After a long bus ride back to Ponyville I go to meet up with my mom. The crowd of spectators and family members cheer for the team when we step out, but I still keep my head down. Despite what Rumble says or thinks, I still feel that that loss was on me. I just want to go home and sleep it off, to start. I offer Mom a weak smile when I walk up to her, still keeping my head down though. She smiles back and pulls me in for a hug.

"Don't beat yourself up for that squirt. You can't win them all," she whispers to me, patting my back.

"I know Mom. It just... I still hate losing." I tell her, resting my head on her shoulders.

"I know you do. It's a little something you learned from me. But, if you never lost, competing wouldn't be worth it. Your pride is hurt, but you'll make it through this." I sigh into her mane and close my eyes, relaxing into her embrace. She always knows just what to say when I'm feeling down. After a moment I break away and we silently start to walk home.

"So... where is everypony?" I ask after a few minutes.

"Most of them went home. Miles was called away for work and the boys passed out on the flight home. Though Luna is going to wait by our house to fix up your wing."

"Oh, yeah." I mumble as I look to my bandaged wing. Having that fixed right away would really help. "I saw that they brought Tempestive. He seemed to really enjoy himself."

"Heh, he nearly cheered as loud as me, almost." She nudges me a bit and I can't help but smile. When I was little I was her biggest fan, but now it seems to have turned around... kind of. "I... I have some bad news Scootaloo."

"Bad news? What is it?" I ask nervously, unsure what this could be about.

"It... well... in a few months my maternity leave will expire, and I'll be on active duty with Miles." I stop in my tracks and stare at her.

"What... no-"

"Now don't get sappy with me Scootaloo," she cuts me off firmly. "Everypony knew this was going to happen eventually. The Captain has been going the past two years with only Night, Will, and Dust for experienced help. And with those new recruits in training, they're really going to need me. But... with me there, I won't be here. I'm going to count on you to really start stepping up now Scootaloo, for Jet. He's too young to fully understand this, and I want my transition to be as easy as possible."

"But... it's not like you're leaving forever or anything. You're a Spartan after all!" She smiles and pulls me in for another hug, one I don't return. Why is she dropping this now! Her leave doesn't end for another six months! Couldn't this have waited a little bit longer!?

"Hm, I am a Spartan. And I'm not going down without one hell of a fight. But... before Miles left for that call, I had a talk with him. Something nasty is coming to Equestria, and I want this family ready for anything. I've already talked to Soarin about this, and I plan to talk to Jet later. But with me gone, you're going to have to step up as the mare of the house. And that means I'm going to need your help with watching over Jet. And more than just dropping him off at school."

"Mom... I-"

"I'm serious Scootaloo! When I'm away, Jet's going to need you, and I want you ready for that! He's a little colt Scoots, he won't understand, not right away at least. That's why I'm telling you this now. I want you ready to be there for him. To take care of him. And... should the worst happen-"

"NO! No, Mom-"

"If the worst should happen, I want to know that you'll watch over each other. Be there for each other." I pull her in for another hug and bury my face in her neck, fighting back the tears swelling in my eyes. She hugs me back tenderly, rubbing my back slowly.

"Of course we will Mom. Why do you even need to ask?" I ask, squeezing her tightly.

"I knew you would, I just... I can't have doubts. Doubts make you hesitate, and I can't chance that. You make me so proud Scootaloo, I hope you know that." We hold each other for a bit longer until we each begrudgingly let go of each other. We do have appearances to keep up after all.

After a short walk we make it underneath our home and find Luna waiting patiently for us.

"Hey Luna. Did... did you enjoy the game?" I ask sheepishly.

She smiles and walks over to my side, lifting my wing up with her magic. I hiss from the pain from the sudden movement, but let it go when I feel the pain begin to numb away.

"You were magnificent Scootaloo. I just don't understand why they wouldn't let me just heal you at the stadium. Instead they forced you to go through the pain and suffering of the trip back here." I wince again when she yanks my wing in another direction, focusing the magic elsewhere.

"Y-yeah... what cruel and unusual PUN-ishment!” I yelp again when she pulls it straight up, cracking my joint.

"It has to do with liability and legality stuff like that." Mom points out.

"I am the master of legalities, and a princess. There is no reason they couldn't let me help her." Luna says bitterly, setting my wing back to its resting position.

"Well... technically you’re a queen... part time. So... they have every reason not to let you heal her." Mom points AAAAHH! WHY DOES SHE KEEP YANKING IT AROUND!?

"LUNA!"

"All done!" she says happily, letting go of my wing. "But you shouldn't fly for a day or two, just to be safe. Do you need help getting up-"

"No!" Mom cuts her off quickly. "No, I mean... I've got this. Why don't you go home and get some sleep? I can handle things here now." Luna gives my wing a glance over before shrugging.

"Very well. Remember to keep off it for a few days. Good night you two, and great job today Scootaloo."

"Thanks, and you too." I call out to her as she trots away. When she's out of ear shot Mom and I share a chuckle. "I thought she was going to tear my wing off for a second."

"Pfft, yeah. Let's get inside and hit the hay already, it's starting to get late." Mom tells me, to which I nod. She comes over and lifts me up to our home, setting me on the porch. When we walk inside we find Soarin sitting on the couch in the living room, waiting for us. He walks over and hugs me, giving me praise for my hard work. I thank him and head to bed. It's been a long day, and I just want to go to sleep right now.

............................................................................................................................................................

It takes me several hours of intense focus, but I eventually force myself back into human form on the flight to the Griffin Colonies. I know I'll pay later for switching this much, but you have to do what you have to do. I get dressed and armored up as quickly as possible just in time for the descent. The ship shakes violently as we pass through a fierce storm. A few alarms start to sound off, but I ignore them as we continue our descent.

I peer through one of the openings and sigh as arcs of electricity illuminate the dark haze. Six years and these damned storms and were no closer to figuring out this mess. Every sample is foreign to our scanners and it's too acidic to actually hold and physically check. When we make it through the cloud cover, I get a look of Lions Heart.

Wasteland. There's really no other way to put it. All the plant life, dead. The ground, bare. Large wooden awnings have been built onto the cities tall stone walls to try and protect it, but it's being burned away slowly. They're trying to replace it, but much of the surrounding forest has already been removed by now, and they're still going at it. A large stone building sits outside the tall city walls with a stone pathway leading to the city gate.

The ship hovers near the entrance to the stone building and waits long enough for me to jump off. I run into cover and take in my surroundings. A massive black food processor fills the center of the room while many angry griffins cover much of the rest. I force my way through the yelling crowd to the front where I find a bot working on the machine.

"What happened?" I ask it as I look over the part it's working on.

"A pressure valve has warped. Replacement in process. E.T.A. to completion, six hours." The crowd goes into an uproar from this and start directing it at me.

"WHERE'S THE FOOD!?"

"I HAVE THREE KIDS TO FEED!"

"AREN'T YOU SUPPOSE TO BE ADVANCED! WHERE'S THE FOOD!?"

"WHY AREN'T YOU DOING ANYTHING!?"

"WHERE'S THE FOOD!?"

I turn back and stare at the crowd for a moment for a moment before stepping forward. Many in the back are still yelling, but the ones up front have stopped, for now at least.

"Please understand that this is a tool. And like any other tool, under a lot of stress it tends to breakdown. We are working on the problem and will have it back online as quickly as possible-"

"Six hours isn't quick enough!" Some guy in the back yells.

"I agree. But yelling and causing a scene will not get you anywhere! Now I suggest you all get back in line while we try and fix this problem!" I get a few boos, but they mostly back off. I can see a few potential trouble makers, but I turn my back on them to try and get this problem fixed sooner.

“Excuse me, sir?” Some guy calls out as he breaks through the crowd and approaches. He’s wearing a blue sash over his chest.

“That’s close enough.” I warn him, holding up a hand. “How can I help you?”

“The… king wishes to speak with you,” he says nervously, glancing back to the crowd of griffins.

“He can wait until we get this back online-“

“Um… sir… well.” He strides forward and continues in a hushed tone. “The… king of kings, if you will, wishes to speak with you.”

“I figured. Ulfric can wait.” I tell him, getting a few gasps from the crowd. I turn back to the machinery and start to take look over the dismantled valve. Six hours to fix something that obviously needs to be replaced… this is going to be a long day. And this is only the first on my check list.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

I stay up until all of the kids are asleep before heading out of the house. I glance around before jumping into the air and heading towards the back of Miles’s home. I find Big Mac walking up to it and meet up with him before teleporting.

“Hey Big Mac, are you ready for this?”

“Eeyup.”

“… is your family ready for this?” I feel kind of douche-y asking that, but it needs to be asked.

“Fluttershy is ready. Ah haven’t told Rampant yet though. Ah… guess ah figured ah’ll have more time later,” he admits, rubbing the back of his neck a bit.

“I know how you feel. I haven’t told Jet yet either. But, we still have some time before we’re back in. I talked with Scootaloo earlier… it wasn’t easy. Makes me want to just get the talk with Jet over with; but at the same time, not want to.” He nods to me and heads to the mico platform. I sigh and follow after him, taking it as soon as it clears up.

“Well you guys took your time.” Night Fury scoffs. I roll my eyes and walk up to him.

“Fury, still a douche I see.” I retort, getting a chuckle from him.

“Whatever, I know you love it. Here’s the scoop so far. We intercepted a goblin transport. All of the smugglers died in the assault, but the dragon assisting them told us something. Syncney.”

“Syncney?” I ask.

“Yeah, it’s a city in the Goblin Empire. We’re going there as soon as Miles finishes up with the riots in the G.C. In the meantime-“

“He still thinks there might be an attack?” Big Mac asks.

“Pfft, he’s counting the days till then. He has several political action committees under surveillance still. I don’t think he thinks that any government will do anything, but he fears groups taking action into their own hands.”

“… hand?” I ask, tilting my head slightly. “I would think the griffins would be the ones to make the first move, not the goblins.” Night Fury shakes his head to this.

“The griffins are the scapegoat, in Miles’s mind at least. He believes the goblins will make some kind of, justified, crusade into Equestrian territory. Backed by a willing army of griffins of course.”

“For the Southern Badlands ah assume.” Big Mac comments, making us both nod.

“Syncney.” I mutter, thinking of the possibilities. “Anything else?”

“Hmm… oh yeah. He wants an update on the newbies. How are they coming along?”

“We haven’t been with them at all, you’ll have to go and check up on them yourself.” I tell him.

“*sigh* just what I need. Alright. Hopefully Ellzy, Su ye, and Butterscotch can handle a simple training regiment,” he says irritably.

“Cut them some slack. They didn’t get as much experience before going to train the new recruits.” I tell him.

“Eeyup. Plus ya didn’t have ta train a orc.” Big Mac points out, getting a nod from the both of us. “So why did ya’ll call us here today? We could’a learned this at the monthly meeting, what’s so special now?”

“Well… Miles is putting you two on call when he gets back-“

“WHAT!?” Big Mac and I yell out together, making him jump slightly.

“What could be so dang important that Miles would call on only us fer? And why not Storm?” Night Fury glances around before stepping closer to us, drawing us closer as well.

“Miles doesn’t want to alert the Equestrian government about this mission. From what we’ve seen, it needs to be kept under wraps for the moment.”

“What ever happened to ‘no secrets’ in Terradisia?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.

“There aren’t any. That’s why you’re being pulled tonight. You can’t answer questions if you aren’t here. If Storm was pulled, it would bring up too many questions. And Luna being a letter away from Celestia, and Storm being at the castle every day… well, can you see why the discrepancy?” Big Mac and I mull it over for a moment silently. It honestly sounds like he’s just trying to hide things from Luna.

“What more can ya tell us?” Big Mac asks. Night Fury looks around again before telling us.

“We’re not sure, but it has to do with some goblin tech we found. It was enchanted with pony magic, making him believe that there’s something fishy going on with the factory it came from. That’s what we’re going to Syncney for. To find any factories there, and investigate what’s going on there. But… well, it’s not like they’re going to let us just waltz right in there. So, he needs a team. Everypony else is training, so you’re being called back. For this job at least.”

Big Mac and I look to each other before nodding to Night. I don’t like the sneaking around and what-not, but I understand why he’s doing it. If things are bad over there… this could start a war. He’s being sneaky with Celestia the ruler, not the sibling.

“When do we leave?” I ask quietly. Can we at least say goodbye?

“In an hour. Get your gear and meet back up here.” Dammit. Well, at least I have an hour. Night nods to us and takes off for the mico platform, followed by me and Big Mac.

I rush home and burst through the front door and start yelling for everypony to wake up. I go to my bedroom and kick the door open, finding Soarin getting up slowly. I run to Scootaloo’s and Jet’s room and do the same before heading to the living room, where I wait for them. It takes them a bit, but they eventually make it out and start asking dozens of questions… well, most of them. Jet just curls up into a ball and goes back to sleep. I smile down at him and walk over to him. He looks so peaceful right now. He has no worries, no concerns-

“Whoa… Dash, what’s wrong?” Soarin asks worriedly. I look up to him and feel a tear roll down my cheek. I try to rub it away quickly, but they’ve both already saw it. I lean down and start to nuzzle Jet back awake, much to his displeasure.

“Uuuhhhgg. Mom? *yawn* what time is it?” he asks tiredly.

“It’s really late. But I need you awake for a moment, think you can do that for your mom?” I ask him sweetly, getting scared looks from Soarin and Scootaloo.

“Mmm… what’s up?” He asks groggily as he sits up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

“I’m going to be leaving for a bit. Miles needs me and a really important mission, and I don’t know when I’ll be back.” I tell him, waking him up completely.

“What?”

“But… you said-“

“I know I said I wouldn’t be leaving for a bit, but this is urgent. There’s a problem… and Big Mac and I are being pulled to help-“

“Well, what about Storm Cloud? Why can’t he pull him?” Scootaloo demands, tears forming in her eyes.

“He can’t come. If he does, Celestia might find out. If she does… it might botch the mission. Equestria can’t know about this mission. Not now at least. I have… less than an hour before I need to be back in Mooseden.”

“No!” Jet yells, tackling my leg in a hug. “You can’t leave! You… just can’t!” He yells, tearing up as he tightens his grasp on my leg. Scootaloo and Soarin come over and join in, enveloping me completely. I keep quiet and return the affection. I don’t know what to say, so I just tell them that I’ll be fine. That I’ll be back before they know it. I tell them anything I can think of that might ease their minds, but I know it hardly helps. It’s never supposed to.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

It takes forever, but we eventually get the food processor back online. It took less than six hours, but no one in the crowd seemed to really notice. With my job here done, I reluctantly follow the griffin from before back down the passageway towards the city. The line goes all through the city gate. Young, old, rich, poor, everyone was affected by this storm. Several groups give me dirty looks as I walk by, but I ignore them as we walk through the front gate.

Luckily for the griffins, they designed their homes from stone, so when the rain first hit it didn’t do too much damage. With the awnings up though, the city has been casted into a permanent shadow. Added with the thick cloud cover, it appears to be night time here. Streetlights illuminate the main roads, but the alleyways are dark and unsettling. Many walls have been tagged with either slurs of anti-Equestrian sentiment or posters depicting various things. Everything from Ulfric being kicked around by Celestia to Celestia forcing poor, defenseless griffins to pay for a slice of bread as they’re rained on by acidic rain cover streetlights and once blank walls. In the end, it’s obvious who they think the villain is.

When we make it to the front of the Castle, a griffin with an owl half is standing on a small wooden box shouting at a small crowd. He’s wearing a light blue vest with various buttons and pins with similar remarks to the posters.

“… and all the time they sit there, spoon feeding us their scraps while profiteering off of our misfortune! How many children go hungry at night while they fatten up and mock us! How long do we have to belittle ourselves with these measly handouts!? Join the National Griffin Coalition today and fight the tyranny that’s attempting to close its grasp over our necks!”

“Is he fucking serious?” I ask aloud, somehow getting his attention.

“LOOK! One of the tyrants come to gloat to the king himself! BOO!” He yells, pointing me out.

“Fuck you asshole.” I retort, flipping him off. Luckily enough, griffins understand this gesture. The crowd starts to yell and boo with him, making the messenger start to try and usher me inside. “I’ll remember you later asshole.” I call out to him.

“Good! Remember the face that said no to your rule! LONG LIVE ULFRIC! LONG LIVE THE COLONIES! NO TAXATION FOR DEVISTATION!” He chants, getting the crowd to yell with him. I shake my head and continue onward inside. Just as I feared. People are starting to point fingers. This will lead in insurrection, massacres, terrorist acts… let’s just see what Ulfric has to say about all of this.

The castle is dark and empty, only having sparse torches lit to show the ends of hallways or corridors. They can’t afford to burn the wood to light the entire castle, so the minimal amount will suffice. The messenger guides me down the dark corridors to the throne room where we find Ulfric. He’s in his usual light blue garbs staring out a window at the city below. The look on his face easily gives away his troubled mind, so I approach him and wait patiently for him to speak first.

“Tell me, Miles, when your home was attacked… did the worry tear at you? Did the fear grab at your heart so easily?” he asks slowly, never looking away from the city.

“ …we were lucky.” I tell him, getting a confused look in return. “The attack was quick. It only took them a week to take the city. In that time, all we did was fight. We didn’t have time to fear or worry. There was… only killing.”

“Did you lose anyone you cared for?” he asks quietly.

“… yeah. I did.”

“Six years Miles. Six years and it’s only getting worse. We can’t grow food. The runoff is starting to affect our shores… fear has gripped my people Miles.”

“We are all trying to do whatever we can Ulfric. Terradisia, Equestria-“

“Yes, I know. But at the same time, you don’t have to tell millions of people that they have to send their children to bed hungry. That their next meal will be some a handout that can’t even be called food by its looks. My people prided themselves with their independence Miles. And now-“

“And now they have to humble themselves by accepting help from others.” I cut him off, making him look back out the window. “I’ve seen much of the world Ulfric, it’s divided. Every nation follows a belief of isolation, and now it’s starting to kick you all in the ass. This has affected the entire world, yours more so than the others, but it’s still being felt everywhere.” He stays quiet for a moment, thinking to himself as he continues to stare out at the city below. I join him at the window and look down at the gloomy city.

“You should have seen this city before The Storm. It was bright, and so full of life. Heh, I once complained it was too bright here. Now… now those damned awnings.”

“We’ll fix this. We just need more time-“

“We don’t have time Miles. We simply just… don’t have time,” he tells me tiredly. “I’m sure you heard one of the yellers on your way through the city.”

“No taxation for devastation. Yeah, I heard them.” He rubs his eyes and lets out a sigh. “What tax are they talking about?”

“It all started as a simple rumor. But, that’s all it took really.”

“Ulfric, what’s the rumor?”

“… *sigh* that the Equestrians are adding a tax to the aid they’ve been sending.” I almost do a double take when I hear this.

“Taxing the aid? They’ve cut prices to the point where farms are starting to go bankrupt! How could they believe that!?” I ask angrily, thinking back to the Apple farm. I know they’ve been hit really hard by this, so it’s putting a bit of a bias in my opinion.

“Miles, we still have to buy the food they send us. I know the prices have been reduced drastically, but… we’re in a national state of emergency. We have no ability to grow our own food, at least on a large scale. To them, it appears that the Equestrians are profiting off of our misfortunes-“

“Do you believe that?” I ask quickly. If the people believe this, that’s one thing. But… the minute Ulfric believes this… I don’t know what would happen.

“I believe… that, in time, this will all come to a point. I’m old, Miles. I’ve seen the years of famine for my country time and time again. We’re a hardy people, but this has all happened before. The other times one colony fought with another or caused riots… I’m old Miles. This has happened before, it’ll happen again. I guarantee you that.” He sounds so… defeated. As if he’s just going to let all of this just happen, and have no say in it whatsoever!

“Ulfric,” I say quietly, “you can’t let this get to you. You’ve seen this before, so you’ve learned from this before. We learn from history to avoid making the same mistakes-“

“But the circumstances surrounding any one problem are never the same Miles. Neither are those who have to go through them. I am old,, but no matter what I learn from time, time finds a way to repeat itself. Rest assured that I am doing everything I can to try and put an end to these kinds of thoughts, but I can only do so much.”

“Your people listen to you Ulfric. Your words carry weight with them. They will cling to what you say, and if you start speaking in this defeated mindset, they’ll react in kind.”

“Hmm, I know. Trust me, I know. But, trying to persuade a nation from aggression while carrying its burden is tiresome. I’m sure one day you’ll understand. Now, I won’t keep you from your duties. Thank you for your time Miles.”

“Anytime Ulfric. Take care.” I start to walk out of the throne room until Ulfric calls out to me again.

“You remind me of her, your mother that is. You take after her, more than you’ll ever believe.” I pause for a second before nodding to him and leaving. I don’t like him knowing my mother, it makes him able to get to me too easily. Whatever, I’ll take the compliment for now; I have three other riots to quell.

Next Chapter: Chapter 208 Chin Up Estimated time remaining: 25 Hours, 58 Minutes