The gray coated cellist stood on the balcony overlooking the party. She sipped her wine and watched the ponies mingle below. How they could dance to that ridiculous “music” was beyond her, not that what they called dancing made any more sense either. She recalled the days when parties at the castle were for waltzes and chamber music. The most exciting thing to happen might be a sudden tango. Now it was all racket and noise. And she wouldn't have it any other way, because that was what made Vinyl Scratch happy. The DJ looked up from her turntables and shot her that infectious grin of hers. She rolled her eyes, her usual response to the unicorn's antics.

“Excuse me, Lady Octavia?” Came a voice at her side.

She turned and saw Twilight Sparkle standing there with an eager look and a ledger in tow.

“Oh, Twilight. Quite the lovely soiree isn't it?” She asked.

“Yes, quite.” She began, and then Octavia knew she was winding up for a pitch. “I was wondering if I could borrow a moment of your time...”

General Whiteflame? Oh I could go on and on about that minotaur! So lionhearted and gallant. The Chess Pieces came in all sorts, as you well know. Most of them are scoundrels and rogues to be certain. But there are a few who are different. Some who are dedicated and noble, like the General. I remember the night that I first met him... How could I forget?

That was the night that I was almost raped.

Shocking, I know. But those were dark days, you must remember. So very dark indeed. It began like a typical day in the ruby mines. We were awakened by the clattering of spears on cell bars. One of my cellmates, Rhubarb, grumbled as he usually did at the diamond dog's wake up call. Talon, the other, was already awake, staring at me. I should have known that something was wrong.

The griffon had been acting more and more erratic as the week had gone on. He kept giving me these strange looks, his gaze lingering just long enough to be uncomfortable. Then he began pacing at night. He started mumbling to himself. Our cell was littered with feathers from his endless neurotic preening. I tried to ignore him as best I could. I had my own problems to deal with, not the least of which was making it through the day.

Working in the mine was hard enough as it was, and now I'd began feeling ill. It started with a cough and then proceeded to fever. I didn't know then how dangerous my situation was, until... until Lily told me what I had.

Octavia paused with her eyes closed, hoof on her chest and a pained expression on her face.

“Are you alright?” Twilight asked, “You don't have to go on if you don't want to.”

The cellist shook her head and continued.

I was a water carrier. It was my job to make sure that the diggers didn't collapse. That was easier said than done, considering how hard we Reds were driven. Somehow, I managed to get through my shift and back to my cell. All I wanted to do was lay down and sleep. I woke up when I heard Talon talking to himself. He was pacing back and forth in the corner, tearing at his feathers.

He kept saying something about food but I couldn't quite make out what it was. I tried to ignore him and went back to sleep. The next time I woke up, Rhubarb was grabbing me. His throat had been torn out, eyes full of terror. What followed was the most horrifying thing I have ever witnessed. Talon ripped him apart and started... eating him. To this day I still can't look at a griffon without recalling the sounds that he made.

The whole time I was cowering in fear. I had no idea what to do. I thought if I screamed he would kill me too. I looked up when the noises stopped, and that was when I became really afraid. Talon was just staring at me with those beady eyes of his. His head tilted sharply from side to side the way that real birds do. He started pacing back and forth, never looking away. His ragged wings fluffed out, and I knew what was about to happen. Then he lunged at me.

I kicked and struggled as he grasped at my body, trying to get me into... position...

A shudder went down the cellist's spine.

I screamed and screamed, despite the burning in my lungs. It was the only thing that saved me. The next thing I knew there were diamond dogs all over the place. The griffon fought like some kind of demon. They had to hit him with the knockout gas before he finally went down. They dragged him away someplace else, and I hoped it was someplace especially nasty.

I was surprised to find that I'd been rescued by the warren's beta, Silverfang. He rarely came down to the ruby mine, and only with plenty of his own dogs in tow. There was some sort of tension between his dogs and Boxer's that I didn't much understand. He was saying something and kept looking in my direction as the argument grew more heated.

But Silverfang was the beta, and that meant he came out on top.

“Come out of there.” He commanded.

I was more than willing to leave the gruesome mess that had once been Rhubarb behind. We walked for a long time, and I realized that we were headed upwards. I wasn't sure what was happening. As we entered the cells of the sapphire mine, I caught more than one look of surprise at the sight of my red cloak. We turned a corner down a long corridor of cells. As we neared the end I heard what sounded like... well...

Octavia blushed and scratched her cheek.

Heavy kissing... and then I heard an angry shout.

“What the hell is this all about?”

I looked up and saw the biggest minotaur I had ever seen in my life. Silverfang told him that I was his new cellmate. He looked so huge and strong! I was terrified. Understand that I had just been traumatized by an attempt on my virtue, and from what I had heard as we approached... well, my imagination went a little bit crazy.

The diamond dogs had to prod me with spears before I would go into that cell. When I went in, I curled up in a little ball of panic in the corner. A salmon colored mare started shushing me, saying that everything was alright.

The dogs and the minotaur talked. I didn't hear what was said, only that he was very upset. When the dogs left, the bovine approached us. I cringed at the thought of being in a cell with another male. Then he put his hand on my shoulder, oh so softly. I still remember the words that he used.

“My name is Fudge, and I will never ever hurt you...”

He seemed so surprised to find out it was me. “A fan,” he said. Hah! How could I have known that my so called “fan” was an alien from another dimension? Many Worlds. It's still hard to believe, even after all of the craziness that we've seen...

He had given her the head start that she needed. Even as she fled she could hear the brawl taking place. This wasn't the plan they had discussed! He hadn't said anything about fighting diamond dogs! He was supposed to act as surprised at her sudden egress from the mine cart as they were, so that they wouldn't associate her escaping with him. Few were the creatures that could catch an Earth Pony at full sprint, but she had never been much of an athlete and her illness made it hard to run. Now, rather than immediately setting off after her they had to deal with him first.

He had, and without even thinking twice, willingly taken their wrath upon himself so that she could get away. Tears streamed down her cheeks as the wind bit at her eyes. She was a stranger, he didn't owe her anything. The risk of helping her escape alone was above and beyond what she expected of anyone.

So then, why? Why had he done it? What kind of a minotaur was he anyway?

He had been so furious when she described Talon's actions to him. He shook with rage, and only with Lily's gentle caresses did he begin to finally calm down. He cared more about the ordeals of others than he did his own. The only conclusion Octavia could reach... was that he was some kind of saint. If she ever made it back to Equestria, she was going to tell Vinyl all about him.

Vinyl Scratch! The mental image of her friend spurred her onward. She ran into a forest, weaving her way between the trees as fast as her legs could carry her. The cellist knew that she had to find water. One because she needed it to survive, and two because the dogs would track her down unless they lost her scent somehow.

Stopping to catch her breath, she succumbed to a terrible coughing fit. When she was done, she saw that there was blood in the phlegm she'd hacked up. Not good. Not good at all. Placing a hoof against her forehead, she felt herself burning up with fever. All she could do was keep going. If she stopped, they would find her for certain.

Eventually, she began to hallucinate. She thought she heard her mother's voice calling to her. In her delirious state she paid no heed to the fact that the mare had been in the grave for nearly a decade now. Every now and then she thought she saw her standing between the trees, motioning for her to follow. Trailing after the phantom, her ears picked up a rumbling, rushing sound. She stepped out into a clearing and saw a fast moving river that flowed through the forest. It was exactly what she needed.

Now if she could just make it to the other side, the diamond dogs would lose her scent and she could follow the river back to civilization. Octavia recoiled when her hoof hit the water. It was absolutely freezing.

“Well, what's the worst that could happen?” She said to herself. “You've already got pneumonia.”

As she began fording the stream, she was distracted by thoughts of going home. She slipped and lost her balance. Immediately the current began to sweep her downstream. Panicked, she desperately tried to keep her head above water. By the time she managed to reach the bank, the mare was thoroughly exhausted. Dragging herself to shore, she rested against an old fallen tree, panting for breath. Unable to take even a single step further, all she wanted to do was go to sleep.

An utterly miserable Octavia crawled into the hollow log and curled into a ball. She was so cold. So cold and so very, very tired. The trip downstream had sapped all of her strength. She was just going to lie here and rest a while. Just a little while. As her eyes began to close, she thought she could hear the faraway sound of hoofbeats. Like a thousand thousand ponies all running together as one. She wanted to join them. She didn't want to be alone anymore...

The young goddess looked at the log and shook her head. It was a pathetic sight, although it wasn't the most pathetic way she'd seen a pony go out lately. And they all had to go sooner or later. As she approached a flash of light lit up the area. When her vision returned, standing between her and the log was a woman in a white robe. An ethereal glow radiated from the opening of her hood, concealing her features.

“Nice entrance. Very classic.” Macaria said, arms crossed.

The figure slowly pulled down her hood, the glow dying away. She shook her head from side to side, freeing her long hair from the confines of her robe. The young goddess was shocked when she realized who it was.

“..Elly? ELEOS!” She shouted.

The woman opened her eyes and stared at her. They were distant, starry eyes. The eyes of an elder goddess who had gazed long into eternity. Not all deities had The Sight, and those that did were sometimes affected very strongly by what they saw. Slowly her eyes focused, blinking several times.

“Yes, that was what they called me, once. Why I haven't gone by that name in... little Macaria! You're all grown up!”

The young goddess' normally dour expression was replaced with a grin. Eleos came forward and wrapped her in an embrace.

“Oh how I remember the days when Sephie and I used to chase you all 'round Olympus and back to Hades' doorstep.”

“What are you doing here Elly?” She asked.

Her radiant smile faded, a frown slowly forming.

“We're the same you know? Our work never ends.”

“Oh, speaking of which, this will only take a second...”

As Macaria tried to step past her Eleos' arm shot out, blocking her way.

“No.”

“But, it's her time...” She said, confused.

“I said, no Macaria. You can't take her. ”

She pursed her lips and put her hands on her hips. 'No' was not a word she was used to hearing.

“Whats this all about? Ponies die all the time. They've been dropping like flies lately.”

Eleos turned her gaze towards the north, wringing her hands. They were shaking.

“Someone very... somebody made a great sacrifice so that this mare could make it back home. I intend to see it so.”

Macaria's eyes widened.

“Don't tell me that you've.. You've got a Favorite! You never play Favorites!”

“There's a first time for everything Carrie.”

Her eyes grew dark. No one had called her that since she was little. It only served to remind her of the fact that Elly had left. Just vanished. When she'd asked her mother about it, Persephone had been vague and cryptic. Just another reason they didn't get along.

“It's still her time. Like you said, I've got a job to do.”

She tried once more to move forward. Eleos erupted in a ball of whiteness, knocking her backwards and incinerating all of the grass around herself in a twenty foot diameter, her true form so bright that it was painful to look at. She couldn't even make out the details. Had it been a mortal looking upon her, his eyes would surely have been burnt out of his skull.

“I WILL NOT ALLOW HIM TO SUFFER IN VAIN!” Her voice boomed, causing Macaria to cover her ears.

It was too much. She had to shield her eyes, unable to stand against the light of the elder goddess in her full glory. What's more, the memories she had of Eleos were that of a cheerful babysitter. Somebody who laughed and played games with her and never even scolded her for misbehaving. Unlike mother, she had always explained in her gentle, caring way why what she had done was wrong. She hadn't even thought the woman capable of raising her voice. This... this was so radically different from the kind and loving soul she had once known. It was terrifying, even for someone who considered herself tough as nails.

“E..Elly..” She started, struggling to her feet.

The light faded away and she stood there looking just as she had before, wide eyed with her hands over her mouth. She wore a shocked and regretful expression.

“I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I don't know what came over me, I just..”

“Is he that important to you?” Macaria asked incredulously, before she could stammer out further apology.

Eleos looked up at the sky, a distant twinkling in her eyes.

“...He's going to build it.” She said. “He's going to build it with his own two hands.”

“It?”

“Though they may not know it,” Eleos began. “They're searching for a place, these mortals. A place where they can live their lives in peaceful days, with no violence or stealing. A sacred land, where they can truly live together in Harmony. A place which they call...”

“Paradise.” Macaria finished. “But Shangri-la is a nowhere-land, and Equestria was as close a place to it as any. You really think he can build it? Is that what you saw?”

“What I saw? ...Even if the future isn't set in stone, I'll put my faith in that man. Because I've seen something of me inside of him. But before he can build anything, he's got such a terrible price to pay. It's going to cost him a piece of himself. A precious piece that can never be recovered. And... that's why this matters so much to me.”

Macaria shook her head from side to side. Was this what having a Favorite was like? She knew that goddesses sometimes got a little bit crazy when it came to their pet mortals, but this was something else entirely.

“You win.” She said with a smirk. “I just can't deny that kind of devotion. I guess Tavi gets to live another day. Well, I always did like that mare.”

Eleos breathed a sigh of relief and began walking towards the log where the cellist lay.

“Elly... why did you leave?”

The goddess stopped in her tracks and slowly fanned her fingers out over her belly. Then, with a sad and wistful smile she glanced back at the setting sun.

“...One day Carrie, maybe one day I'll tell you.”

She placed her hand on Octavia's brow, and with a gust of wind they were gone.

Author's Notes:

BLARGHARGHBL!!!!!