Leaf Stream watched, psyching up herself to be ready for anything, no matter how harsh, nefarious, or complicated their foe was. Solid Charge tilted the small mirror he held, carefully inspecting as much of the room as he could from his place at the side of the threshold. Carefully, but not slowly. They couldn’t afford to waste too much time, and they could waste even less time for that later on. If they ever managed to reach that part alive.

The first time they opened the door, Solid Charge stood in front of it. He died, then and there. They didn’t intend to repeat the painful experience, so this time they stood to the sides. Solid Charge to the right with Cradle Song behind him, Leaf Stream to the left with Broken Gust behind her.

Leaf Stream briefly gave her attention to Cradle Song. The bearded, red maned thestral had always been the single one of the bunch who said his thoughts out loud. If Leaf Stream wanted to know how Broken Gust—now tight-lipped and focused to the point of excess—truly was and not the facade she was giving out, it was him she would have to watch.

… When the heck did she turn into a bleeding heart councilor? What was she even going to say to these ponies? “Hey, at least we got her corpse back before it got all crispy fried”? She was seriously going to say something like that, she was certain, and then…

She counted her limbs. Shoot, she was going to end up gimped, wasn’t she?

“Clear,” Solid Charge whispered. He quickly stepped in and Leaf Stream followed right on his tail.

A solid club bounced off her head and onto Solid Charge’s thick skull, leaving them dazed, hurt, confused, and with one more egg-sized mark of shame.

Raegdan’s foot made contact—the hard kind—with her side, throwing her off to the wall, and his palm landed on Solid Charge’s face with a meaty thwack. The two thestrals tried to back off before getting a piece of the “dumb awards” he was freely giving away, but they were not as fast as they needed to be in the tight confines.

All four of them died.

“You morons!” Raegdan shouted. If he wasn’t wearing his helmet Leaf Stream was certain he’d be pulling his hair. “I was standing right by the wall and you... Are you blind? Get back in position, and this time actually sweep the whole room with the mirror. And don’t rely on what you saw on it when you’re in. Keep looking. Your heads can turn in case you didn’t know. Move it!”

Solid Charge crossed the threshold as fast as he could, moving and covering the right side as he did so, while Leaf Stream did the same with the left. Cradle Song and Broken Gust flowed through the open middle, ready to launch at any threat that appeared from any of the adjoining rooms.

Leaf Stream’s head swiveled and her eyes kept scanning the room repeatedly. There was nothing. The room was clear.

“Look at us go!” Leaf Stream said, smirking proudly. “We made it through the door. Ok grandpa, which way do we go n—”

Something wooden and increasingly familiar landed on her head. The others were greeted by Mr. Eggplanter as well.

Dead again. In theory. She doubted really dead ponies nurtured such headaches.

“You- You damned morons!” Raegdan roared in sheer disbelief and having appeared behind them somehow. She didn’t know how he did that, but at this point all she could think of was that he needed to learn some more insults. The only reason she didn’t give him any pointers was that he would be launching them right back at her.

“How?” Cradle Song asked, cradling his abused head.

“You didn’t check behind the door! A fucking eight year old would have checked behind the door first. Get back in position. We don’t stop until you get it right or you die for real. Get the fuck up!”

“Room’s clear,” Solid Charge reported with a hint of hope.

Leaf Stream moved into the room, into her position, and instead of checking behind the door she decided to return the favor in case he was hiding back there again. She kicked it so it slammed with force on the wall behind it.

He wasn’t there. Pity.

She didn’t mind. They were finally getting the hang of it. They would find out where he squirreled away, and this time they would be the one to pound his head—

Why was a chair flying for her face?

Leaf Stream dug herself out of the pile she had formed along with the others, kicking Broken Gust off her, and making it to the top, where the familiar stick greeted her head. She was really starting to hate that stick. When it was all over she was going to rest in front of a roaring fire fueled entirely by that stick and her unending hatred.

Solid Charge was getting up and spotted the dreaded stick coming for him. “OK, OK, we lo—”

The dead walked and moved back into position. Apparently standing still and all clamped together for too long is a big no-no. So is announcing your position by banging on doors.

Solid Charge weaved his way through the room and took position near the door frame, close enough to strike at anypony trying to pass through, but back enough to be able to dodge any blind strikes.

Cradle Song took position behind a couch that allowed him a good angle into the next room at Solid Charge’s blind spot. He nodded at the minotaur who quickly used his mirror to make sure the room was clear.

Solid Charge pulled back, and signalled at them. One hostile, his movements said. North east corner.

Raegdan had put them through enough on how to move. Now it was time to see how they would be able to take him down. Leaf Stream had an internal conflict; was it right to aim a kick for his baby maker after making a point of apologizing for the last time?

Her hoof passing over the hilly surface of her skull said yes. It was right. So right. If she could grab that stick she was going golfing.

“What’s the plan?” Leaf Stream whispered.

“I’ll go first. You follow behind me and—”

“No, scratch that,” Leaf Stream cut him off quickly. “He’ll just get you first.” She took command, apparently, without even realizing it. “You two, go in first. Don’t engage, just make him pay attention to you, you are faster than he is. Then we all close in together.”

The execution had been wonderful. Cradle Song and Broken Gust flew in at speed, dividing after going through the entrance, flying as high to the ceiling as they could. Solid Charge and Leaf Stream followed behind after allowing them two seconds to distract Raegdan’s attention and keep their entry safe.

Raegdan wouldn’t have stood a chance. Four against one, ready to surround him, and him armed with nothing but that despicable stick? It would have been over in seconds.

Would have. Another lesson learnt. They needed to have tactics planned beforehoof and be able to command each other into them in a second rather than discuss them right before a fight, wasting time and making that plan null and void. What did he call it? Shifting parameters?

He was a shifty bastard alright. He moved right against the wall again, ending right behind them when they rushed through.

Leaf Stream really, really, really hated that stick.

Raegdan stood over them as they laid on one of the couches, all of them holding packs of ice to their heads. He looked at the clock on the wall before turning back to them.

“Not bad this time, considering we’ve only been at it for a few hours.”

Cradle Song and Broken Gust broke into a weak smile and high hoofed each other. Solid Charge just nodded tiredly, while Leaf Stream attempted to fashion a pillow into a helmet using some string and her shattered dignity. She was damned sure they weren’t done yet.

“Of course, we will have to talk tactics at one point, covering every possible situation we can think of, how to meld what you can all do, stuff like that,” Raegdan said, sounding overwhelmed. “But for now, this will do. You will have one final go with just me, and then I have to do the same with the others while you rest. We might have some time today to have both teams work together later.”

“There are only three of us in the other team,” Solid Charge reminded him.

“Rainbow Dash volunteered to join in for this to round you up.”

“Well, of course she did,” Leaf Stream grumbled. “I bet she won’t be getting to know your eggbeater as well as we did.”

“At least it will be easier to get you if there are twice as many of us,” Cradle Song said, sounding relieved.

The bastard was smirking behind his helmet, Leaf Stream could actually smell the smugness wafting off him. “Oh, it won’t be just me then. You have to learn how to deal with more than one person against you. The girls will be joining in against you, except Rainbow of course.”

Cradle Song, dumb bitch that he was in Leaf Stream’s opinion, still struggled to see the light at the end of the tunnel. “Ah. Ok, eight against seven then, and we’ve had practice while they’re just civilians. Might not be that bad.”

“Eight against eight. Luna will be joining in too,” Raegdan said. Leaf Stream smiled vindictively as Drum Beat mentally waved goodbye to the light that just went poof.

“Oh stars. We’re screwed,” Broken Gust said, deflating.

“Are we doing that last exercise now?” Solid Charge asked, tired. “I’d like to get some rest before we’re slaughtered. I haven’t slept at all.”

“I wish Night Lilly was here,” Broken Gust whispered, looking sideways. “She’d be good at this.”

Raegdan has been heading for the windows. He paused for an instant when he heard her. He started closing off the curtains. “You’ll have to pick up the slack then, make up the difference. Crack a head or two for her,” he said, his voice kinder than usual. “Alright, we will be doing something a little different this time.”

“What’s. That.” Leaf Stream growled, knowing deep into her core that she was about to utterly hate what was coming next.

“Same idea basically,” Raegdan said, his hand reaching for a lamp. He switched it off. “Only we will be doing it in the dark this time.”

“Why don’t you just kill us already?” Leaf Stream screamed in the darkness.

Leaf Stream dragged herself towards a couch. The fluffy, soft pillows were singing a melody to her, and the ice packs on the table were a promise of serenity. Her strength waned, and she fell flat on her belly, unable to overcome her trauma.

“Drop the theatrics and come sit,” Eventide chastised her, holding an ice pack over her eye, product of another lesson learnt. Don’t flail blindly in the dark. Leaf Stream, instead of hitting her coveted target, she got Eventide right in the eye. She still hadn’t told her that it was her hoofprint she was sporting on her head, and as long as it was up to her she never would.

“Shut you, old hag up. I trying am,” Leaf Stream spoke through her gritted teeth.

“What?”

“She wants to pretend she’s concussed so we'll feel sorry for her,” Solid Charge said, lying back with his arm over his eyes in complete exhaustion. His cheeks were puffy. Raegdan, being on a similar enough level with the minotaur, had enjoyed slapping him when he got the chance.

“Pretend?” Leaf Stream was outraged. Her anger gave her new strength, enough to make it to the couch, sinking deep into the cushions. “Touch my head,” she ordered Eventide. “Touch it!”

She hissed as Eventide’s hoof ran roughly over her tormented scalp. “Wow. He really laid it on you.”

“I think he was on to me,” Leaf Stream mumbled.

“We all were onto you,” Solid Charge said, waving his other arm. “Staring like that towards your target tends to give you away. It was like you had other things in your mind.”

Leaf Stream blushed before becoming horrified. “Oh Celestia, now I’m going to have nightmares. Thanks, grandpa.”

“You’re welcome.”

Eventide removed her ice pack for a second, flashing them all with her impressive shiner, before putting it back with a wet, crunchy sound, hissing in a mix of pain and relief. “Speaking of nightmares and dreams,” Eventide said, suspiciously casual, “isn’t that how Princess Luna is going to find somepony for us to go after?”

Solid Charge shrugged as well as he could, laid on his back as he was. “From what I understand, all she needs is a point to start. From a buyer, to a dealer, to a provider, to the manufacturer, all the way to the top. Princess Luna is certain she’ll have results by tomorrow.”

“Useful skill to have,” Eventide noted.

“Makes you wonder how she hasn’t found the ponies trying to kill her yet,” Leaf Stream added sourly.

“It might not work that well if you know she can do that or you’re ready for her,” Solid Charge defended her. “There might be spells. Who knows.”

“Strange thing, dreams. Very strange indeed,” Eventide said as she laid on her side. “Silverwing had dreams too.”

“Your leader, right?” Leaf Stream asked to make sure. “What, prophetic kind of dreams? Did he have visions or was he munching on something?”

“No. He simply… had dreams a little before we found the Leviathan.”

“What kind of dreams?” Solid Charge asked immediately, peeking under his arm.

“Go south east. There’s something there. Search to the south east,” Eventide said in a monotone. “If it wasn’t for that, we would never have spotted it. We don’t usually go that far.”

“What an amazing coincidence,” Leaf Stream said through her teeth.

“I wondered if that had been a message from Princess Luna, but… she couldn’t have known it was there. I’m overthinking it,” Eventide said. Leaf Stream exchanged a quick glance with Solid Charge.

“I’m definitely certain she didn’t know it was a Leviathan there,” Leaf Stream assured her.

What an amazing coincidence, Leaf Stream repeated in her thoughts. They need ponies, and suddenly here come the Thestrals asking for help with something extremely dangerous. Something the princess couldn’t have known about unless she had a way of finding out if that something had popped in from another world. Now, who could have told her about that, only able to give her a generic direction and with no idea of what it could be, except that there was a good chance it was pretty dangerous?

Three tries, the first two don’t count.

“It ended well at least, that’s all we need to know,” Solid Charge said, looking at Leaf Stream reproachfully. Leaf Stream got the message and shut her muzzle. She changed the subject instead.

“How are your guys doing?”

Eventide took off the ice pack, and gazed up at the ceiling. The lines on her face became deeper, and her age, with all her experiences, was written all over her. “Better. As long as they keep busy at least, and they want to do as well as they can to honor their friend.” She turned her head sideways and threw the ice pack on the table, her serpentine pupils focusing at nothing. “I had to watch over her a few times when she was a filly.”

“I’m… sorry about that,” Leaf Stream said, regretfully.

“It’s alright. It happens. Not the first pony I know that died young.”

There was a sound they had all learned to recognize. A set of hoofsteps, making their way to them. It was strange how he sounded so obvious, yet when they were in the dark they couldn’t hear him moving at all unless they were completely silent. A show, Leaf Stream thought. Make everypony think he’s loud, so when he needs to…

Raegdan stepped in and headed for an empty chair. He let himself fall in it, looking tired as well.

“Everyone okay?” he asked after a while.

“We’re fine,” Solid Charge answered, ignoring Leaf Stream’s pointing at her own head. “Have we done well enough?”

Raegdan was silent for a few seconds. “Good enough for a day. You keep forgetting yourselves, you take your next breath for granted. You keep putting your guard down. We will fix that.”

“Yeah, can’t wait,” Leaf Stream said.

“Go and wake the others. I think they fell asleep,” Raegdan ordered.

“... What for?”

“We’re doing one more round. Or two.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me! Seriously? We’re exhausted,” Leaf Stream complained loudly.

“Tough break. You won’t be well rested or at full health every time. Almost never actually.”

“That’s torture!”

‘Welcome to training,” Raegdan laughed. “Eventide is doing fine despite being beat up and she’s not complaining, is she? Just wait until you see what I have planned for you in Everfree.”

“Oh gods, we’re really going to be trained in there,” Solid Charge breathed out with dread.

Leaf Stream bowed her head, presenting Raegdan with a nice mountain view. “You know what? Go ahead. Seriously. Give me a good hit and just finish me off now. Beats a slow death anytime.”

Crack!

Son of a… He really hit her!