Chapter 12

Destruction....Ashes...

The sound of bone meeting wood and cracking- splintering apart at the force.

Flory tore his eyes away from the ceiling.

The Dog was laying on a rather comfortable bed, arms crossed behind his head. He turned and stared at the wall, trying to ignore the thoughts racing through his head; trying to ignore the growing ache.

It was useless. He sat up minutes later, uselessly muttering, “Shut-up!” at himself. staring at the cup of his golden-tan paws, he raised one to rub across his forehead and ear but paused halfway through the motion- There was a light muttering sound. The Dog cocked his head, turning it. Aye, they were words, but of a strange language- or just through a couple of walls anyways. It was coming from the other side of the hall.

Mabu nearly jumped at the sound, she pulled her eyes off the text, dropping it onto the table hurriedly. "Come in." She replied, trying to sound absent and make it look like she hadn't been using telekinesis. Pages were really hard to turn with one's nose.

"Ma-aaaugh!"

She had probably failed at hiding her confusion- the Diamond Dog had a disgusted and shocked look on his face, she watched him pull a paw in front of his snout and cough.

"What's with you?"

"Sorry, it smells like dust and mildew and augh."

"That's generally what old books smell like?" She sniffed the tome in front of her, it wasn't that bad. "What's the big deal?"

"I have a stronger nose than you." He responded, wincing and pulling the paw away, a grimace etched in his face.

"Oh..." She looked away, "Uh, close the door." She heard a soft, annoyed sound and a click. ‘No time for small talk.’ She gestured wildly at the pile of books behind her, "Go pick up one of those and look through it for me."

He moved over to the other side of the room, muttering, "You could use manners you know?"

"I am."

The sound of quickly flipping pages.

She glanced at him annoyed for a second then went back to reading.

A thump.

'Ignore him...'

Flipping pages, another thump.

'The desert sands are made up of 3 percen- This is useless, next chapter.'

Flip-flip-flip

'Hydroglyceride? What's that?'

"These books have no pictures."

"No shi- Ya' think?" The Pony turned, glaring up at him. He shrugged. "Why not skim the pages? Can't you read?"

"Well you seem fine on your own." He dropped the ancient text on the floor and walked out the room, slamming the door shut as he left.

"Well that was childi-shit...." She groaned, looking at the words. The letters were in that other language. Of course he couldn't read it. "The Human language..." She turned a page sighing.

....

She had never seen a Griffon before, and it was probably the clattering sound of her coming to a quick halt that had caused the creature to look up from the large manuscript he was reading.

A red spark caught the foals eyes, dancing in the dim light. A flick of crimson -almost candle flame in shape was attached to a length of black fur, as her eyes traveled up it she saw the hind of an ebony lion. But that’s where it ended. Dark wings, birds’ wings, were pulled close to the creature’s sides, each feather gleaming in the light of a candle. The ebony feathers stopped just as suddenly as they had started, grey feathers picking up, it was a slightly mottled eagle’s face that turned to her, dark grey beak in contempt and red eyes flashing.

"You need to be silent in a library." he said simply, chagrined.

"I uh---"

"Child, what are you doing in an establishment like this anyways?" He stepped away from the manuscript. His front paws were missing. In their place, ragged fur, bird’s legs and claws, gleaming like metal in the fire light- the same deep crimson as the tail. And he stalking towards her, black claws surprisingly silent on the stone. As he rounded the table that had been between them, she saw something roughly painted on his flank. She couldn’t tell if it was a flying bird or a lamp. But he was too close for that to matter.

The foal stepped back, fear pressing her away, but pride pressed further. She dug her hooves in, only to remember she didn't have her stave. "Researching."

"Well, my little Pony. You won't have any luck here. All of these books are written in Common Zebrican and Global-Ancient,” His voice was softly threatening, though his eyes suddenly moved off her, wandering along the spines of the books, “though there are a few variant versions littered about."

She bit her cheek, watching him carefully, his eyes came back to rest on her, flicking over the circlet. "That's not a problem." She sounded braver than she felt.

It was a deep throated chuckle that responded to her. She had to shake her head to keep her mane from whipping her eyes as he lifted off, towards the top of the high wooden shelves. There were ladders everywhere for a reason.

He deftly picked out a tome with a claw, in just a few seconds the pads of his back paws met the floor. The creature deftly flipped through the pages, somehow not ripping them, and turned the book around, smirking, "Start reading."

There was a sketched picture that looked mostly like him.

"As Wikipedia, the World Encyclopedia states, 'The Griffon ... is a legendary creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. As the lion was traditionally considered the king of the beasts and the eagle was the king of the birds, the griffon was-'"

"Stop."

She pulled her eyes up.

"So you can read Ancient. Very well then. continue on." Just as quick as he had turned on her, he was carefully returning the book to its home and walking back to the large paper he had been reading.

‘huh?!’

"What was that about?!"

He turned, eyeing her quizzically, "What do you want?"

The foal stared back awkwardly. "Was that necessary?" ‘I really have to stop thinking aloud....’

"Oh course. I hate interruptions... If you just tell me what you're looking for I'll point you into the right direction."

"Humans."

The creature... Griffon... raised his head, some of the feathers lifting off his head, "Humans?!"

"...Yeah?" ‘Why does everyone do that?’

"Why would a Pony be interested in Humans?"

"Pet project...."

He sighed, "Come over here, this section is most useful. … I won't bite you. You're interesting enough."

'Was that a joke?' She walked closer.

"Well introductions, introductions, my name is Selkihm, though most call me Selk- Now before I can help you why don't you tell me what you know and how you know it."

"He's Guest of Her Majesty the Empress, his intelligence is of renown and of world interest. He is a genius you see, in and out of the courts of kings and queens."

That's what the guard said as he helped her carry the pile of books that surrounded her now.

Mabu looked up at the ceiling.