'It's obviously a trap.'

The same way as it happened the first time, I got word through the grapevine that Fia wanted to meet for discussion. I had no reason to go to this meeting. So close to my five day deadline, and she wants to call a meeting. She's getting nervous. She knows I have something planned, but doesn't know what, and she's trying to draw me out ahead of schedule. If she really wanted a meeting, she'd be fine with having it on the fifth day, when I'm supposed to turn myself in. I already got confirmation that Steelhorn escaped and was busy making repairs to the ship, and changeling scouts in the area who were posing as part of the armed forces reported no troop movement in the area, though they did follow him to ensure he arrived safely. This means that I have nothing to negotiate for.

The other reason I wouldn't be meeting with Fia is because the first time, I was able to catch her off guard. I may have shown that card too early, because now she'll be more wary. I won't catch her unawares again, and if it comes down to it, I don't know anything about her combat style or skill. Having to fight one on one would be a gamble at best, and she has the advantages of numbers and home turf. As alone as I was at the first meeting, if I went to this one, I'd be surrounded by guards.

As for having her get out alive as well, there's only one option I could come up with. Exodus. She'd have to wait for the clans to arrive, tell them I escaped, then turn over rule of her pack willingly. Sure, she wouldn't be the leader anymore but she'd be alive, and free. Aoi would come and claim it as his own at some point anyways, so it's not like she'd be abandoning them.

On my end, my crew knew what to do when the time came. Some changelings infiltrated the guard, and for an entire watch, my people were free to move about. Some weapons we stole, as well as the keys to the shackles, were all hidden, buried shallow in the dirt of the holding cell. At the same time, the changelings would try to be on duty for all the upcoming shifts, so when the attack came, we wouldn't have to deal with the guards first.

Speaking of the changelings, they had done their jobs admirably. Other than the one who had taken my place, none had been caught, and it seems as though Fia didn't even bother searching for them. She likely knows how effective they are as disguise and avoiding attention, they'd easily circumvent any checkpoints or searches, and she had no idea how many there even were. A search would be futile. Unless she used my amulet, which she now wears around her neck, and even then, the den is huge. It would take multiple uses of the amulet, which has limited charge. I don't think she knows it works on changelings as well as me anyways, since the only time we used it against the bugs was during the attack on Canterlot, and that was so hectic nobody payed attention to what was going on. I never did give the Canterlot science committee that particular spell. I had already told Twilight and Princess Celestia of it, so I saw no need to make an official entry about it. It's likely Gold Tramp Stamp or whatever his name was didn't know about it either. The only common knowledge of it is my personal use of it to change form.

The Wild Hogs had finally come across the location where their employer was supposed to be imprisoned. A large open field, pitted with mounds and holes that had been access points for miners. A mountain at the center, with a fortress built into it. Pops rode his giant swine at the front of the pack, the several hundred boars all bundled in warm clothing, unused to the cold. They hadn't brought any siege equipment with them. They wouldn't need it. Alarm bells rang, audible even from their distance, and from afar they could see great stone gates opening, revealing ballistae, a flurry of movement around each emplacement.

*SQUEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL* With a high pitched, shrieking war cry from the leader, they charged, their steeds built for short, quick sprints covering the terrain quickly, and with practiced movement from their riders, most avoiding the thick bolts that rained down on them from above. Of course, as it goes with artillery fire against such masses, there were some casualties, but nothing excessive that could hinder the success of the mission. Raising their shields, ranging anywhere from massive steel square shields to garbage can lids to protect against archer fire, they rushed to a main gate, where the leader of the mercenary band dismounted.

Ignoring the arrows that were burying themselves in his flesh, and the boiling water pouring from murder holes that seared his skin, the massive hog took his great, meaty hooves and thrust them forward together, smashing their way in to the stone of the gate. With a proper hold, he let out a great grunt of exertion and pried his arms apart, slowly, ever so slightly, opening the gate.

A large troop of smaller hogs piled in next to him, doing all they could to pry the gate open, and when the first sizable space appeared, they rushed the interior of the den, in order to eliminate the opposition trying to hold the gate closed from the other side.

"Guard report!" I shouted out to the nearest on duty.

"Ma'am, we've come under siege by a group of wild pigs. They are sentient, and have already opened the outer gate. We're engaging them there, and managing to hold them at bay, but there's a lot of them, and they're very strong. It takes a lot to kill even one. Their gear suggests a mercenary band."

Damnit! This was Griffin's doing. He hired them to come rescue him! That's why he wanted to wait five days! But he must have hired them before he came here... which means he planned on getting caught?

As the realization dawned on me that each and every action I had taken had been planned for me from the start by my enemy, panic began to set in. Possibly the only thing that had occurred since I took Griffin's crew that he hadn't planned for was Gold Trim executing his crew. Every single thing other than that, he had taken into account. He knew that if I took his crew instead of killing them, it was to get at him. He knew that if I wanted him, it would be to gain power over the other clans. He knew that if he took his time, It'd put pressure on me. Did he know that Clan Nanashi was on it's way as well? No... he couldn't. If he did, he wouldn't be making his move now... unless he didn't know they would be coming until after he arrived here... or he doesn't know at all. Fuck! If he does know, he can just bide his time, if he doesn't, then he has more pressure on him, but I still have to worry about it.

His family

That's right, so long as I still have them, he can't go anywhere. Which means his priority is to get them out, which means... which means..... the attack is a diversion... OH SHIT! He never intended to surrender, and the reason he had the minotaur released was so he could repair it, and they could make their escape! And we can't get out there and stop them because of the attack. The airships aren't prepped either! The diversion is a sufficient force that we can't just ignore, and he doesn't care about their lives, so he'll just throw them away to make his own getaway! But... how will he get out in the middle of the fight? He can't just go out the front!... He's gotta have a backdoor...

"RINGO!" I can't lose, not like this, not when I'm so close to doing away with all those old mutts and finally unifying the clans! I'm so close! I can't lose like this!

"Yes my child?" The titanic hound, once again wearing his armor, asked with the same usual calm.

"There's a problem at the front gate... go... take care of it."

"By your will." He lumbered off to go deal with the invaders. The only thing to worry about after that is making sure Griffin doesn't escape. I had a feeling that this would require a more... personal... touch.

"Come on! Come on! This way! Go go go!"

"Protego!" One of the guards along the path called as his spear tip flashed.

"Protego cor de sanguis." I quickly darted around his spear tip, batting the shaft out of the way and poking him in the throat. He collapsed almost immediately. Grabbing the weapon I turned and threw it at another before he had time to raise a shield. It went right through his armor, skewing him in the chest. 'Bad day to pick ring mail. It's not so good against stabbing weapons.'

"Keep moving!"

Archers a couple archers around the corner fired a volley of arrows. "Expelli armas!" A wave of force move away from me, casting their shots off in all directions. They couldn't draw again before I had closed the distance, and made short work of them with my knife.

"Go! In the tunnel! Go! I'll haul up the rear and make sure we're not followed!"

"Griffin!" Gilda shouted, standing at the edge of the hole that lead to the twisting tunnel.

"Just go! I'll be fine!"

Tailing the end of the line as we rushed through the tunnels were Trixie, Geirmund, Cable, and Furnace.

"Come on you four! Hurry up!"

"Oh no, not this time pal." Trixie scolded. "We're not letting you sacrifice yourself and stay here all alone to save the group. You've got a baby on the way, and I'm sure as hell not gonna let you miss out." Glancing at the determined look on her face, I couldn't say no.

"Und I am staying as well! Zere are some times un stallion must stand up und protect his family, und dis is un of zose times. Cable, Furnace, go. I will stay vith ze captain."

"So brave!" Cable swooned over her man, being dragged off by the annoyed Furnace. "Pfft, stallions, think they're all that."

"Grr, fine! you can stay, but everyone else get going!" I shouted. "We're gonna have to haul ass once we're aboard the ship!"

We jumped down the hole after everyone else, walking backwards, keeping our eyes on the entrance as we fled, making sure we weren't followed. We were. We could hear the hurried steps rushing down the hall above us as well as the howls of the hunt, and could see the torch light flickering along the cave walls,

"Come on! Go! Keep running! Don't stop for anything!"

"Grif, we can't fight them in such close quarters, they'll have the advantage, since they can come out of the walls." Trixie proclaimed. "We'll have to try and hold them in the chamber. We'll collapse this part of the tunnel once we're in."

"Good idea!"

We continued running until we reached the main chamber, already my crew was pouring through the exit tunnel. The three of us stopped and turned to face the entrance.

"Any ideas how we can cave zat thing in?" Geirmund asked.

"Yeah, I got one. Terra infirma!" Holding my hands on in front of me, I grabbed the air as though I were grasping a large chunk of earth, and with a sweep of my arms, pulled a chunk of stone from the ceiling and slammed it down in front of the cave entrance. "Dirt may be easy, but stone is a little tougher. That'll buy us some time." I repeated the motion, bringing more and more rock cascading down, making a large pile near the tunnel entrance, one that would take quite some time to dig around.

When the dust settled, I could see that there were very few of my crew left in the chamber. Most of the supplies had already been moved onboard the ship, and what remained wasnt worth bringing.

"Is everyone okay?" I asked. After all, caving in a tunnel is rather dangerous. After a quick callout, evacuation continued.

"Good, that'll give us enough time to... *BOOOOOOM* "Protego!"

I activated my protect spell just in time to guard me from the blast, the shield flickering as shards of razor sharp rock shrapnel bouncing off me harmlessly. Dust filled the cavern, though I quickly blew it away with a wind spell to find her standing in the cave entrance. Fia was there, with a number of dogs behind her. I looked to my compatriots to find....

"Oh god... no... nononononno..." To my left, it seems Geirmund got the worst of it. There was a pile of rubble beside me, sharp rocks and heavy stones, with a single metallic hoof sticking out, and an ever growing stream of blood seeping out of the stone.

Dead

To my right, Trixie lay there on the cave floor, wheezing as a single large shard of rock stuck out of her chest, a large pool of blood forming under her as well. "No... noo...." I looked forwards to Fia to find her slowly walking towards me, with an incredibly angry look on her face. I drew my knife and snarled angrily, only for our confrontation to be interrupted by a cracking sound from above. We both looked up to find large piles of dirt and rock start raining down on us. It seems that between my pulling down supporting stone, and the blast of the explosion, the cave had been destabilized and had started coming down. I turned around to find that the exit tunnel had already been blocked by debris. I could no longer escape. Fia smirked, then backed off down the tunnel as the whole thing came down.

Bodies began piling up at the entrance. The hogs and their pig steeds poured through the gate in an attempt to kill the ones holding it closed, while the dogs launched arrows and lasers at the one holding it open, and tried to fend off the assault. The invaders marched over corpses of their own, while the defenders used the body pile of their fallen brethren to make a barricade. Without room to charge, the swines couldn't get enough momentum to break their blockade, and could not impale the hounds on their tusks.

"Ringo!" One of the defenders called joyously, the sight of the ironclad titan, hefting his massive maul, barreling down the tunnel was truly something to behold, something hopeful for his allies, and terrifying for his enemies. They made way for the living wrecking ball as he smashed his way through legions of the attackers, crushing them underfoot and sending entire groups, along with their mounts, flying with a single swing of his club. Ringo was an unstoppable force of destruction as he bashed straight into Pops, though the equally massive boar refused to budge, not abandoning the duty of holding open the gate for his band of mercenaries.

Though the pigs near the ground continually slashed and stabbed at the armored titan, most of the blows bounced off, and those that struck true seemed to have little or no effect. All watched in horror as Ringo arched his back, his hammer above, and brought it down with the full force and fury of a wrathful god onto Pop's head. And still, he refused to move. Again and again, Ringo struck, head, stomach, arm, leg, all while his punching bag took the punishment, until finally, with a single, massive strike, the boar's head exploded from the force of the swing, his brain and skull chunks flying out in a shower, coating his troops.

"Truly a shame... you endured so much, and fought so well. It was... an honor." The stoic titan stated as the body of the massive pig fell backwards, and the gate shut.

"Lumen."

A small sphere of light appeared by my side, showing me the scene. It was pitch black, save for a tiny bit of light shining down through a small hole in the ceiling, letting a bit of precious oxygen in. Geirmund, dead and buried under a pile of rubble, his metal skin hadn't been enough to save him from the tons of rock that came down. If only he hadn't stayed behind. And Trixie, laying there in a pool of her own blood, some of it spurting out of her mouth with each breath as she wheezed, yet still lived.

"Trixie, hold on!" I rushed to her side and gently lifted her to my lap, my hands staining red with her blood.

"Heh... Grif... i'm sorry... I..."

"No, don't talk, save your strength..."

"Shaddup Grif... look a me." She slurred slightly. "I... ain't walkin *hack* away from this." A bit of blood spewed out onto my face. "Dis... is important.... Before I met you... I wuz.. jus... a nopony... a useless, lyin brag... and den you gave me a chance... at bein somepony... and all I did was get in the way..."

The jungle, getting poisoned by the water, the changelings, having her hoof cut off, the Gala, getting shot through the chest by a magic beam, and now this.

"None of those were your fault! If... if I hadn't screwed up so much... The reason you keep getting hurt, the reason you're dying... it's because of me, because I couldn't do what I had to. You weren't useless! You were.... my friend."

"*splurt* "Ha... I'm... I'm glad... But this one... this one is on me... if I hadda jus listened and gone... I wouldn't be like this right now. And ol Gear head... whawuz dat about a stallion standin up fer his family? He keep forgettin we're all jus mortal."

Is was clear she had gone delirious from blood loss and pain.

"Grif.. I got... a favor to ask..."

"Anything..."

"Just... hold me.... till the end comes..."

"I... I...." Tears flooded my mechanical eyes, blurring my vision as pale blue light shone from them. I held her close to me, ignoring the fact that I was now covered in blood, all the way up my arms, my face, and all my hair, the only clean spots being those where tears had washed away the stain. Slowly, I watched as the life faded from her, her eyes becoming glassy and lifeless, her body stiff, and after a while, cold. I swallowed a lump in my throat, and kindled a burning in my heart.

"Don't bother trying to dig him out." I commanded some of the work crew who was clearing the debris. "The clan leaders arrive in three days. He's trapped in there and can't escape, he has no food or water. When they get here, we'll dig him out. He'll be weak from hunger, and we can take him then."

Damn it all. This on top of everything else. I have to abandon my unification plan. After those pigs attacked, this place isn't in any condition to withstand any more fighting. I'll need the clan leaders alive if I want to escape the Nanashi. The whole plan rested on tossing Griffin down the well. He's in that cave, and he's incredibly angry. There's no way I'll be able to capture him without killing him first. That, and heading down the well myself isn't looking so good either. Ringo's plan seemed good at the time, but now it just seems less and less likely to work out. If i hop down the well, the clans won't be unified. I might still be able to bring them in to the fold and escape Eol's wrath, I just wouldn't be the leader of the group anymore.

What am I worried about? I already lowered myself to a slut for Gold Trim, if I can't come out of this as the leader of the union, I can probably get out of this as a wife. After all, gem foxes are rather rare. Heh, a prize to the winner maybe? It would let me gain some power within the faction, even if I can't be the outright leader. It would certainly be more respectful than a pony's whore. And then I can always arrange an accident to happen to my husband. It's fine, it just means the game is extended a little while.

'Come on, come on, where is he? Come on! Grr....' I watched as the last of the crew poured out of the tunnel and clamored on board the ship. Surprise, Dusty, Second Sight... that's it? Where is he?

"Hey... Surprise... where is he? Where's Griffin?" She looked at me with tears streaming down her face, her mane deflated, and absolute desolation in her eyes.

"There was... a cave in... he was on the other side of it."

"No.... Steelhorn! we can't take off yet!" I shouted at the minotaur up top. "Griffin is still down there!"

"We are leaving. If he's still down there, he can take care of himself." The old bull replied calmly.

"You heartless bastard! He saved all of us, and you just want to leave him behind!"

"Damnit get yer head on straight! If he's alive, then he'll get out fine on his own, an if he's dead, then there ain't no point in goin back fer him! Whatcha plan ta do? Huh? Get yerself killed? Ya REALLY think that with tha position yer in, an what he jus did fer ya, that he wants ya to go offin yerself on his account?" I looked at my belly, and felt the baby kick, clearly having been disturbed by what was taking place in the outside world.

"but.. I... he..." Tears streamed down my face.

"What'd he tell ya when ya last saw him?"

"He... he said... 'Just go... I'll be fine...'...."

"And do ya trust him?"

"I..... yes... he's never let me down before."

"Well then, if he says he's fine, then he's fine. That featherbrain has never been one to break a promise, now you best get on believing he'll come back on his own., but for now, we need to GET OUT OF HERE before the airships are prepped and come after us." The minotaur raged. He was right... it's what Griffin wanted, after all, for us to be safe.

"... Take off."

The engines whirred as the ship slowly left the ground, gaining altitude, rising high into the sky before we headed to safer skies. Equestria.

A whole day had passed, or, perhaps it was a day, I couldn't really tell in the minimal light, but there had been no activity around me. Did they think I was dead? Or, were they merely waiting it out? The clan leaders would arrive in two days, and then they'd no doubt come for me. By then I would be weak from starvation, have very little in terms of magic reserves, and be unable to fight or escape.

Alone with my thoughts, I came to realize some things. "Why has this all happened?"

Because the leader needed to kill you.

"Why?"

To prove who was the strongest, to take command of the clans.

"But I'm not the strongest there are stronger people out there. Aoi for one. Why not him, why me?"

Because they HATE you.

That was when I figured it out. Regardless of how my actions had changed their lives, for better or for worse, my actions had CHANGED their lives. These are a people who have been living the same way for hundred, if not thousands, of years. I came in and disrupted their way of life, and they despised me for it. I was the enemy. Mine was the face of evil in their eyes. My name was the ones parents would threaten their children with so they'd behave, a curse word to them, unfit to be spoken in public.

And that, would never change.

They would never stop coming after me. They would hunt me always, chasing me to my grave. If I escaped from here, what then? They'd just come after me again. If they couldn't get to me, then they'd come after my loved ones, my friends and family. Ancientwell had already proven that. What next? Would they go after my child? Would I awake one morning to find an empty crib, or worse, a corpse, and a letter of provocation? So long as I lived, they would NEVER STOP HUNTING ME. They would never leave me alone. Maybe that's my punishment. I had done a lot of bad things, killed a lot of people, all in the name of making the rest of their lives better. That's my sin. When you're in hell, only the devil can help you escape. Perhaps...

Perhaps there was a way. As much as they hated me, they also feared me. All I had to do was make the fear outweigh the hate. I had to cause them such terror and strife that the thought of coming after me would send shivers down their spine, so that they would pray to whatever god they held in highest regard, and perhaps the lesser ones as well, that I simply left them alone. Perhaps it's time to live up to the nickname they gave me. 'Cursed bird.' Perhaps it's time to become just that, a curse on them.

Here I sat, covered up to my elbow in blood, my clothing drenched, and my hair all slick and matted with it. I probably looked terrifying as is. I could definitely make them fear. Fia was already so afraid of me, it wouldn't be hard to strike terror in the hearts of the rest of the alphas that arrived. Yes, it would mean terrible acts of depraved cruelty, but I had already gone so far.. They murdered my crew, my friends and family, and wanted to kill me.

That however, would have to wait. First, I needed to get out of this hole. That would be taken care of when they inevitably came after me. When that time came, I had to be at my best, strong, fast, clever, ready to fight. That meant I needed to eat. I had already gone a whole day without any sustenance, and I had depleted my rations some time ago. There were no sources of food in this collapsed cave.

Trixie's corpse.

I looked at her body, having started to rot ever so slightly, and felt my stomach growl.

"No.. she was my friend, my comrade... she gave her life for me."

Then she's dead, and won't mind. She gave her life for you, she no longer needs her body, as she's passed on. Either eat the corpse, become strong, fight your way out and live, or leave it there, let it rot, be weak when they come for you, and die so her sacrifice was in vain.

My internal argument ended in favor of doing it. Still, it seemed so wrong. Here was my friend, someone who I had formed such a strong bond with, and I was going to eat her dead body, just to survive.

Survive.

That word again. Living means to do so in comfort, in stability. Survival means to take desperate measures to ensure your own continued existence. The rock climber with his arm trapped under a boulder, the dingo with it's leg in a trap, the lizard and it's tail.

"Emotion and sentiment will bring weakness." I whispered to myself in a kind of fervent mantra. "Emotion and sentiment bring weakness... empty of love and hate... empty... only what I need to fight, and survive... fight and survive..."

Lifting one of Trixie's... no... Trixie was gone. This was just a body. Lifting one of the body's hind legs, I used my knife with expert precision to shear the flesh from the bone. I cut out the parts that had started to rot, leaving only the fresh, red meat, mostly drained of blood. Using my magic to create a small fire on the floor, I cooked the meat, huddling next to the flame as to ward off the cold night air that was creeping down from the hole above.

"What was that thing Aoi always said before he ate?" I looked at Trixie, her dead eyes still open and aimed at me, as though she were still watching. "I can't remember. Doesn't really matter anyways." I chowed down on the leg, bits of juice dribbling down my chin as I didn't exactly have cutlery to eat it like a civilized person. "You know, it's not easy, having all these people put their faith in you and then watching them die. It's kinda why I never really got to know the crew on a truly personal level. I mean, does a general know every one of his troops? Of course not... He knows his direct subordinates, and they know THEIR subordinates, and they know theirs, etc, all the way down to the grunt troops. Cuz if they really did know all their soldiers personally, they'd all kill themselves out of grief after they died. They carve out their own hearts so they can live with themselves after they throw away so many lives... all for what?"

After a few moments, I stopped, and looked at my conversational partner. "You don't gotta worry about that much now do you? Not anymore anyways." I turned to look at the Geirmund pile. "All that determination, that bravado, that willpower. The look in your eye said you could stand against the world and win... but the stone in your lungs doesn't agreeeeheeeheee with youooo...ooo."

I quickly slapped myself on the face. "Talking to dead people is not a sane thing to do. I must keep my wits if I am to survive."

Author's Notes:

Well, holy shit, a lot of stuff happened. I took me a long time to figure out how to do some of the scenes. I was debating between PoV swapping, which I dislike, or just going 3rd person for a whole section. As much as I dislike PoV swapping, I'm not experienced with 3rd person, and being in 3rd person makes the reader feel more like an observer rather than a participant, and would go against the entire feel I had created in the story, being a very direct and personal approach. The whole '1st person PoV swap vs 3rd person' and how to do it properly thing is what took me so long to write this chapter, considering that before this one I was cranking out one a day for a little bit. I had the will to write, and I had the inspiration, but I had to get around the mechanics of it. That and Starbound. So much fun.