, and couldn’t be there to take care of you. I wouldn’t be there for you when you would need me. I wasn’t there when you needed me for an entire winter…. I just hope that mother can give you the same attention and love she gave me before these,” she paused to flex her metallic wings, “made her frightened of me. You deserve a family, Verdigris, and as much as it pains me to admit it, I cannot be it. I promise, however, to visit as often as I can.”

    “Like HELL will I allow you to visit my daughter, you freak!” Shale bellowed.

    “You’ll find that Filigree has a lot of leeway here in the Ponylands,” Spectrum put in, drawing the gryphons ire as she inserted herself into the conversation. “She is, after all, a noble here. She earned the rank of ‘Lady of the Court’ from Princess Celestia as thanks for her role in the defeat of The Nightmare. Ponies may view us Specials with trepidation, but we are not second class citizens. We ponies tend to be a rather accepting lot…”

    “Even if a bit superstitious,” Flourish joked from the side, tossing another apple to Verdigris. The little gryphon frowned as it was batted out of the air by her father.

    “I won’t have you corrupting my daughter!” he growled angrily pointing first at Flourish, then at Filigree. “She will be brought up as a proper gryphon!”

    “You would rather see her in chains than free?” Filigree asked flatly.

    “You ask me to betray my king!”

    “Your king betrayed you first.”

    “All to get at you!” Shale screamed at her, beak to beak as if he expected her to back down. Filigree stood rock steady as she met her father’s muddy brown eyes, never swaying even as he beat the air with his wings in a futile attempt intimidate her. “If you hadn’t gone against the will of the clan--!”

    “I was sold,” Filigree interrupted. “The Archduke sold me to Princess Celestia, who in turn granted me freedom in exchange for my oath to defend her sovereign lands from invaders. At the time, that was from the Nightmare and her Imp forces. Now the Gryphon clans are proving to be a threat. I fail to see how I have broken a single ‘rule’. If anything, I’ve been rewarded for following the rules and been given to a society that finds the very act of slavery repugnant.”

    “You abandoned you heritage!”

    “And you abandoned your daughter,” Spectrum interjected and forced her way between the gryphons this time, using a hoof to push the elder gryphon back away from his daughter. “Tell me, how did that feel? Did you regret doing it? Did you cry at night because your daughter had been ripped from your nest? Did you hatch half-baked plans to rescue her from the very enslavement you just tasted? …Did you even care?”

    “She was cursed,” Shale growled, pushing against the pegasus’ hoof. He found himself held at foreleg’s length as Spectrum’s amber eyes bored into his brown ones.

    “So that answers everything,” she responded dryly. “Don’t try to help, don’t look for a cure, don’t bother trying to find a solution, just toss her away like so much refuse and forget about her.”

    “I-it’s what we had to do,” Patina sniffled from nearby, “w-we were already suffering in a low caste. A… a cursed gryphon in our bloodline would doom us even further. If we fell anymore…”

    “If you fell anymore, you’d be in chains,” Filigree noted softly.

    An uncomfortable silence stretched for several moments before Shale’s beak opened wide. Spectrum gave him a hard stare, meeting his eyes, and for once the elder gryphon took the hint and shut his beak. He growled wordlessly instead and turned his back on the pair. Filigree shook her head and headed for one of the river’s banks, followed closely by Spectrum.

    “You alright?” the pegasus asked gently.

    “As well as can be expected,” the gryphon answered. “I can’t say I expected them to see reason, but I didn’t expect quite so much hostility after rescuing them from...”

    “They can’t change overnight.”

    “Maybe not, but Verdigris said they had been enslaved for months. I thought that would change something,” the gryphon sighed as she watched her family, pretending not to notice the angry and sullen glares from them.

    “Are you sure about leaving your little sister with them?” Spectrum asked in a soft voice as she sat by her friend, not wanting to be overheard.

    “No,” Filigree admitted, “but I can’t be the sister she needs.”

    “You’d be better than that lot,” Flourish snorted from over their heads and magically tugged a fruit off the tree. “Apple?”

    Filigree held out a claw and caught the fruit, taking a bite before answering, “I’ll visit frequently and discuss it with the Princesses. I don’t think we can, or even should, take her away from them. But if he so much as lays a claw on her….”

    “She’s smart enough to duck,” Flourish said. “In fact, she’s got more smarts then all of them put together. A little naïve, perhaps, but she seems eager to learn.”

    “Besides, they’re so easy to trick,” a new voice added, and the trio turned to look at the young gryphoness behind them. Filigree sighed while Spectrum gave an amused grin. Flourish just tossed another apple down to the young gryphon, who caught it and sat herself back to back with her elder sister, all but hiding between Filigree’s metallic wings as she started to munch the fruit.

    “How long were you listening?” Filigree asked.

    “About the time you said you can’t be the sister I need,” Verdigris answered softly, “but you’re wrong. You can be the sister I need. You already are…”

    “Verdigris….”

    “You stood up and saved me when no one else would. You protected me, talked and listened to me, and in just a few days acted more like a sister than she ever did,” she insisted, emphasizing her point with a barely seen jerk of her claw at Pyrite, who was whining about how she could still see blood on her feathers. “I understand your reasons, Filigree… I honestly do. But understanding them in my head isn’t making accepting them any easier. I just… don’t want you to go…”

    Filigree sighed softly, “I don’t want to go, honestly. I don’t trust them, but…”

    “But you live the life of intrigue and adventure,” the little gryphon teased around a sniffle.

    “I prefer to leave the intrigue to the Princesses,” Filigree answered with a sad smile.

    “I think, perhaps, I should go find the welcoming committee. It’s nearly sundown, and these gryphons aren’t going to want to sleep in the wild, especially not this close to the Everfree,” Spectrum put in, and climbed to her hooves. “It should only take me an hour or so.”

    “Rainbow? Thank you…” Filigree said softly.

    The pegasus blinked. “For what?”

    “For sticking up for me,” the gryphoness answered. Spectrum just smiled.

    “That’s what friends do.”