Sunset sighed and finished her cold tea.

“After that, all that was left was boring work, quashing whatever had remained of the griffon pride. There wasn’t much to do, honestly.

“Disoriented by loss of their King and Idol, bereft of the source of their pride, it took no more than a scowl and a shine of a hoofful of bits to make them turn to grovelling and begging. The Equestrian nobles, in turn, were only too happy to play the part of graceful saviours, planning the restoration efforts for the palace, the stimulus loans and the friendship exchanges for students and children, their guilt fueling their generosity.

“I played a part of my own as well -- smiling and waving, shaking claws and signing meaningless papers, writing speeches and arguing the legalese. The Count and Dame Strawberry taking charge, I helped out -- fair and generous; the very image of a perfect student of my Princess, the linchpin and the cornerstone of our delegation.

“I knew it wouldn’t matter.

“It meant nothing -- ‘all valiant dust that builds on dust’, as the Count had put it once in his ever clever verse. No loans or restitutions, alliances signed and friendships proclaimed would ever replace that which I have taken away.

“And another lesson has been learned for me, a lesson you cannot learn in Equestria: no matter the species, no matter the magics they possess or the strength of their arms and armies, true power comes from two things -- the lead and silver, the fear and desire. She who holds those two within her hooves, holds the reigns of your soul.”

“That’s what you stand by?” Twilight sat bloodlessly pale. “Seduction, blackmail and bribery? Kill or be killed?”

"Yes." She refused to look away. "I do."

“Why?”

“For my Princess,” Sunset replied, her voice hollow with exhaustion and longing. “I would do anything for my Princess and my country. I would rip unborn foals from their mothers' wombs and burn them to ashes while their husbands watched. And I’d sleep without nightmares on the same night. This -- this was nothing.

"There were no lines I would not cross. Nothing I would not do to keep my Princess safe."

"I don't believe that. There has to be something decent about you."

“I’ve told the truth, Twilight -- I did not tell you this story just to fool you. And the proof is right here." Sunset twisted her head slightly and stared in Twilight's eyes. "Look.” For a split second, the pupil of her right eye seemed to splash apart, forming four vertical slits on her iris.

A loud slap broke the silence and Sunset's head jerked to the side. Twilight drew back her hand, unable to believe what she had just done.

She touched her finger to the broken lip and looked at the blood. "Feisty," she commented, satisfied. "I like you better this way, little princess."

"How do you live with yourself?" Twilight asked, helplessly. "You... I can't..."

"Would someone care to explain what has just happened?" Rarity asked.

“There is a fish in Equestria--" Sunset explained readily, "-- a subspecies of salmon that stores magic in itself like animals store fat. To eat the meat of this fish is to gain great insight, great ken. Seven pupils on your eyes -- four on the right to peer without and three on the left to see within. Many would want to get it, but that fish is very hard to catch.”

“The only way to catch it,” Twilight intervened, her voice still unsteady, “is to bait it with an eye of the Prince of Birds.”

“So, a few moons after that whole affair, I went on a trip back to Griffinstone. Did some digging, and went a-fishing one fine Friday morning. I think it was Galad’s -- his corpse was the best preserved.”

"For the Princess."

"For my Princess and Equestria. I forged myself into a weapon, I did things that no pony would do, I crossed every line, spat on every sensibility and broke every rule that could be broken, and I would do it again in a heartbeat -- if I still had a heart in my chest, that is."

"And here? Did you do things you did in the school and in this world for Sun and Country?"

“Hah! This world is not Equestria of sunshine and rainbows, little princess. This is not even Griffinstone or Dragonlands. This is the world of humans, and it’s all mind games and blackmail and bribery and kill or be killed here. If that offends your pretty little pony sensibilities, you’re more than welcome to get right back to Equestria through that portal.”

“Is that really what you think of us?” Fluttershy asked softly. “That we’re all monsters?”

“Yes!” Sunset threw her hands up in exasperation, ”that’s what I love about you, you weird hairless monkeys. You’re real. You kill your own kind to survive.”

“Ladies”. Rarity interrupted, slamming her teacup into the table with slightly more force than was necessary. “It is late, and I am leaving for my bed. I strongly advise everyone to do the same before they will say and hear things that everyone will surely regret in the morning.”

We're those who pledged their lives and sacred honor 
Who of their own will accept the chain and iron collar 
Preserving peace through strength one thousand years. 
From roots of earth to sky's blue roof 
By spell, by steel or by bare hoof. 

Bull-Slayers Oath,
Author unknown
No confirmed documents exist