Exterior, First Equestrian Antlertican Research Station
0745 hrs

Rainbow Dash squinted, blinking her left eye a few times in an attempt to focus. Not a half of a kilometer away, she saw through the magically-enhanced binoculars two shapes, rapidly approaching through the whipping winds and white powder that blew across the frozen plains like dust in a desert. The first shape ran on four legs, low to the ground; the second, sleek yet still somewhat rectangular, fought through the fierce gusts of arctic chill flying roughly five meters off of the ground.

Rainbow Dash fumbled with what she had already deemed as an obtuse communications device, finally managing to locate the decidedly obvious bright red button.

“Uh, Twilight? Is this thing on?”

“I read you loud and clear, Dash. Over,” a voice replied.

“It looks like there’s some sort of flying cart chasing some sort of animal. Or something like that.”

“Wait, what? Where?”

“‘Bout a half kilometer out.”

“Hm...it might be some of the local Elk population out on a hunt...can you see which way they’re heading, Rainbow?”

“Uh, yeah. About that...they’re heading straight for us.”

“...what?!”

“Mm-hmm,” Dash assented casually, “that’s what it looks like, anyway. Say, Twilight...who’d be crazy enough to fly in weather like this, huh? I may be the fastest flier in Equestria, but I’m not that stupid.”

“That’s...well, that more or less proves my point, Dash.”

“Huh?”

“The way I figure it, since they’re so close to the Station, there’s a high probability that they’re the ones who’ve been trying to reach us over the short wave. We’re going to try hailing them again.”

“Huh? What for?”

“Just keep an eye on them and let me know if anything happens, ok?”

“Uh, right. Got it.”

Twilight, having been studying a map and consulting a Gryphonian language reference book while using the Walkie to talk to Dash, gently released the small device from her magic, setting it down on a nearby counter.

“Ok, Wind Speaker, I’m going to try them.”

“She’s all yours, Director,” the pegasus replied, already relinquishing the rolling chair that sat in front of the short-wave. Twilight nodded, shutting the book and turning. She trotted over to the console, a pressed, determined expression beset upon her face. She put on the headset, adjusted the microphone, and flipped a switch.

“Hallo? Er det deg? Over,” Twilight said. There was nothing but the dull hiss of background static for a moment. Then:

“Hallo? Hallo?! Har du kopi? Over!”

“Ja, kopierer vi. Trenger du hjelp?” Twilight replied.

“Nei, du er de som trenger hjelp! Det vi jakter er ikke en hund!” The voice replied hurriedly, genuine panic evident in its tone.

“Jeg beklager? Hva?” Twilight replied, unsure of what had just been said.

“Uh, Twilight? You guys are probably wanna see this for yourselves,” Dash said over the Walkie. Twilight, not turning her gaze from the console, levitated the device over to her and pushed the transmit button with her magic.

“See what, Dash? What’s going on out there?”

“Uh, well...there’s a dog, and there are two griffons in a cart chasing it. One of them has a bow. I think they’re trying to kill it or something.”

“...what?!”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m seeing through the goggle-thingies here. What should we do, Twilight?”

“Well, I’m not entirely sure why these griffons would have any reason to harm an innocent, likely domesticated animal-”

“DO WHAT?!” a normally meek voice shrieked. Fluttershy stood, livid, in the doorway which led out into the hall. Taking to the air, eyes enlivened, she zoomed over to the console, snatching the Walkie away from Twilight’s magical grip. “Rainbow Dash! They. Are. DOING. WHAT?!”

“F-Fluttershy? Is that you? Heh...guess it is...heh...well, you see, uh...yeah.” Dash admitted with a sigh, realizing that there was no way to sugar-coat what she had already seen. “Yeah, they’re trying to kill it.”

“Oh, I don’t THINK SO!” the Walkie shouted at Dash, actually making the cyan pegasus jump a little as the little box sparked with electricity. Moments later, Rainbow Dash spied a blur of yellow out of her peripheral vision. Fluttershy, already dressed in thick layers of warm fabric, was furiously marching out into the cold, apparently alone.

“Fluttershy! Wait!” Dash called, knowing well that the yellow pegasus couldn’t hear her through wood and glass. Dash threw on her thick, form-fitting jacket, adding to the ensemble a pair of brown aviator’s goggles she had recently picked up at an Elken trading post. She threw open the door that opened into the walkway which led from the watch tower to the station proper. Ignoring the biting winds that whipped through her mane, she took to the air, flying as quickly as possible toward her friend.

Meanwhile, Twilight and the others were busy dressing themselves to brave the increasingly bitter outdoors.

Pinkie Pie, dressing in a bright wool sweater, looked worried. “Guys? Have any of you ever seen Fluttershy so upset? I mean, yeah, there was that one time at the Grand Galloping Gala where she kinda went coo-coo for a little bit over the animals, but did you see the look on her face? Huh?”

“I’m with Pinkie on this one,” Applejack agreed. “That mare’s mighty angry, Twilight.”

“Well, then,” Twilight replied through clenched teeth as she levitated a wool cap onto her head, “we should probably hurry on out there before Fluttershy accidentally ruins diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Gryphonia, hm?”
“I couldn’t have said it better myself,” a deep voice agreed. Arcane Fire, already adorned in thick protective layers of clothing, shifted his weight on his hind legs, looking vaguely disinterested yet oddly concerned at the same time. “Director, I recommend that we get moving as quickly as possible.”

“Agreed. Girls? Are we ready?” Twilight asked. Applejack and Pinkie Pie nodded.

“Hey,” Pinkie asked, “where’s Rarity, anyway?”

“Ah think she said somethin’ ‘bout sleeping in this mornin’, now that you mention it. ‘Beauty Sleep’, I reckon she calls it.”

“Well, there’s no time to go and wake her. Let’s get moving.”

The group, minus Wind Speaker (whom Twilight had insisted remain on the console), moved quickly and silently through the hallway. Twilight approached a console on the right side of a large metal doorway that was split evenly down the middle. She entered a few letters and numbers onto the keyboard, and the console beeped. The door sprang into motion, the sounds of gears whirring and mechanisms unlocking greeting the group as the twin doors began to separate. Instantly, the ponies were greeted by the icy hoof-shake of the Antlertican Autumn. They hesitantly pressed onward, a few grimaces adorning a face or two here and there. Just ahead, the vaguely rectangular shape of the flying cart could be seen, making a rapid descent toward the frozen plain.

Twilight gasped. “At that rate of speed, they’re going to...come on, everypony! We need to hurry!” With that, the purple unicorn mare took off into a full gallop, narrowing her eyes and trying to block out the biting sting of cold wind against her face. Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Arcane Fire followed suit, the former lunging into a speedy series of hops.

“Does she always do that?” Arcane Fire asked. Applejack merely nodded her head.

“She does that sometimes, yeah.”

Up ahead, Fluttershy had already nearly reached the sprinting husky.