The gala would be happening approximately seven months before my initial two year estimate. We were going to attend- but I’ll be damned if I come unprepared. The first thing I did was start by storing my barrels of chlorine gas in warehouses in Featherworth. Second thing I did was to have King Grover begin training his army in musketry tactics and general firearms usage.

If I had to move the war effort ahead of time, I’d just have to deal with it. It would be far from ideal and makes a massive gamble even bigger… but shit, what choice would I have? This totem pole I’ve built for myself has gotten so large that I can hardly see the ground anymore. And I’m not saying it’s bad, mind you- these days are a far, far cry from the times when I was skipping meals because we were so fucking poor.

That said… with a lot of preparation and a little faith, I think I can pull it off. Speaking of preparation- I needed to memorize the layout of Canterlot and the castle within. While I could spend the time studying maps and sending in spies to survey the layout for me… I had a better idea.

---

“Is this the place?” I asked Ulysses. We were standing outside of a large abandoned warehouse in the Manehattan waterfront district. It was an old red-brick building, the small-paned windows long having been boarded up. This place was out of the way and secluded- and the perfect place for doing greasy stuff.

Anyways, Ulysses nodded in response. So then I asked him, “Tell me about this guy.”

“He’s a retired member of the royal guard. Lived in Canterlot his whole life before he moved to Manehattan to die in obscurity.” I simply nodded in response.

“So hopefully, he has the info I need.” We made sure to lock the door behind us before making our way in. The room was a large rectangular box with catwalks of questionable stability above our heads. Speaking of heads- I should probably pop an aspirin soon, just in case. I don’t feel anything yet, but the headache’s due any minute now. I’ll wait until we’re done, I think.

Several of my men were guarding the place… and women. I don’t discriminate. I know firsthand that women can be just as brutal and violent as men- if not more. Over in a dark corner was a wooden chair with today’s lucky loser tied up to it. Despite his apparent age, the old pegasus was putting up a heck of a fight to try and escape- so two guys were holding onto the chair to ensure he didn’t try anything.

“Now listen here, maggot! I don’t know who you think you are, but-”

SLAP!

I shook off my hand, since it kinda stung after that one. “You done yet, sarge?” I deadpanned. He glared at me with hatred in his eyes, probably thinking of better days in his life when he was still physically capable. “I need some information. You’re gonna give it to me.” He snorted in response.

“I won't tell you a flippin’ thing, vulture!” I smirked at him.

“Boys? Make sure to hold him tight. And promise you won’t freak out?” I said, and they both nodded in response.

Swish! My tongue shot outward and was floating through the air menacingly. So far, the nature of my tongue has been a well-kept secret, known only to those closest to me. Even my guards looked a bit freaked out, but they still held on tight to the old man. They kept their composure- but the same couldn’t be said about the victim, who was trying desperately to wiggle his way out.

SHLICK! The tail of the parasite sank through his eye. It’s hard to describe the feeling- it’s as though the tongue itself were both corporeal and non-corporeal. It could interact with the physical world, but it also seems to be within some sort of non-euclidian spirit world? Or heck, maybe it simply is non-euclidian, and there was simply more to this parasite than is capable of being seen?

His entire body stiffened and his breathing intensified, as though too much movement would lead to grave injury on his part. Our consciousnesses were connected- I could hear his thoughts. Keep calm, sarge… Keep calm, sarge…

I want you to think of your time as a Canterlot guard… I want you to vividly picture the city itself- you know the streets by heart, don’t you? That was me talking. The old man's breathing calmed down, as he apparently realized he wasn’t in immediate mortal danger. Show me Canterlot. I want a tour of the city. Do this for me, and I may let you live.

Memories flooded my head- streets that have been patrolled so many times, the memories were detailed down to the very cracks in the cobbled roads. Memories of bad guys being chased through alleys. Memories of training new recruits- and memories of being brought on as a new recruit.

And what of the castle itself? What was the castle like?

My brain was filled with images of maze-like white stone corridors, stained glass windows, luxurious carpeting, ancient and vast libraries, and most important were the castles' many exits. I smiled in satisfaction- or would have, if there wasn’t a massive parasite sticking out of it.

Good. Now, I want you to remember this- my name is Trinity Bellucci.

SHLICK! Sluuuurp! I sucked my tongue back in, seeing the old man's head drop as his breathing intensified once again and sweat dripped from his forehead.

“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” I said with a warm smile. He gritted his teeth at me.

“What… what are you?”

“The question I have for you is- what is my name?” I asked him. He huffed in response.

“Trinity Bellucci. Whatever kind of weird pseudonym that is.” I rolled my eyes at him.

“Then it’s a good thing I don’t go by that name anymore. Now, I want you to ask me something that only someone with intimate knowledge of Canterlot would know. Hell, something that only you would know.”

He seemed confused, blinking at me. Then he rolled his eyes. “Okay, then. If you’re at Morning Dew’s house, how would you get to Pony Joe’s?” To be fair, it probably was a stupid question.

“Outside the door, you take a right and keep going straight until you hit Shakedown Street. Then you make a left at Terrapin Station and head forward. Three streets down, you’ll see Pony Joe’s on the left.” I said, and my smile widened immensely. “Ah, good. So this thing can give knowledge as well as absorb it. Nice.”

He looked at me wide-eyed. “How did-”

I just turned around. “Alright, boys. You know what to do. Ulysses, come with me.” I didn’t need to look back to know how they were gonna handle getting rid of the evidence.

“W-wait, what are you- hrk!”

Thankfully, my wagon was waiting in an alley around the corner. I jumped onto my seat and clutched my skull, groaning in pain.

“Ffffuck!” I moaned out, grabbing a handful of aspirin and throwing them back. I leaned back and sighed, and Ulysses took his seat across from me.

“You still getting headaches from that concussion?” He asked, and I nodded.

“Yeah. You’d think they’d be done with by now, but it’s probably just stress at this point. I’m not worried about it.” Ulysses merely shrugged in response.

“Ugh… you know what? Cancel the rest of my plans.” I knocked on the front wall of the carriage. “Just take me home, boys!”

“Well,” Ulysses spoke, “That was a short day.” I rolled my eyes at him.

“If you were feelin’ what I was feelin’ you’d be thinking the same thing.”

---

Uh. I should’ve finished that fucker off that first time around. While the headaches have gotten semi-frequent, they’re rarely debilitating like that, thank god. The aspirin usually works pretty well.

But anyways, onto the here-and-now. Since the Gala was tomorrow, Dee and I decided to spend it in Ponyville- mainly to spend some time with our families… just in case the worst happened. As horrible as it is to think about- we could both potentially be in some deep shit here. I hate having so many unknown variables, but there’s only so much I can realistically do.

If Twilight’s been planning something in regards to me, it’s been a well-kept secret. I can’t exactly interview her guards- as one of them going missing would absolutely be noticed, especially if they were in a position of power. I couldn’t just ask her friends, either- because that could tip Twilight off into knowing that something was up.

And so, we were stuck. As Dee and I rode the train to Ponyville, the feeling could best be described as somber. We were both relatively silent on the way over, both of us basking in each other's warmth and company. She was leaning into my shoulder and I had a wing wrapped around her.

When we both got off the train, we just sat on the platform looking into each other's eyes.

“Well… See you tomorrow?” I said with a small grin on my face. I lightly rubbed her cheek with my palm and she pulled me in for a kiss.

“I will. We’ll make it through this.” she said, and we soon parted ways.

As I walked the streets of Ponyville, I’ll be honest- I wasn’t exactly all there. My mind was so distracted with all the other stuff I had going on, and I barely even noticed all the looks I was getting from the town folks. But it was getting late, anyway- so it’s not like there were a lot of people out and about.

But that didn’t matter, since I was finally home. “Hey, Mamma.” She pulled me in for a hug and I sighed in relief. She was quite happy to see me and wasted no time in ushering me to the couch. Despite the fact that she knew about the scar on my beak, she still winced when she saw it- but decided not to bring it up.

We sat on the couch together and I leaned into her side, hugging her and resting my face in her chest feathers. “I missed you a lot, Mamma.”

“I missed you too, baby… What’s wrong?” She asked, and I forced myself to shrug.

“Nothin’. I just missed you.”

“Sweetie, you tell me you miss me everytime I see you… and yet you’ve never looked like this. What’s on your mind?” After a few moments of consideration, I sighed.

“It’s… I, I don’t know how…” How do I even begin to explain the problem?

“Sweetie, you can tell me anything. You know I’ll always love you.” I swallowed a lump in my throat, afraid to tell her the truth.

“I… I think I might be in trouble tomorrow… but I don’t know for sure.”

“Hmm… why would that be the case?” subconsciously, I grabbed her tighter. I didn’t want to ever let go.

“Twilight’s known I’ve been doing illegal stuff for years… she just hasn’t been able to prove it. She told me as much- so why did she invite my wife and I to the gala?” I already talked to Mamma through the mail about it. She already told me she has no idea why Twilight invited us to the Gala.

“Leona, I want you to be honest with me. What did you do?” I didn’t respond, I was at a loss for words. “Leona, please. You can tell me- I won’t think any less of you.” I looked up and she gave me that warm, motherly smile.

“What haven’t I done?” I started to confess- “I’m Manehattan’s biggest supplier of booze, along with several other counties in the nation. I have most of Manehattan in my back pocket, actually. Tax evasion, insurance fraud, prostitution rings, racketeering, gambling rings… I’m making a fuckton of money and funneling it into the old country.” To my shock- she didn’t look surprised at all, only giving me a smile.

“Leona, I’ve known you your whole life. While I was unaware before, the fact that you’ve been so busy doesn’t surprise me.” She started running a hand along my back, and I smiled, feeling content. “You can stop while you’re ahead, still. In fact- didn’t I tell you that once already?”

I sighed. “I wish it were that easy. I’ve got so much to do, so much to prove- and I’ve got so little time to do it all.”

“But that’s the thing! You don’t need to prove yourself to anyone! Even if you stopped right now, you’ve already invented something set to change the world. Your name is already being written in the history books for that ammonia thing you came up with! You should see how big the apple farm has gotten ever since fertilizer started getting cheap.”

“Yeah, but-” I started, but she interrupted me.

“I understand that your life is your life, and your ambitions are your own… but just remember- I’ll always be proud of you, no matter what.” I couldn’t help but smile. I pulled back and she kissed me on the forehead.

“Thanks, Mamma.” Up close, you could sort of see the age in her eyes. She was almost in her 30s- but you really wouldn’t be able to tell unless you were up close. “You know, I revisited our old house awhile ago.” Her grin widened.

“In Featherworth?” I nodded at her.

“Yeah! The house was a bit worse for wear, but I knew it was ours. The mailbox still had our last name on it, and my name was still scrawled into the porch. It was a nice trip down memory lane, that’s for sure.”

“I bet it was, baby.”

“Uh-huh! And when I get the economy up and running again, spoiler alert, I’m gonna have it restored and rebuilt! But until then, you can live in the castle with Dee and I.” She tilted her head in confusion at me.

“Oh, right! I never did tell you the plan!” So I did. I explained to her how I was gonna restart the economy and wage war against the dogs to get them back in line. “Look, if things get hairy at the Gala tomorrow, I have an escape plan.” I pulled out a blank check and handed it to her. “Dee and I are gonna escape to Featherworth. I want you to meet us there- I can guarantee you whatever special treatment you want! You’ll even live in the castle with us!”

Then, after a few moments, her smile fell- and my heart sank.

“Sweetie, I… I can’t accept this.” She set the check back in my hand and I sat there dumbfounded. “It’s not that I don’t want to go with you, it’s just… I don’t want to go back to Featherworth.” I wordlessly urged her to continue, not sure if I was hearing her correctly.

“It’s like… I don’t have anyone left there, at least, no one that I talk to. It’s been almost 16 years, and… that’s just so much time. I have friends here, I have a life here. I’m sorry.”

My voice began to shake. “You mean that after all this time, you don’t want to go home?” I was dumbfounded! She lived there longer than I did, and she doesn’t want to go home?

“Sweetie, this is home! Think of it like this- why do you want to go home?”

You know… that was a good question.

“I… Well, I have to!” I pulled back, gesticulating wildly. “I mean… they destroyed our home! Our way of life! We can’t just sit back and let everything we stand for go to ruin!”

“And what do you stand for?” She asked, and I felt my eye twitch.

“Personal liberty. A sense of justice. An overall feeling of responsibility.”

“Sweetie, think of it like this.” She looked me in the eyes, and her warm smile never left. “You can think of a million justifications to keep going. But you only need one to settle down…” After a few seconds, she said “I’ve done enough. And that’s all.”

I sighed, leaning back into the couch. “If it were that easy, I’d consider it. But I’ve got people counting on me, now. People believe in this cause, and I don’t intend to let any of them down.” Mamma bit her lip, then conceded with a sigh.

“If I can’t talk you down… just be careful, alright? I don’t want to see you hurt anymore.” I thought about the scar on my beak and winced. She sniffled, wrapping her arms around me and burying her face in my chest plume.

“Don’t worry, Mamma. This war is gonna be so one sided that victory is guaranteed.” She just sighed, pulling back with a sad look in her eyes.

“That’s what I’m afraid of.” She kissed me on the cheek and smiled wearily. “But enough of that. It’s getting late- let’s head to bed.”

I smiled faintly. “Thanks, Mamma.” She didn’t even tell me to come with her. I just hopped on the bed and she threw a wing around my back.

“Just remember, baby. No matter what happens, you’ll always have a home here.” Despite how dark it was, I knew she was smiling.

---

The next day would be quite busy- despite the fact that the Gala wouldn’t be happening until somewhat late tonight, I still had so much to get done. Mainly, planning my escape. It would be a simple, if a little bit stupid plan, but I’m hoping it will work.

There were some downsides to this plan, though- it required me to wear a dress, and I only had the room to holster one pistol underneath it. The reason I decided to wear a dress instead of my normal garb, is… well, I wouldn't want to spoil anything, would I? And besides- I like feeling pretty, you know?

The dress was, you guessed it, black with golden decorations. It was long and flowy- thankfully, there were holes for my wings to fit through. However, I was still wearing my hat. Dee was wearing a suit, funnily enough. It was pink with yellow highlighting, giving her a sort of businesswoman appearance. It was fitting and she looked damn good in it.

After having hugged Mamma for what may well be the last time in a good while, I felt prepared. When Dee and I got off the train to Canterlot, we both walked side by side.

The Gala wouldn’t be anything crazy special. Both the old princesses would be here, probably to steal the show from Twilight. That could be another reason for her to try something- to either impress her old masters or as a bid to regain the spotlight.

Hell, for all I know, the answer could be neither. So far, I’ve found no evidence that Twilight is planning something. And we’re hardly different from all the rest of the rich greaseballs here- in fact, I’m willing to bet that, in some way or another, a bunch of these fucks are on my payroll.

Dee and I handed our tickets to the guards out front and inside the castle, we both beheld… disappointment.

Personally, I’ve never understood the Gala. It’s essentially a once-a-year party where the most boring, stuffiest bunch of assholes meet up with the regular rich assholes for some fuckin’ reason. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a prestigious event and under better circumstances, I’d be honored to receive an invitation to such an exclusive party… But what kind of party is this? Not a single person is belligerently drunk or high, and there’s not even some whore giving out blowjobs in the shitter!

“Wait, Leona… is that the Mayor of Manehattan?” Dee pointed over towards the open bar and I realized that I spoke too soon. The party just barely started and we could tell he was fuckin wasted- must’ve been pregaming hard. Then again- he is kind of an alcoholic, and I’m kind of his main supplier. Since the booze was banned in the city and surrounding county, he rarely has the chance to let loose outside of his own private company.

Evidently, he took that as an excuse to drink ALL the liquor. I watched him trip and fall into one of the maids carrying a tray of champagne flutes, spilling the wine all over both of them. I couldn’t help but chuckle- then I realized something.

If I just up and left, along with my fellow confederates… there’s gonna be a massive power vacuum in Equestria. The criminal empire I’ve built for myself could very well collapse overnight- because if something happens, it would delegitimize my whole operation. I’d hate to have to stay behind and clean up that mess.

Anyways- as I was looking around amused by the whole situation, Dee had stars in her eyes.

“You seem awfully excited.” I said with a smirk. She just looked at me and nodded with a smile.

“Well, I’ve always dreamed of getting invited to the Gala- ever since I was a little filly.” I just looked at her incredulously.

“Babe… we’re likely walking into a trap, you do realize?” She rolled her eyes and scoffed.

“I know, but… being invited to the Gala means that the Princess herself sees us as important enough to extend an invitation. Let’s say it’s not a trap- in that case, it’s everything I’ve ever dreamed of!”

“... You’ve always dreamt of getting invited to the most boring party on the planet?” Never mind the fact that… alright, you get the idea.

“No, I’ve always dreamt of being rich and famous enough to get invited! And you know how I feel about that.” She said, and you know what? She had a point. Hell, she was half the reason I was doing the things I was doing; She wanted to be famous and loved by everyone, and I wanted revenge. I conceded, rolling my eyes with a giggle.

“Ok, I get your point.” She continued her excited looking around until she pointed to the photographers.

“OOH! We gotta get our pictures taken!” she said, grabbing my arm and dragging me there. Of all the things…

We stood at the podium and I made sure to stand at her right side. I angled my face slightly so that the camera wouldn’t capture the scar on my beak. There was a bright flash and I tipped the operator. They would all get developed later, apparently.

“You’re still feeling self conscious about that scar?” Apparently, my wife noticed what I was doing. I just shrugged.

“Yeah, I suppose I am. Nothing to be done for it, I suppose.” She just gave me a look of concern,

“Babe, I doubt it’d even be noticeable in black and white.” I just shrugged. I still wasn’t happy about it.

But alas- the night went on. The party started getting more and more populated and the band was in full swing, playing classical music. Dee broke off to talk with fellow business folks and I decided to raid the refreshments.

Sadly- there wasn’t much for me over there. It was mainly catered to ponies- so it was either leaf flower based fancy foods or confectionaries that were more sugar than food. There were no savory cold cuts or anything of the sort- there wasn’t even a proper antipasto platter! Eventually I found some sort of cubed cheese, stuck with toothpicks with a basil leaf on top. I just started munching on those and throwing the leaves away. I don’t even know what kind of cheese it was- but it was mid, I’ll tell you that much.

I heard a giggle nearby. “I take it you’re enjoying the buffet?” I turned around and rolled my eyes. I think this guy's name was… Blue-something-or-other. I’m gonna call him Blueballs, though.

“I’d enjoy it more if any of the food here was edible.” He snorted out laughter,

“Ah, so the commoner has no taste in good food. What a surprise.” He rolled his eyes and floated over some random confectionary, nibbling on it like a rabbit.

Fuckin’ rich people. I decided to walk away and try to find my wife before this guy pissed me off.

“Would ze maiden care for a drink?” One of the servers presented the tray of champagne, but I waved her off.

“No thanks. I don’t drink.” But for some reason, she insisted.

“Ah, but zis is no ordinary champogne, it vas aged in-” I fixed her a death glare and she got the hint.

“I. Don’t. Drink.” I grumbled while walking away. At this point, I was hoping Twilight would try something. I was not vibing with this party.

Finally- I found my wife… looking particularly uncomfortable. That rich asshole from the buffet was talking to her and she was looking around nervously. Then our eyes met and she smiled- I already knew what to do. I walked up to her side and threw my wing around her back, and the rich fucker looked at us in disgust.

“Hey babe, is this cunt giving you problems?” I asked her, and she giggled.

“Hmph! I didn’t realize they let fillyfoolers into this event.” He moved to turn around and I grabbed his collar.

“The fuck did you just call me, habsburg?” He clamped his mouth shut and took that as his cue to fuck off. “That’s what I thought.” I looked at my wife with a smile, hearing the music go from slow and somber to more energetic and upbeat.

“May I have this dance?” I asked, holding a hand out. She smirked and nodded, and we made our way to the dance floor.

It was nice, really. As much as I hated being here, Dee seemed to be having a good time. For the rest of the evening, I decided to stay by her side. One, just in case something happened, and two, because I just liked spending time with her and seeing her happy.

Eventually, however, it was time for Twilight to make her speech.

“Attention, everypony!” Since she was the princess, everyone shut up pretty fast. She was standing at the top of the stairs- although she looked pretty tiny up there, when you consider that it was originally built with Celestia’s large rump in mind. And, you know, she was still the size of a normal pony.

“I’d like to extend my gratitude to each and every one of you in attendance! In some way or another, you’ve all helped keep Equestria together- and for that, I thank you.” Well, I don’t know about that… “I also have a special announcement to make!” The entire audience looked on in anticipation… and I held my wife close.

“After nearly four years of loyal servitude, I’d like to welcome the first non-Equestrian native to ever join the Equestrian Guard- Gallus!” Well, no fuckin’ shit. The blue chucklefuck’s gone far, far off course from what I originally expected of him. He stood next to Twilight in his ornate golden armor- though he wasn’t wearing a helmet.

“But that’s not it- for his bravery and investigative prowess, I also grant him the highest honor I can grant him in his line of work. This position has been waiting to be filled since my brother left to rule the Crystal Empire with his wife for years- and I’ve found a candidate worthy of his old title.” Two other guards came up behind him and lowered a helmet onto his head- one with a blue plume atop it.

“Give a warm welcome to our newest Royal Guard Captain, Gallus!” The audience clapped and I looked at him apprehensively.

“I thank you for the honor, Princess Twilight.” He said with a bow before looking back to the audience. “As the newest Captain of the Royal Guard, my first order of business…” He then looked at me straight in the eye where I stood in the crowd, and I smirked. Slowly, I noticed guards were crowding all the exits to the room.

“After almost a year of investigation, I’ve finally figured out why so much money is seemingly vanishing from the economy. Large shipments of money have begun shipping over to minos in falsely-marked crates… and just as we noticed that, one Leona Grimfeather had a meeting with the king of Fertilia.” My smirk intensified and I noticed my wife shaking- so I held her tight.

“And for this reason… I accuse Leona Grimfeather and Diamond Tiara Grimfeather of high treason by colluding with foreign entities.” The crowd gasped, all stepping back to give me the spotlight. “What have you to say in your defense?”

After a few moments of nervous whispers from the crowd… I laughed.

“Nya-hahahahaha! You always were a follower, Gallus. Even when I was teaching you how to pick pockets and hawk stolen cigarettes, all the way back in the old country.” The crowd gasped and Gallus was taken aback. Evidently, he did not want that secret out. “And as for you, Twilight… you’ve always been naïve. Did you really, really think that I wouldn’t think something was up when you sent us that invitation months ago?” After a few seconds, Gallus turned to glare at Twilight and she gave a sheepish grin.

The media was gonna have a field day with this one. I reached under my dress, pulling out-

“Babe, what the fuck is that?” My wife spoke up, fear evident in her voice. It was a pressurized metal tank- one which was covered in skull-and-crossbone symbols, and most importantly- labeled as Chlorine.

“This.” I yelled out loud, getting everyone's attention. I held the tank up high so everyone could see the skulls covering the canister. “Is chlorine gas. It’s a weapon I’ve developed in secret to help with the war effort against the Diamond Dogs.” The guards were all looking around nervously and the crowd was about to start panicking.

“The mechanism with which it works is simple. The gas fills the air and gets all over everything. It’s a skin irritant- but that’s the least of your worries.” Even my wife was looking at me in fear. “It binds to water molecules, creating hydrochloric acid. It gets in your eyes and makes you go blind. It gets in your lungs and destroys the delicate tissues. You’ll start coughing up blood and bits of your lungs. And inside this small canister is enough to kill everyone in this room.” The tension in the room was so intense that I think I saw some ponies pass out.

Hoping they wouldn’t call my bluff, I slammed the canister down onto its nozzle- causing it to break off.

Hissssssss!

“RUN!” I screamed at the top of my lungs, and all hell broke loose. The room began to fill with harmless helium gas as I grabbed my wife, and using my intimate knowledge of the castle and city layout, we made our escape. Even the guards were in full panic mode- which was good for us.

Once again, I planned to use herd mentality to my advantage. Outside the castle was a large crowd of scared, confused looking ponies seemingly frozen on the ground. I whipped out my pistol and aimed for the sky. As an afterthought, I hope there were no pegasi above us.

BANG! “EVERYBODY RUN!” and that was all they needed, ponies were running in every direction. “Follow me!” I yelled to my wife, and she blindly began running after me. I had her chasing me into various alleys and dark corners of the city until the crowd started thinning out.

We were jumping over fences and trashcans, stomping over gardens, and even knocked a few random ponies on their asses on the way to our destination.

“There’s a small ledge coming up soon! Just jump and we’ll be home free.” Due to sheer herd mentality, my wife was barely able to register her surroundings. And you see, the ledges of Canterlot are often decorated with pegasi landing strips and viewing balconies.

So she jumped off that ledge and looked down- I think her heart might have stopped when she realized she was several miles in the air, looking at the forest below. It was like a fuckin Wile E Coyote moment where she seemed to float for a moment before remembering that gravity was a thing.

I dove down after her and caught her in the freefall, slowly flattening my angle so I could slow us down enough to get to the dropoff zone. It was in the middle of a thin patch of woods growing on the mountainside that a chariot piloted by my guys was waiting for us.

“Hey lads! You know where to take us!” I slowed us down and set my wife on her seat, shutting the carriage door behind us. I hated the fact that I had to trick her- And I felt really guilty when I saw how bad she was shaking, so I held her close.

“It’s okay, baby… we’re okay.”

This… was gonna be a long journey.

It's kinda funny how Gallus and Leona wound up living almost completely opposite lives, huh?

As always, thank you for reading! Likes and comments are always appreciated!

If there's any errors, please let me know! I've always been the sole editor and writer here, and I kinda rushed this one a little to get it out before work today :3