A bright light pierces the darkness. I blink; It’s... oh. It’s coming from a crack between the curtains.

Groaning, I look to a clock beside the bed. It's not even seven yet.

There's movement under the sheets as Beakbreaker shifts. I look down to find her pressed up against me, her legs wrapped around my frame. She's still deep in sleep, lulled by the warmth of the blankets and the residual heat from the crystals within my body.

Hmmm... It’d be a nice Hearths Warming treat for Beakbreaker to wake up and find a tray on the bed, one overflowing with her favorite breakfast treats.

It isn't easy to release my hold on Beakbreaker and slip from the bed without waking her, but I've had plenty of practice over the years. I go slowly, using my magic to pull the blankets around her. It would spoil the fun if she were to wake and find me–

Ow!

I barely manage to hold back a yelp as I grab my forehead. But as quickly as it comes, the headache vanishes.

What in heaven’s name... I check my hoof; no sign of blood. Rubbing my forehead reveals no bumps, bruises, or signs of disease or injury. It's not even painful to touch my horn.

Beakbreaker groans as she turns over, her legs searching for the warm body that was there a few moments ago.

I'd better get moving if I want to be back with breakfast before she wakes up. As for the headaches... Well, no more magic today. I’ll have to call my doctor to schedule an appointment to have this investigated.

The last of the pain fades as I sneak downstairs and out the doors. The lights in the hallway are dimmed as I make my way towards the kitchens.

A pony in a nice business suit walks into the next intersection, only to pause at spotting me.

“Good morning,” I say as I hurry along.

I don’t run into anyone else as I reach the kitchens, where chefs are already hard at work cooking and prepping for the day. I place an order for Beakbreaker’s favorites (toast with jam, sweet potatoes, plenty of eggs, muffins, and hot sauce), making sure to request extra-sized portions so we can share. She’ll probably chuckle and joke about how her metabolism isn’t the same as when she was younger, but what’s a holiday without a little overeating?

With breakfast ordered, I have some time to kill before it’s ready, and head to the ballroom. The cavernous room is draped with tinsel and garland, all glowing with lights. The tree’s lights reflect off shiny ribbons tied around the hundreds of small boxes at its base, ready for the young and the young at heart to open them up. That probably won’t be for another hour or two; only one other pony is here besides myself, standing before the windows as he sips hot chocolate from a mug.

“Silverspeak,” Coin Counter says as I walk over. “You’re up early.”

“The sun decided I wasn’t going to sleep in. ”

Taking another sip from his mug, Coin Counter looks out to the clear, cloudless sky beyond the windows. “Maybe it wanted you to enjoy such a beautiful the morning.”

Below us, Equestria’s blanketed by a light morning fog that’s already retreating, the sun’s morning rays kissing the farms and plains. Far in the distance is a tiny mountain peak that’s slowly growing bigger.

“Canterlot,” Coin Counter says.

A smile crosses my lips. “You think–”

“That Celestia’s already there? Probably. I imagine Her Highness prefers to arrive early wherever she’s going.” He chuckles. “And no, I don't think Gusty's up to flying you there this early.”

The thought had crossed my mind, but I’ve already waited a lifetime to see the Princess; a few more hours isn’t going to hurt. Besides, I still need to enjoy breakfast with Beakbreaker.

The doors open. I glance back. If that’s a waiter or a chef bringing me my order, I’ll be... oh. It’s just that pony I met in the hall, the one in the business suit. He probably came in to see the decorations.

The doors open again. Several other ponies march inside, each muscular and wearing the business suits a bodyguard would wear.

The first pony straightens his tie. “Mr. Silverspeak, I presume?” His tone is pleasant, and his body relaxed, but his smile… it’s the smile of a bully, knowing he has a gang to back him up if his prey fights back.

Tensing up, I meet his gaze. “Who wants to know?”

“Just an admirer of yours.”

The pony reaches into his pocket. Something clicks.

“My employer would like to meet you, Mr. Silverspeak.”

“Who is he?”

“Someone important.”

Click.

I hear Coin Counter shifting behind me, no doubt sensing that something’s wrong. “If you want to arrange a meeting, you’ll have to do so through my office in Canterlot,” I say. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, my associate and I are needed elsewhere.” I gesture for Coin Counter to follow me. If these ponies have ill intent, they’re less likely to act if there’s another pony around, especially someone who has a panic button with him at all times.

“My employer would like to see you today, Mr. Silverspeak,” the pony says. “To be specific, right now.”

He reaches back into his pocket.

Click.

“I’m on vacation,” I say firmly as I start towards the exit. “I’ll be happy to talk after it’s over.”

The other ponies bunch together, blocking my path.

“You’re going to meet my employer, Mr. Silverspeak, whether you want to or not.”

"What is thi-"

“You have a lovely wife, Mr. Silverspeak. It’d be a mighty big shame if something were to happen to her.”

A chill rushes through me, followed by anger. I almost heed it's call to grab this pony and snap his neck, but I managed to hold myself back... Barely.

Reaching once again into his pocket, the business pony pulls out a small remote. “This tells my friends that I’m talking to you," he says. "If I don’t send them a signal every fifteen seconds... Well, your poor wife would have a most unfortunate accident”

Click.

“Would be a mighty big shame to have some broken glass accidentally fall into those pretty little eyes of hers, don’t you think?”

His hoof hovers over the button.

“Now, you going to come along quietly?”

For a moment it’s like I’m a foal again, standing before Mangus once more, unable to defend myself. I want to lash out with my hooves and smash this pony’s face in, to break that smile like I broke Mangus. But I’m outnumbered, and I can tell he's not bluffing. He's not resorting to boasts or trying to be intimidating; he's just telling the truth, nothing more.

No matter how angry I get, or how much I want this pony dead, I can’t risk hurting Beakbreaker.

Biting my lip, I nod.

The pony’s smile grows bigger. “Smart choice.”

Click.

“Now, come along like a good little pony. Oh, and you too, Coin Counter. Can’t have you running around now.”

I force myself to slowly walk towards the door, the guards staying close. The business pony trots past me as if he doesn’t have a care in the world.

“If anything happens to my wife,” I growl, “I’ll kill you.”

He smiles. “Open that mouth of yours again and your wife will pay the price.”

Click.

We leave the ballroom and head down the still-empty halls. Soft holiday music plays over the speakers. The bodyguards keep up a quick pace. Coin Counter follows behind me, no doubt wishing Onyx Shield was here to protect him. That, or any members of his security team. He probably felt safe enough on his company’s flagship to walk about without an escort.

“W... where are we going?” Coin Counter asks.

“Never you mind now,” the pony singsongs as if he’s a teacher instructing a foal. “Just stay quiet now, and don’t make a fuss.”

Gulping, Coin Counter adjusts the collar of his robe... Wait. Was that a button I just saw? Before I can get a second look, one of the bodyguards smacks him behind the head, urging him onwards.

Oh please, Celestia, let that have been a panic button.

We reach some stairs and head down, towards the hangers. That’s what their plan must be: these ponies want us to get on a ship and then fly away to some secret location.

The guards pick up speed. We’re probably close to our goal, and they want to get going before anything happens to mess it up.

The suited pony whistles as he waltzes along.

Click.

Okay, Silverspeak, think: What would Celestia do in this situation? She would want to protect innocent lives: in this case, Beakbreaker. The best way to keep her safe is to play along. But these are professionals, not a ragtag group of zealots. They’ve obviously planned this operation, and no doubt have backup plans. That includes knowing that I’ll likely resist once I’m off the ship, which means they’ll probably bring Beakbreaker along to force me to cooperate with whatever plan they have in mind.

Forcing someone to act by threatening their loved ones... it’s an old tactic, but effective. Even the most driven individuals will break at seeing a loved one hurt or tortured.

Click.

I have to get that remote, but how? The bodyguards are on edge, ready to attack at the slightest sign of trouble. My strength could probably take all of them out, but that would take a few seconds, during which the suited pony could flee. Using magic would be effective, but any potent spell would take a few moments to charge and unleash, giving my captors ample time to react. And if I get another headache, I won’t be to cast magic at all.

Blast it all, what do I do?!

We reach an intersection and continue on. Our surroundings have changed from elegant carpet and wood paneling to industrial steel and pain. We must almost be at the hanger. If I’m going to act, I have to do so now.

Click.

I’ll go for the business pony. Tackle him, then use my magic to grab the remote, and use my legs to smash the skulls of anyone piling on top of me. Dangerous, but it’s my only chance.

I get closer to the business pony, but not so close that the bodyguards will suspect anything. They can’t see my internal gears and machinery readying for a leap.

Oh Celestia, please let this work...

One... two...

A bang fills the air. Doors shoot open, and from them leap out several ponies in uniforms, shotguns raised.

“FREEZE!”

Everyone around me does so, caught off guard, trying to figure out what’s going on, and for an instant everything is still.

That instant is all I need.

I leap into the business pony, knocking him to the ground. The bodyguards spin, but the uniformed ponies open fire. Screams and shouts fill the hall as I smash the remote from the pony’s hoof and grab it.

A click. I look up to see the barrel of a gun in my face.

“It’s alright!” Coin Counter rushes forward, pushing the barrel aside. “He’s not with them!”

The uniformed pony immediately stands down, as do the others, still keeping their guns pointed at the bodyguards, who are all moaning and clutching themselves. Yet, there’s no blood soaking into the carpet, or viscera on the walls.

“Beanbags and rubber slugs,” Coin Counter says, seeing my confusion. “Painful, but non-lethal.”

The suited pony tries to get up, hissing from the pain. The fury I’ve repressed yells to be unleashed, and I indulge it, smashing the pony’s face into the wall, wood cracking from the impact. He cries out in pain. Good.

There’s few things I enjoy more than watching bullies get their comeuppance.

I click the remote with my free hoof, pressing the other into the pony’s cheekbone. “Your goons,” I growl, “how many are there?”

The pony screams as his cheekbone cracks.

“How many?!”

“Five!” the pony pleads, his bravado and smugness gone like dew under a torch. “There’s five of them! In the hall outside your penthouse!”

Coin Counter gestures to his guards. Three of them take off.

I slow, but don’t stop, the pressure from my leg. “Do you have any other backup plans in case I escaped?”

“Yes!” the suited pony gasps, trying to hold back tears. “We’d... We’d... We’d kill your wife! We were told to make it slow!”

I want to crush his face in... but that’s not what Celestia would do. Besides, if he’s alive, this pony can talk. If he’s dead, he can’t.

“Who told you?” I demand. “Who?”

Through his panic and the pain, the pony somehow manages to keep his mouth shut.

I press harder. Bone cracks.

The pony screams.

“Who told you to murder my wife?!”

The suited pony finally reaches his breaking point, and he opens his mouth to scream his answer.

A boom comes out, faint, but unmistakable.

Wait... that didn't come from the pony.

The security guards look around, gripping their weapons tightly.

“What was that?” Coin Counter asks.

Another muffled boom.

The floor shakes beneath us. Garland sways from the ceiling.

I turn back to the pony. “What’s going on?”

Another shake.

“I said, what’s–”

A thunderous explosion rockets through the air and I’m thrown into the ceiling, as is everyone else, and we slam back to the floor.

What in tartarus is going–

Something grabs my throat. It’s the suited pony, his eyes wild with pain and hate as he tries to put me in a headlock, yanking out a syringe and plunging it towards my neck.

I throw myself into the closest wall, wood and plaster caving in from impact. My assailant cries out. Grabbing him, I throw the pony down the hall as hard as I can, where he smashes into the railing of a stairwell. A loud clang, and he tumbles from sight.

“Silverspeak!”

Turning, I find Coin Counter rising, badly bruised and banged up, but alive. He’s thrown back down as the hall rocks again, tearing decorations from their mounts. Chunks of wood fall onto the security guards and thugs. Where there wasn’t any blood before, it's now getting soaked into the carpet.

Wait! The remote! Where is it?! I spin, but it’s nowhere to be seen, lost among the rubble. It’s... oh Celestia, it’s been longer than fifteen seconds!

I grab a shotgun from one of Coin Counter’s unconscious guards and tear down the hall. Coin Counter shouts something. I ignore him. I don’t have time to talk, to help him, to do anything but run.

The halls are quickly filled as guests burst from their rooms, shocked and frightened by the muffled explosions and the screams of sirens and flashing alarms. An automated voice calmly tells everyone to proceed to their emergency stations. I have to shove my way through the crowd, ignoring shouts of protest as I finally reach the intersection leading up to the penthouse. I tear it up, shotgun at the ready.

Reaching the top of the stairs, I leap out to see five thugs outside the penthouse doors, all armed and dressed like their fellows. There’s no sign of the security guards dispatched here, but I won’t need them. The five haven’t noticed me and aren’t trying to break in, confused and uncertain about what to do or what’s going on.

Their confusion is my gain as I blast the closest one into a wall. His fellows turn to me, but I’m barreling into them like a bull, firing again and again, taking out the ponies that were sent here to torture my wife, and in moments they’re sprawled on the floor like a pile of ragdolls.

I rush to the doors leading into the penthouse and kick them off their hinges as I run inside.

“Beakbreaker?!”

“Silverspeak?!”

I run up the stairs to the bed, where Beakbreaker’s crouched next to it, clutching a dinner knife and scared out of her mind. Is she hurt?! No, thank Celestia, she’s okay!

Dropping the gun, I run to her. “Beakbreaker, are you okay?!”

She doesn’t answer, grabbing onto me as tightly as she can, the knife falling from her hoof.

“Beakbreaker, are you okay? Are you hurt?!”

“N... No.” She wipes the hair from her eyes, trying to steady herself. “I... I heard an explosion, and then the ship shook, and then I heard a gunfight outside the doors... What’s going on?!”

“I don’t know, but we’re getting out of here.” Forget the lifeboats, I’ll blast the windows open and fly out with Beakbreaker on my–

“Silverspeak? Beakbreaker?!”

I run to the balcony. “Coin Counter?”

My former boss is below, wielding a shotgun and accompanied by two of his security guards. “Silverspeak!” He hurries up the stairs, panting from the effort. “Is Beakbreaker alright?!”

Beakbreaker rushes to my side, surprised at seeing her boss wielding a shotgun while wearing a bathrobe.

“Warning: Ship integrity compromised," the ship's automatic voice announces. "Proceed to your assigned lifeboat.”

“Coin Counter, what’s going on?” Beakbreaker asks, still trying to comprehend what has to be the worst Hearths Warming morning ever.

“I don’t know!” Coin Counter says. “We've got to move! There’s a lifeboat nearby that we can–”

An ear-splitting roar shakes the room.

Beakbreaker goes pale. “What was–”

The roar comes again, and I realize that I’ve heard this roar before, long ago.

No...

Darting past Coin Counter, I rush to the curtains and yank down on the tassel. Light floods into the penthouse as the curtains part, and I’m forced to squint against the brightness. But when my eyes adjust, I get a clear view of the Canterlot mountains before us, and the capital perched upon its side.

Both ares engulfed in flames.

An enormous shadow flies overhead.

I see the shadow’s owner. I’ve only seen it once, and uncountable times in my nightmares, but there’s no mistaking the monstrosity I hoped never to see again.

An Arch-dragon plunges towards Canterlot, engulfing the city in fire, its four massive wings sending it upwards as a spike-covered tail effortlessly rips through buildings. And then another dragon joins it, and then another. Dozens more are diving from the clouds, swarming down like locusts, attacking the capital of Equestria and all the craft surrounding it, whether passenger craft trying to escape, or warships engaged in suicidal counterattacks.

“Arch-dragons?!” Coin Counter rushes to my side, rubbing his eyes as if trying to awaken from a nightmare. “But that's impossible! They're gone!”

The roars from a dozen of the beasts convinces him otherwise.

“The lifeboat!” I run back to Beakbreaker. “We have to get to the lifeboat!”

Another roar hits me, this one far louder than the others. I spin, and have a horrifying glimpse of three dragons breaking away and going after airships fleeing the mountain, bathing each one in flames or raking them with their bus-sized talons.

One turns towards us, fire rushing forth from its maw.

“RUN!” I scream.

The sky vanishes as the windows are enveloped with flames, the air growing stiflingly hot. But before I can run, yell, or do anything, the room rolls, giant cracks spiderwebbing through the floor and walls.

Beakbreaker screams. So does Coin Counter and his guards. I try to grab them, but the five of us are thrown against the walls, glued in place as the penthouse spins wildly, pillars and furnishings torn from their mounts. I try to move, but the g-force is too strong as the Eagle spins out of control.

There’s a scream, but not from a living creature. It’s coming from the ship as metal and steel break apart, and the room jerks sharply to the left, sending us crashing to the floor, accompanied by falling furniture and breaking chairs.

“What’s happening?!” Coin Counter calls out.

We’re still spinning... sweet Celestia, the dragon must have hit the ship and torn it in two! And if we're torn in two, the gas inside the hull is going to keep venting until the wreck becomes too heavy and crashes to the ground!

“All of you, grab on!” I turn to the window, readying a blast. “We’ve got to–”

Another explosion, and the floor tilts with frightening speed. I fall, sliding with the others towards the door leading into the hall. One guard hits a bookcase on the wall. The other grabs onto what remains of a pillar. He tries to grab us, but we’re sliding too fast and shoot into the hallway. It’s chaos as broken furniture, chunks of walls, and holiday decorations slide towards a gaping hole where the rest of the ship used to be, sliding out into the open air towards the plains far below.

“Grab onto something!” I yell. But we’re going too fast! the tilt is increasing as the Eagle’s bow goes up. I’ve only got a few seconds to act; Coin Counter is closest to me, hooves scraping against wood as he tries to grab the walls. I grab him in one leg and shove myself towards Beakbreaker. But she’s further down and speeding up.

“Beakbreaker!” I scream. “Hang on!”

She tries, grabbing at anything she can to stop her slide. But the walls are too smooth, and the door handles shoot by too quickly. Her eyes are wild, almost feral, instinct taking over as terror consumes her.

“Silverspeak!” she screams.

“Hold on!”

The hallway tilts, and the rest of the rubble shoots into the void, taking Beakbreaker with her.

There’s no time to think, no time to come up with a plan. I jump, plunging from the hall into the ice-cold sky.

Beakbreaker’s below me, screaming hysterically as she lashes out, trying to grab onto something.

Coin Counter yells something at me. I shove him onto my back. How I do so without him falling away, I don’t know, and I don’t care as I shoot down towards Beakbreaker, spinning as chunks of airship debris fall around us.

Beakbreaker’s still screaming, eyes wild as she spins and twists. She doesn’t even see me catching up to her or my legs as I stretch them out. And then I hit her, locking my legs around her body, spinning from the impact.

Through the nausea, I see Beakbreaker locking eyes with me, amazed, relieved, and surprised at her sudden rescue.

A flaming piece of metal nearly takes my ear off as it races past us.

My wings snap into place and beat as fast as they can, hammering the air as I pull up, my artificial heart pounding faster than ever before, pistons and gears furiously pumping as more debris falls around us. The wind’s whipping into my ears, making it all but impossible to hear anything, but I catch a voice. It’s Coin Counter. He’s screaming about something, but what–

A shadow falls on us. I look up and...

Oh buck!

An airship falls from the sky. It’s too big to go around, and I’m going too fast to turn around or stop.

There’s only one thing I can do. Breathing hard and fast for the pain I know is going to come, I focus my magic.

Oh please, Celestia, let this work!

I fire, and the pain comes, thrusting unseen daggers into my skull. I scream, barely able to focus, but there’s now a large hole inside the hull of the falling ship, and I rocket inside, speeding through a tunnel it as buckles, bends, twists, and collapses around me.

Go, go, go–

Metal tears apart, giving me the briefest glimpse of rooms inside the wreckage, where ponies are crushed as their ship collapses around them.

Faster, faster, faster!

Light appears, and the darkness vanishes as I shoot from the hull like a bullet from a barrel, the ship imploding behind us.

More roars. Canterlot’s being attacked by even more of the Arch-dragons. I can’t tell how many there are through the clouds of smoke and fire. Whether there’s fifteen or fifty, I can’t tell. Tiny forms swarm around them; from here they look like gnats, but I realize they’re the Royal Guard, doing their utmost to repel the invaders.

They’re failing.

I look to Beakbreaker, checking her for wounds. There are some scratches, but she’s okay. A glance back shows that Coin Counter’s the same. That’s good enough for me, and I rocket away from Canterlot with all the speed I can muster. We’ve got to get as far away from here as possible. Tartarus, I’ll fly all the way back to Luna Bay if I have–

Brightly-colored light shoots past me. Fire?! No, it was... magic?

Another flash of light nearly hits me. I spin to see several shapes flying after me. But they’re not dragons. They’re... ponies?! Unicorns riding upon pegasi, but they’re not fleeing from the devastation. Their flight is focused and directed, not the panicked flight of desperate survivors.

They’re heading right towards us.

Coin Counter yells something as more spells shoot past me. I ignore him, shooting through the sky with all my might, trying to outrace my pursuers. A glance back reveals that it isn’t working. I’ve gotten my fair share of flying throughout the years, but my wings are artificial, and my body is heavier than flesh and blood. I can’t match the speed and agility of pegasi no matter how hard I try.

Our pursuers are catching up, and their shots are getting closer. I can’t outrun them, which leave only one option: I have to fight.

“Hang onto me!” I yell. Coin Counter does so on my back, and Beakbreaker grips me as tightly as she can as I do a sharp roll and rocket back towards Canterlot. As I hoped, my move is unexpected, and the pegasi lose their focus for a moment, granting me a second to act. I take full advantage and dive towards the earth. Specifically, a flaming field of wrecked airships.

“What are you doing?!” Coin Counter shouts.

I don’t answer him as I fly through smoke, reaching the flaming metal and support beams of a crashed ship. Landing hard, I roll behind the wreckage, hoping that the fires will provide some cover.

“Why are they shooting at us?!” Coin Counter says as he slips off my back, tossing his bathrobe aside.

“Doesn’t matter,” I say, letting Beakbreaker down. “The two of you find a place to hide, and for heaven’s sake, stay out of sight!”

“What are you going to do?!” Coin Counter asks.

“Stop them,” I say, taking deep breaths to ready myself for more pain.

“Silverspeak, no!” Beakbreaker grabs my shoulders. “It’s too risky!” She glances at my horn. “Your magic! You can teleport us out of here!”

I’ve never tried a teleportation spell before. That’s advanced magic, with disastrous consequences if something goes wrong. It’s precisely that reason I’ve never tried it before, but now I–

The ground’s chewed up as magic slams around us, destroying our hiding place.

“Run!” I yell.

Beakbreaker and Coin Counter take off across the field, trying to find a path through the flaming ruins around us.

The pegasi swoop down and focus on me, their unicorn passengers firing a rapid barrage of blasts. I conjure a shield and deflect the attack, but at the cost of another horrific headache. Hissing, I struggle to endure it as my attackers fly overhead and spin for another attack run. Dropping the shield, I return fire, hitting two of the pegasi. The first wavers, but recovers. The second crashes into the flaming guts of a ship and vanishes from sight.

My head... oh, it hurts! I can’t lose my focus, not when Beakbreaker and Coin Counter are counti–

The ground’s chewed up around me. I spin to see even more pegasi coming down. One group I could hold off, but not two. I run into the closest wreckage, bringing my shield up as magical blasts hammer down on me like rain.

Who in tartarus are these ponies?!

Three unicorns land on the ground before me, their horns glowing. I don’t have time to charge a spell, so I–

Something huge and metallic fills my vision. I blink, and find the unicorns are gone. They haven’t teleported away or been killed by my skill. Rather, the space they occupied is now occupied by a giant chunk of a crumpled gondola.

A shadow falls on me. I look up to see an enormous ship falling towards me, lit up like a torch, and another one beside it. No, they’re not two ships. It’s one that’s been split in two.

Sweet Celestia, it’s the Eagle.

Flaming wreckage the size of a house slams near me, and I bolt, running through smoke that makes it almost impossible to see. What little light provided by the fires is eclipsed by the darkness overtaking me as the rear half of the ship slams into the ground, erupting into a cascade of increasingly larger explosions that engulfs the larger half of the ship, crushing and incinerating everything beneath it.

I bolt, my legs a blur as I fight to outrace the skyscraper-sized chunk of dead metal still coming down. And then it hits, a cloud of smoke and soot throwing me into the air. A fast beat of my wings saves me from hitting the ground headfirst, but not enough to keep me from rolling through the ruined grass and mud.

I get up, coughing at the smoke. The sound of battle high above continues to rage, screams and yells and roars blending together until it sounds as if we’re in the end of days. But I don’t care. I’m alive. I can still fight and I can still get...

Wait...

“Beakbreaker?!” I spin, trying to see through the smoke. “Coin Counter?!”

No response.

Oh Celestia, did Beakbreaker escape the crash?! “Beakbreaker?!”

Only the wind and the fires answer me.

“Beakbreaker!?”

“Silverspeak!”

There! To my right! I run. Thank Celestia, she’s alive! Only a few seconds and I’ll reach–

“Silverspeak, don’t! It’s a tra–”

The smoke clears. I’m in a clearing surrounded by wreckage and ruin. Beakbreaker’s before me, scratched up, alive, and held at gunpoint by the pegasi ponies.

I skid to a stop. There’s no mistaking the message before me: come any closer, and Beakbreaker’s head will be blown apart.

A guard digs the barrel of his gun into Beakbreaker’s skull. She winces, trying to cry out.

“Stop!” I raise my hooves. “Stop! Don’t hurt her!”

The gun stops moving.

I’ve got to talk fast. “What do you all want?” I ask, trying not to show the fear gripping my very soul. “What do you want?!”

A form emerges from the smoke at the edge of the clearing. Pony-sized, yet not a pony, its shapes unnatural and angular. Wait… it’s no beast. It’s a pony, one dressed in antique armor, gear that the Equestrian military stopped wearing almost twenty years ago. Smoke obscures the pony’s face as he walks to me, his pace brisk and controlled. It’s the gait of a military pony.

The smoke clears, and I finally see the pony’s face. Wait... I know him. He’s the scarred pony from Vanhoover.

The pony reaches me, and once again his eyes look deep into mine. I remain still, doing nothing as he studies me for several long moments.

Beakbreaker gulps, trying not to move as her guards adjust their grip on her.

“Who are you?” I ask.

“An admirer of yours,” the scarred says. His voice is empty, devoid of emotion or feeling.

“What is it you want?”

“You.”

Breathing deep, I focus my charm to its maximum strength. “I’ll do what you ask if you let my wife go.”

“She stays,” he says, “to ensure you do as you’re told.”

It’s risky, but I return the pony’s gaze. “Let. Her. Go.”

My ability to charm others is strong, and there are few who can resist its full might. Those who can posses wills stronger than the mightiest metal, unbreakable and unyielding, and my stomach sinks at realizing this pony is one of them. He doesn’t move at my command. He’s not even amused or angry at my attempt.

“You will surrender yourself to us,” the pony says. “If you do not comply, your wife’s knees will be shot out one at a time until you do. Should you continue to resist, her back will be broken, and then her neck. Do I make myself clear?”

I can’t let Beakbreaker become collateral in a kidnapping scheme. I can’t fight, and can’t blast away her captors and get to her in time. There’s only one thing I can do, the one thing I don’t want to do, but I have no choice.

“Yes,” I say, pretending to be beaten.

Oh Celestia, this is going to hurt...

“Lie down and spread your–”

Focusing all the magic I possess, I visualize Beakbreaker vanishing from this place and appearing in the fabled Diamond Plaza in Las Pegasus. And when it’s ready, I release the spell.

Time seems to slow. I can make out the individual beams of green magic swirling around Beakbreaker. Our eyes lock as she realizes what’s going on. I want the moment to last, to look into her eyes forever... but more than that, I want her to be safe.

Beakbreaker starts to yell something, but she can’t get the words out in time as she vanishes in a flash of green light.

Pain hits me, pain so intense that it’s no longer knives hitting my head, but sledgehammers. I collapse to my knees, trying and failing not to scream at how much it hurts. I can’t think, can’t focus. Oh Celestia it hurts!

Another shadow falls across me.

I look up and see my captor standing before me. There’s no hate in his face, no rage at losing Beakbreaker. Where anyone else would be furious, there is only the unreadable face of an animal.

A unicorn comes forward, his horn charging with magic.

A flash of light, and the sky lights up as all of the Canterlot Mountains are bathed in flames.

Without a sound, Canterlot tears free from the mountain. Palaces, towers, and buildings vanish as it plunges to the plains far below.

The unicorn gets closer.

I have to fight, have to lash out, do something, anything. I won’t die helpless, barely able to see through the pain. I have to fight. I have to get to Beakbreaker, to save her, to-

The unicorn's horn flashes, and I try to rise as he fi–