The Scroll of Exalted Ponies

The week that followed saw an uneasy calm settle over Chung Do. The castle’s stores quickly shrank, and Chung Onyx as well as the castle staff and guards weren't that keen on the humble size of their rations. All the while Speaker set to work recalling how he had slain demons and primordial-sympathizing gods during the primordial war, also checking up on Cash’s recovery from his drowning-induced brain damage. Red and Sunrise helped with crowd control for the food distribution, Red marvelling at how Sunrise with words alone instilled the hungry massed with a sense moral discipline that ensured that the food distribution proceeded as if by clockwork. Sunrise spoke to the hungry and the sick of how whole city had to live, and that each of them would get their piece in time.

Shimmer also aided in the food distribution by supplementing the castle’s food stores via hunting. Being able to fly out Shimmer could easily bypass the roadblocks, and by the fourth time she returned the ponies of Chung Do on the twin-fountain square were cheering on as Shimmer landed in her monsterpony form, carrying four large boars – one for each talon-filled foot, even more so when she would withdrawn dozen more from elsewhere.

All during this Sullen Hoof remained missing and unseen. The circle agreed that this was becoming worrysome: Shimmer couldn’t imagine that Sully would shy away from joining the fight against the water walkers: “Hell, if he’d helped out by infiltrating the gang we might have learned of their plans a lot sooner…”

After the week had passed Cash finally woke up one morning, fully aware and in control of his facilities, with no signs of brain damage. The first thing he called for was a bath, with the rest of the circle quickly gathering in his quarters to celebrate his recovery. Of course, Cash was – to put it very mildly – disappointed when he learned of the rationing: “…and you knew where the water walkers have been hiding the rice all this time? What have you been waiting for?”

Speaker explained Cash the plan they had come up with and how they had come up with it: Shimmer had scouted out the granary and counted over eight dozen water walkers at the compound and helped Speaker draw up a detailed map of the place, apparently using a charm that allowed her to see through the local wildlife near the granary to constantly check up on the place. The granary itself was simple enough, with several large wooden barns for dry storage of the rice and a waterwheel that powered a mill for grinding rice-flour, as well as a barrack for the laborers that usually worked in the surrounding rice paddies – the owners of the granary and the laborers appeared to have been evicted.

With a map of the compound and the sentry patrol routes Speaker had originally devised a plan whereby the circle would sneak into the compound via the stream, but Shimmer had via her essence sight spotted the gang’s water elementals lounging in the stream. This had complicated things, as there weren’t any other ways in that offered good cover for stealthy approaches.

Because of this Speaker together with Red had come up with a different plan: Red and Shimmer would do a frontal assault, drawing out and engaging as many water walkers as possible, while Speaker would hang back and keep an eye out for the water elementals. If and when the godblooded mare would join the fight Red would engage her directly, while Shimmer would handle all of the water walkers – something Shimmer assured Cash that she was more than capable of.

This left Cash wondering exactly how he fit into the plan, since clearly the circle had been waiting for him to recover. To his disappointment the circle unanimously insisted that Cash stay out of the fighting. Red put it bluntly as only she could: “Until you learn some defensive charms or ox-body techniques you’re too frail for combat”

“Oh please, I’m as sturdy as the next pony” Cash boasted, stretching slowly and painfully as he stood up for the first time in a week.

Red wasn’t impressed: “That’s the problem Cash. You’re ‘only’ as sturdy as a mortal pony. That just doesn’t cut when up against elementals, godblooded ponies or other exalted. If Speaker had been just a few minutes late in getting you breathing again you would’ve drowned. All of us know ox-body techniques or defensive charms, or both. Sure, you’re not that bad with your claw-shoes against mortal opponents, but you were knocked out in seconds by that magic water”

Cash reluctantly conceded that he wasn’t as battle-hardened as Red or Speaker, but still wondered if he had any roll at all to play in the recovery of the rice. He had. Speaker explained that Cash and Sunrise were to hold back and stay out of sight until the fighting was over, then come in and talk whatever surviving water walkers down into orderly submission – assuming they hadn’t fled at that point.

There was also one other thing to do before Shimmer was to fly the circle out to the granary: Sunrise had been asking around to find out where the water walkers might have gotten hold of their water elementals. Such spirits of nature were usually under control of local gods, and sure enough the ponies of Chung Do mentioned a goddess by the name of Gudaa, the god of the brown river – the river that ran through Chung Do. Basically what Sunrise wanted to do was to meet this god and try to get the elementals recalled.

“…and how exactly do you plan on summoning a god?” Cash wondered.

Shimmer chuckled: “Oh come on Cash, every foal should know that… you just pray hard enough”

“And my essence sees to that my prayers are always heard. What I need you for is to help ascertain if the god is being truthful” Sunrise solemnly stated.

After Cash had cleaned up and gotten dressed the circle went down to the docks where a shrine to Gudaa had been made countless generations ago. The shrine itself was but a statue carved of granite in such a way that it looked like a mare with a mane of water-plants and limbs that all flowed into a single wave of wave of water. It was customary that all who sailed the brown river to give a token offering in the large bowl at the base of the shrine, which contained strange shards of blue glass that gave off ice-cold flames that consumed all the offerings chucked in the bowl.

Sunrise moved up in front of the shrine with the rest of the circle apart from the missing Sullen Hoof standing behind the adolescent mare.

Sunrise drew a deep breath and proceeded to sing a most beautiful song. Speaker had to wonder when Sunrise had come up with the song, for it was a wonderful ode to the calm waters of the brown river, its steady flow and its life-giving bounties all of which of course were thanks to the goddess Gudaa. Aside from the singing sounding hauntingly beautiful Speaker couldn’t help but develop a strange sense of curiosity while hearing the song. This only made him ponder the question of when and how Sunrise had come up with such a perfect song for the occasion even harder.

After a few minutes of singing the waters under the pier that the circle was standing on began to bubble and churn. At first the circle was startled, but then a most curious sight emerged from the waters next to the pier – well, to a native of Great Forks it probably wasn’t that impressive, but still: A being roughly in the shape of a pony, with limbs of the murky water of the river and a body clad in a flowing dress of the red, blue and purple flowers that grew along the banks of the river and a head that looked as if somehow hewn from a solid chunk of living ice that constantly melted yet never shrank, giving off a beautiful flowing mane of clear water that perfectly accentuated the goddesses eye’s of spherical sapphires.

There was a moment of silence where only the background noise of the city, which was much quieter than usual due to the plague greatly reducing the amount of business going on, and the sound of flowing water under Gudaa could be heard, as she stood on a pedestal of her river’s water.

The goddess seemed most curious: “Oh… what interesting guests I have… and such pretty singing. Who do I have to thank for that” she spoke, her voice deep and overbearing, like a joyous grandmother visited for the first time by a darling granddaughter.

“Greetings Gudaa, Goddess of the brown river – I am Sunrise Glow, of the solar zenith caste. I have humbly prayed for an audience with you on the matter of a gang of criminals from Chung Do which me and my associates here have seen in command of a number of water elementals. We wish to know if you are aware of any of your or other local elemental courts having a problem with rogue elementals aiding and abetting in mortal criminal activity” Sunrise rapidly stated in a monotone voice.

The goddess seemed a bit taken aback at how direct Sunrise was, Sunrise not starting off with polite conversation or a lengthier personal introduction, but the goddess none the less mulled over the question: “Hmm… no, I know of no elemental courts in my domain that would do something like that. Have they caused trouble?”

Sunrise explained that with the power of the elementals backing up them up one gang, called the Water Walkers, had stolen all the rice in Chung Do – and that it would be much easier to recover the rice if the elementals weren’t there to be enforcers for the gang.

“What a terrible debacle. But truthfully, I know of no rogue water elementals in my domain. All of my minions are, to my knowledge, at their posts as dictated by me – either performing their given duties or serving me in my court when I deign to reside there” Gudaa gracefully stated.

Sunrise remained silent for a moment to give her circle-mates time to add anything, an opportunity that Cash used to ask about Water Hoof, the godblooded mare. Gudaa’s response to this was a mirthful one: “Should I even be caught disgracing myself with a mortal I can assure all of you that I would keep such an offspring in my court as a servant or simply kill it off to avoid the embarrassment. Whatever spirit that bore this godblooded pony is disgracing itself by allowing this Water Hoof to commit these criminal acts you speak of”

“Very well oh goddess of the brown river. We graciously thank you for your information. We shall deal with these water walkers on our soon enough, and then we can put all of this behind us” Sunrise said, nodding.

Satisfied with Gudaa’s answers Sunrise Glow thanked Gudaa for her time, bowing gracefully. Gudaa bowed her head in kind, stating that it had been far too long since she had entertained solars: “Sunrise Glow, you are more than welcome to visit me in my spirit court should you wish – merely pray for guidance and I shall send a servant spirit to show you the way”

With this said Gudaa sank into the river, disappearing from sight without leaving even a single ripple on the surface of the water.

“Well that was interesting” Cash noted, looking intrigued.

Speaker looked quizzically at Cash. Cash chuckled: “Well she’s certainly a river goddess, because you don’t get any more slippery than that”

“What do you mean?” Red wondered.

Cash explained that while it was perfectly plausible that Gudaa was speaking the truth, but she none the less dodged most of Sunrise Glow’s questions, while Sunrise also never asked directly whether Water Hoof had directly lent or stationed the elementals with the water walkers: “What if the ‘proper’ duty station of those water elementals were with the water walkers? And while she said that whatever spirit had born this godblood has disgraced itself, then that didn’t answer if she knew who it was – or if it was herself”

Sunrise defended her choice of words by arguing that insulting gods is never wise: “The mere insinuation would have offended her. It would be most unwise to upset the god government the city’s main source of wealth”
“Sunrise, darling, there’s being polite – and then there’s failing to get any useful information by being a slave to etiquette. You have to admit that we’re none the wiser after this brief little audience with Gudaa”
With a huff Sunrise turned and began to walk back towards the castle: “Cash Charmer, if you are not satisfied with my inquiries then feel free to summon the next divinity we need speak to yourself”

Back at the castle the circle armed themselves once more. Meeting in the courtyard Speaker couldn’t help but notice that Red hadn’t put on her lamellar barding yet, indeed she didn’t seem to have brought any out at all –but Red said that she was saving her energy for the fight: “Weighing ourselves down prematurely will just lead to us wasting essence and energy”
Sunrise commended Red on her prudence. Cash noted that he wasn’t entirely pleased with not having to fight, but was curious about how they were going to handle the water elementals. Speaker was happy to inform Cash that he’d solved that issue: “I’ll be on elemental overwatch. If they appear I’ll be able to see them, even if dematerialized – and I’ll have a nasty surprise waiting for them if they do”

Shimmer conjured her cloud and the circle was off at great speed. While in-flight Speaker explained that while meditating on his first age memories to find a way to fight spirits he’d recalled a basic technique that allowed solars to see, hear and otherwise sense spirits, ghosts and demons of all kinds while they were invisible: “It requires some basic knowledge on how spirits work to perform, but I think you will all have to agree that learning this charm will be useful for all of you”
Red agreed, reminding the circle that once the gang had been dealt with there still was the deathknight in the swamps that the Bodhisattva had warned against – and that might mean encountering similarly immaterial soul-eating hungry ghosts. Cash agreed, noting that it’d make any future diplomatic work with gods and spirits a lot easier. Sunrise said that she already knew it, but agreed that Red, Cash and even Sullen Hoof would stand to benefit from learning this charm. Of course, Red and Cash weren’t in any way learned about the ways of spirits, ghosts and demons – so while Shimmer began to lower the cloud to the ground Speaker used his harmonious academic methodology to impart wisdom into the minds of Red and Cash.

After they had landed Shimmer explained that they were about three miles south of the granary. Retrieving a map from elsewhere, Shimmer showed how the stream that fed the water-wheel powering the rice-mill at the granary came via a hill that they were on the other side of. She had landed there to avoid the water walker patrols that surrounded the place from spotting her cloud.

“Of couse, at this point subletly isn’t a concern – so I’ll just be over here…” Shimmer said, smiling as she sauntered away from the circle.

Speaker was about to ask what she meant when Shimmer began to shapeshift – and grow – and grow – and she just kept on growing…

Previously for the warehouse raid Shimmer had grown to the size of a large bull, three times the size of a pony – but this was much much bigger. Equally, Shimmer’s shapeshifting usually only lasted a few seconds – but this one took several minutes… and when done she was in her monsterpony form, standing over ten yards tall and at least a twenty yards long, each of her feathers this time morphed into a chitinous feather-shaped scale half an inch thick in some places. Now Speaker understood why Shimmer had insisted that she could take over several hundred waters walkers with ease – her talons alone were over three feet long, like big silvery scythes!

“Behold, the emperor ox expansion! Now let’s get stompy!" Shimmer roared.

Looking at the rest of the circle and the puddle of piss growing underneath Cash, Speaker wondered whether they would even have to fight?

Bolstered by Shimmer’s grand display of protean might the circle marched on the water walkers. Just before reaching the crest of the hill Cash called for the others to stop. He explained that with Shimmer looking like a beast of legend, a compliment Shimmer was quite happy to hear, then he would like another go at talking the water walkers down… acknowledging that if he failed he would retreat post haste and let the others do the fighting. The circle agreed, and so Cash climbed up on Shimmer, sitting on over her giant head-sized third eye.

As the circle appeared over the top of the hill, with Shimmer’s giant monsterpony form well lit by the noon-day sun, it only took a few seconds before the water walkers were scrambling to muster their forces. Hundreds of water walkers poured out of the barracks to confront the massive two-story monster that approached, with a strangely familiar pony riding on top.

Watching as the water walkers lined up at the fence that circled the granary, Cash smiled. When he saw the young godblooded Water Hoof stomp around and shout orders, trying to keep the water walkers from fleeing in terror he was even more amused: “Greetings Water Hoof – we meet again. Shall we talk about you surrendering the rice to us?”

Water Hoof sneered up at Cash and formed her magic sledgehammer from the mist around her hooves: “You come and get it”

“Oh come now, don’t make Shimmer here sit on you – you won’t like that, she farts” Cash mirthfully threatened.
The giant monsterpony chuckled and nodded, Cash somehow miracously not falling off as her head shook: “It’s true – my rear is more deadly than my front”

It was clear that Water Hoof was used to intimidating ponies of less power than her. Cash could see her resolve wavering; the godblooded thug wasn’t sure what to do…

“Again, the rice – or I’ll pour your blood back into the brown river for mommy to have a sniff at” Cash ominously threatened, gesturing forcefully with a hoof – all three claws on his magic shoe fully extended.

While Water Hoof had appeared perturbed by the situation so far, this direct threat on her life – plus the allusion to her supernatural mother and the brown river – seemed to do exactly what Cash wanted: It provoked a response. Water Hoof snarled, looked back at the rest of the water walkers, then bellowed “Kill them!” before she leapt on a jet of water up at Cash.

Red, who had been hiding behind Shimmer’s large feather-scaled ears jumped forth, intercepting the crushing blow – engaging the godblooded mare with her blade while at the same time retrieving her bright red lamellar armor and donning it instantly in a single elegant aegis-assuming gesture: “Oh no you don’t!”

Shimmer, seeing the hundreds of water walkers swarm towards her, roared and lashed out with her claws – killing dozens with each blow. Her swings equally revealed Speaker who had been riding along on her talons behind her legs, as he leapt down and took pot-shots at the water walkers with Gift, working out some of the anger he had built up against himself for having to mutilate the water walker Milda; oh how he hated the water walkers for having led to him resorting to such a vile act, oh how he regretted having done it.

In between slinging Gift back and forth to lob off another head Speaker wondered if Cash’s power over words could possibly rid Milda of any lasting psychological trauma associated with her ordeal? Maybe Cash could even talk her out of being a criminal, which would be nice.

Speaker didn’t get much time to contemplate Milda’s recovery before he spotted the translucent forms of the water elementals converging on Shimmer. Running away from the frontline where Shimmer was turning the gate into the compound into a meat grinder full of dead water walkers, Speaker circled around to the side, making it appear as if he was trying to flank the mortal water walkers. What Speaker was really doing was trying to get closer to the approaching water elementals by running straight at them.

Flinging gift with all his might at the first elemental in range, Speaker bellowed a mighty battlecry as the primordial disk sailed through the air and cut through the ethereal essence in an invisible display of essence carnage. It actually looked quite amusing, as the disk zipped through a seemingly empty bit of a air on the hillsize, only for it to suddenly look as if Gift had cut a hole in an invisible barrel of water – as the water elementals life-fluids gushed out, the elemental deflating and fading into nothing.

Speaker knew quite well that his attack had only dissolved the spirit – not killed it. The elemental would reincarnate in a month or so at its master’s court, possibly Gudaa, but this was more than enough to neutralize the elemental for the time being. Seeing one of their kin be ‘slain’ so swiftly and without warning shocked the surrounding elementals, and Speaker saw them alter their course and converge on him.

Back at the meat grinder Shimmer had routed the water walkers after Red, in a terrible and mighty display of martial proves, had – even after her sword had smashed by Water Hoof’s magic sledgehammer – beaten up Water Hoof to such an extent that the godblooded pony was lying unconscious and bleeding down on the ground, having slipped off Shimmer’s blood-spattered and slippery feather-scales.

Speaker made surprisingly short work of the other elementals around him, which really didn’t surprise him: The spirit-cutting attack he had relearned from his first age memories was one developed to slay the mightiest of demons and primordials – so lesser elementals like this was hardly a challenge, as the charm made Gift cut not just the ethereal ‘flesh’ of the elementals, but also what passed for their spirit-souls, literally cutting their minds apart.

The elementals on the other side of Shimmer had long since spotted what Speaker had been doing and had chosen wisely to flee, especially after Water Hoof had been reduced to what looked like a leaky pony-shaped sack of whimpering blood and guts.

With the battle seemingly won Shimmer advanced into the courtyard of the granary and began shifting herself back to her normal pony form, the various blades and knives that had been jammed between her feather-scales popping out like acupuncture-needles as she shrank. Red, Cash, Sunrise and Speaker joined around her, congratulating themselves on a well-fought battle.

Speaker, with the help of Shimmer, began to sift through the carnage that Shimmer had left behind at the gate. The water walkers who were only wounded, of what few there were, were tended to so that they might live to stand trial or be re-educated, all the while Cash and Red discussed how to get the rice back to Chung Do. Sunrise paced around the compound, shouting for what water walkers that might be hiding to come forth and surrender, assuring them that no harm would come to them if they surrender peacefully. None came forth.

It was while he was hoof-deep in a by now heavily anesthetized and dying water walker’s guts that Speaker heard Red shouting for the circle to come over. Literally wrapping up the water walker so that she might live and staunching the last few bleeds, Speaker ran back to see a triumphant Red hauling out a very annoyed-looking old stallion: Red had caught Paddle Splash. The gang leader had been hiding in the miller’s office, something Sunrise had informed them of after discovering a large number of foals in the barracks.

“Hold on, why would there be foals here?” Speaker wondered.

Shimmer quickly clued him in on the grim truth: After the water walkers had taken control of the food supply, a lot of families in Chung Do that couldn’t afford to buy food had instead opted to simply join the gang. It was obvious that a lot of ponies in Chung Do had seen the actions of the water walkers as reprehensible, but at the same time the gang seemed to be the only way out of a city riddled with plague and soon to be under siege from the rebelling nobles. This also answered a question that had been bothering Red for a while now: How the water walkers had been able to keep fighting for so long against Shimmer in her emperor ox sized monsterpony form – for they had been fighting not just for the gang, but for the survival of their families… which led to the rather uncomfortable realization that a lot of the foals that Sunrise had discovered were probably orphans at this point, with the circle being the killers of their parents.

This was confirmed when Sunrise came out of the barracks with them, all in all about sixty foals, many of which quickly found their dead parents among the bloody remains at the gate to the compound. They reacted as one might expect…

“Well this certainly makes you feel like a god damn hero, doesn’t it?” Cash quipped, gesturing for Shimmer and Sunrise to ‘do something’ about the inconsolable foals and the cacophony of their high-pitched crying.

The grim realization that many of the water walkers they had slain were parents fighting to defend their foals almost made the circle forget about Paddle Splash, but Cash noticed the old stallion trying to sneak away and ‘caught’ him by firing a shoe-claw so it landed in front of him.

Not wanting the gang leader to be left out of the misery Cash led Paddle Splash up to the gates among his dead gang members and their bawling foals, to show him the gruesome sight that was the remains of Water Hoof.

To Cash’s surprise the godblooded pony was still alive, even if only barely, but Paddle Splash was horrified to see his daughter in such a state none the less. Of course, Cash hadn’t led Paddle Splash up to his daughter for hugs and tea: “Water Hoof, for the crime of knowingly inflicting bodily harm on a solar… I sentence you to death”

Paddle Splash barely had time to react before Cash leveled a hoof against Water Hoof’s head and fired a shoe-claw into her head, killing her instantly. Cash gave Paddle Splash a smug grin, the old stallion merely giving Cash a grim frown in return without saying a word.

“Speaker, Red, I believe you two have grievances with this pony?” Cash called out.

Approaching Cash and Paddle Splash it was clear that the old gang leader had accepted his defeat and wasn’t trying to fight back, but while Red was quick to suggest that the stallion should simply be executed as well Speaker wanted to question Paddle Splash first: “Who were you selling the rice to?

“Screw you” Paddle Splash replied defiantly, spitting on the blood-soaked ground in front of Speaker.

Cash extended a shoe-claw and held it at the old stallion’s tail: “I don’t like your tone old man, now answer”

Paddle Splash broke into laughter: “Ha! As if any of you could hurt me – I’ve got divine protection”

“I don’t see much of anything for you here aside from us. Your gang is gone and you have no enforcers left to protect you” Red noted, surveying the bloody battlefield.

“No it means he has a deal with someone – or something. Gudaa am I right?” Cash inquired, poking Paddle Splash a bit further in the nose with his one extended shoe-claw, drawing a tiny trickle of blood.

Paddle Splash smiled and nodded slowly, seemingly ignoring the sharp claw being jammed into his nose: “Why yes – so you’re all still dead if you touch me. Heck, killing Water Hoof will probably be enough for that, so hurting me will only make it worse… say, how about all the rice paddies around Chung Do flooding and ruining what crops that are left to feed the city?”
“In case you didn’t notice, then Speaker over here terminated three elementals just outside the gates – I’m reasonably sure that he could do something similar to Gudaa if she doesn’t call off her elementals should they come after us – so trust me, you are in no position to intimidate us” Cash noted. Speaker nodded.

Again Paddle Splash laughed, although not nearly as much as before: “Right, and Gudaa will just sit idly by while you kill members of her court? You’re all dead – she’ll drown you all slow-like…”

“Right, I’ve heard enough of this scum” Red said, stepping up to Paddle Splash with a hoof raised, it wreathed in a bright golden cutting edge of essence.

Speaker put a hoof to Red’s raised hoof: “Hold on, I still want to know who he was selling the rice to”

“And why would I? I don’t talk to dead po-” Paddle Splash began, only to be cut short by Red striking him hard on his shoulder, just under his neck: “I’m tired of you giving us lip. Tell us or we’ll take you back to the castle give you the same treatment we gave Milda!”

Hearing Red threaten the gang leader with the same medical horror that Speaker had subjected Milda to sent shivers down Speaker’s spine: “Oh no – I’m not doing that again, ever!”

While still holding quite firmly on to Paddle Splash, Red briefly glanced at Speaker and nodded with a fleeting smile. Hearing that Speaker never wanted to hurt another pony like that gave her a profound sense of relief – of course, this still begged the question of how to ferret information out of Paddle Splash.

This issue might have been resolved back at the castle, but the circle never got a chance to do so as suddenly the stream around the water-wheel erupted as if a geyser had just gone off. Paddle Splash began laughing again: “What took you so long!”

The reply to Paddle Splash’s question was a swift jet of high pressure water that tore off the old stallion’s head, it skidding along the pools of water walker blood before coming to rest. As the mist from the geyser settled and the explosion of water rained down over the granary the circle found themselves facing Gudaa.

Cash stepped forward, partially drenched like the rest of the circle, looking neither pleased nor surprised yet he still spoke with a cocky tone informed by his confidence: “Come to wrap up any loose ends? Kill any incriminating witnesses? I’m sorry to say that Paddle Splash already ratted you out Gudaa, said you had a lovely little deal with him. You’re in so much trouble now”

Gudaa, floating above the water wheel on a column of standing water, was three times as big as when she had appeared at the Chung Do docks: “Silence! I came as soon as I had interrogated my own minions as to what was going on with these ‘water walkers’ after we spoke at the docks in Chung Do– I’m here to retrieve my servants before they do any more damage”
Explaining herself, Gudaa told the circle that many years ago she had discovered that one of her elementals had fallen in love with a boatspony and smuggler at Chung Do due to his skills at navigating the waterways. This had resulted in a godblooded foal being born, which deeply embarrassed Gudaa as such offspring were considered a sign that Gudaa’s underlings were literally screwing around while on the job – which in turn didn’t reflect well on Gudaa’s management skills. To solve the issue Gudaa thought she had hushed up the event by delivering the foal to the father and ensuring his silence by assigning a few water elementals to be the foal’s bodyguards as a gift in order to keep him quiet. This had clearly backfired, as was evident from how this godblooded mare had abused her guardians and turned herself and them into thuggish enforcers. Gudaa claimed that she had arrived just now after having extracted all of this information from the ‘mother’ elemental, who was not at pleased of how criminal her daughter was, who had remained silent about the situation for years out of embarrassment. As Gudaa retold the story and surveyed the slaughter that her corrupt minions’ actions had ultimately led to she became increasingly furious and frustrated, her waters swelling and roiling with fury at how such deceit could have taken place without her noticing it.

Cash nodded. Gudaa seemed genuinely upset at the turn of events and the goddess commended the circle on having fought of the water walkers and somehow even besting her admittedly rogue elementals. Sunrise and Shimmer both agreed that this sounded surprisingly reasonable, as such subterfuge by lesser spirits wasn’t that uncommon in other parts of creation. Gudaa added that Paddle Splash had been appeasing her via regular offerings and sacrifices as ‘thanks’ for having been granted a daughter with such powers, which in hindsight were probably funded via stolen goods – or were simply stolen property being sacrificed.

“Well you will have to forgive my initial and erroneous presumption then Gudaa – I can assure you that we will go quietly with these facts, provided that you can show better oversight of your elemental underlings. But ultimately, it is all water under the bridge now. We will return the rice to Chung Do and you can return to your heavenly duties” Cash curiously stated, bowing his head, Gudaa similarly making a polite gesture in return.

Shimmer turned to Speaker while Cash proceeded to entertain Gudaa with polite banter: “You know; it’s nice to deal with gods that are at least somewhat reasonable for once. In the west I’d often have to engage entire spirit courts in battle in order to get them to stop misbehaving… why are you looking like that?”

Speaker was staring intently at Gudaa, who’s form had reduced itself to a more pony-sized one, as she followed Cash around. Shimmer gave Speaker a poke.

After the fourth poke Speaker finally turned to give Shimmer an annoyed glare: “Would you stop that – I’m trying to remember something”

“Remember what?” Shimmer wondered, looking at Speaker then at Cash and Gudaa. Behind them Sunrise had miraculously calmed down the roughly 60 orphan foals and was leading them back into the barracks, away from the carnage, but not before going over to the stream by the waterwheel to wash all the blood off the foals.

Speaker took a deep breath, paused for a moment then sighed: “Gudaa is lying. I know she is. I’ve been thinking all week ever since I took that poor water walker apart that there had to be a better way to get to get the truth out of prisoners… it wasn’t until Gudaa started talking here that I finally remembered it… a charm that lets me know if what I’m hearing is true or false”

Shimmer had to admit that such an ability sounded very nice – and obscenely useful! This of course led to the question of what exactly Gudaa had been lying about. Speaker explained that according to his lie-detector charm then Paddle Splash definitely had some kind of deal going on with Gudaa, that much she confirmed herself by mentioning the appeasement sacrifices – and the part about him and an elemental having a godblooded foal together… but the sacrifices that Paddle Splash made to Gudaa? That wasn’t to appease her, nor had Water Hoof and her elemental bodyguards’ criminal activities been a problem at all – no, Gudaa had clearly known about that in advance and was ok with it.

“Then go tell Cash – what are you waiting for?!” Shimmer said, gesturing energetically for Speaker to get moving. It was clear to Shimmer that Cash had been more curious about investigating the immediate uses and functionality of his lie-detection charm instead of acting on the information. She had seen this countless times with freshly exalted lunars who wanted to frolic and play around with their various animal forms and shapeshifting charms.

“Hey, hold up!” Speaker shouted. Cash and Gudaa turned to see Speaker galloping towards them.

Speaker stopped next to Cash: “Gudaa is lying. She knew what Water Hoof and her elemental bodyguards were doing with Paddle Splash – she didn’t come here to retrieve her minions, she came here to cover up her dealings with the water walkers!”

“Well Speaker, as always you have the social graces of a sack of cabbage” Cash said in return, throwing a smile at Gudaa who put on a forced smile, but as Speaker looked as if he wasn’t going away any time soon Cash decided to hear him out… and Cash couldn’t help noticing that Gudaa seemed to become a bit annoyed as Speaker talked about this first age truth-telling charm he’d finally remembered how worked, Speaker calling it the “Judge’s Ear Technique”.

Gudaa was, as Cash had noticed, less than pleased with Speaker not just implying that she might not be telling the truth – but calling her a liar by accusing her directly. Of course, the conversation had equally revealed to Gudaa that Speaker was a solar as well… which made things a little more tricky – still, Gudaa had to at least try to save face: “How can we be certain that you have properly understood the workings of this first age charm?”

Cash conceded that a quick test might be in order, to which end he asked Speaker to judge whether his following statement was a lie or not. Cash cleared his throat and boldly stated, with a grand smile on his face: “When I got my cutie mark my father treated me to a trip to a nearby brothel. I screwed the whore I picked for hours – it was one of the best days of my life!”

Had Speaker heard the statement without his lie-detector charm he would have accepted the statement – as it fit quite well with how Cash usually acted, plus a newly cutie marked colt could easily have enough vigor to pull off a feat like that – but the charm… said that the hours part and the best day of his life part were both lies. The implications were obvious, but Speaker simply said: “No it was not one of the best days of your life and you did not last for hours”

Cash nodded: “True, she barely touched me before I finished – it was one of my greatest embarrassments – but…” he said, turning to Gudaa: “…not as big as yours, for now I believe Speaker in that you’ve been lying to us all along. What do you have to say for yourself?”

Gudaa huffed and floated backwards, the pillar of water she stood on swelling with self-rightous indignation: “I do not have to answer to you! No solar holds domain over my waters and my minions – I can do with them as I see fit!”

“So you knew that Paddle Splash and Water Hoof were using your minions to commit crimes… I’m guessing that the ‘deal’ Paddle Splash had with you was a share of the loot being sacrificed to you in exchanged for getting those elemental enforcers?” Cash boldly stated, his smile turning into a malign grin as he relished in the sudden turn of events and future prospects of being able to blackmail a god.

The godess’ form swelled once again, becoming three times the size of a normal pony. In her towering form Gudaa bellowed: “Puny solars – you speak as if your words still carry consequence. I am a god, you are but a circle of fools with delusions of unwarranted self-importance!”

“We could report you to Yu-Shan for corruption, murder and dereliction of duty – you wouldn’t want that?” Cash teased with stern by sly eyes, unphased by the display of godly power by virtue of his own confidence.

“Fools! You think that the celestial bureaucracy cares for the petty grievances of mortals? Dereliction of duty? Oh you make me laugh! The brown river still flows, and thus my duty is upheld. You have no power over me” Gudaa said with a cruel laughter, twirling around herself as her water column continued to grow, water elementals from the stream feeding the water wheel floating up into the air to join with her.

Speaker was quickly growing tired of this arrogant goddess thinking herself above the plight of those her actions made suffer. Gift whirred to life and zipped out of his saddle bags, attaching itself to his right hoof as he reared up with a loud whinny, assuming the strong stance that followed the Thousand Wounds Gear Style form of martial arts. Gudaa responded to this by summoning up a shield of water elementals in front of her: “You dare raise arms against me? If you want any hopes of returning the stolen rice to Chung Do you will put down your weapons and swear that you will never trouble me for my actions or complicity in the actions of the water walkers!”

Now it was Cash’s turn to laugh: “Oh really? You should have seen how quickly Spealer dispatched your other elementals here… you think holding up half a dozen of them in front of you will be any different? Face it: You’re ours now. If we tell the ponies of Chung Do what you did they’ll tear down your shrine and spread the word to encourage every other city and village on the banks of the brown river to do to the same. We own you”

With a divine gesture from Gudaa the large wooden barns and granary structures holding the rice burst – scores of previously hidden water elementals appearing to tear the outer structure apart, revealing the countless sacks of rice within as the elementals now held the wall-less structures together, clearly awaiting orders rip the buildings apart completely: “If you harm me or my minions I shall have all the rice churned into the mud so thoroughly that the only food you can return to Chung Do with will be mud pies” Gudaa states, her voice harsh like a fast stream full of sharp rocks.

Speaker and Cash both quickly looked around to see what happened. The barracks had also been partially demolished, with the sound of terrified foals shrieking coming from inside.

“Can you tell how many elementals are holding each barn up? Can you take them out before they ruin the rice if we attack them?” Cash quickly asked Speaker. Speaker simply shook his head: “Not possible. There are too many”

Shimmer turned into her monsterpony form, hissing like an angry bird at the water elementals while brandishing her great silver talons at them. Gudaa wasn’t impressed: “A lunar too? Good grief, is this a whole circle of anathema? Oh this is too rich… and you’re all powerless to stop me. I should see you all killed simply for daring to interfere with my business with the water walkers! Do you have any idea how many valuables they sacrified to me in return for the power I gave them?”

The elementals that had been assembling in the column of water under Gudaa surged out, surrounding Cash and Speaker, Shimmer, and flowing into the barracks only to shortly thereafter come out with Sunrise and all the foals under guard.

“Killing you all and delivering the bodies to the bronze faction should see me promoted to goddess of all rivers of the east!” Gudaa gloated, slowly advancing towards Cash and Speaker – like water slowly rising to drown them all.

Suddenly a large hedgehog struck Gudaa in the back of her ice-sculpted head, its spines digging into the goddess’ head of ice. Gudaa howled as she tore the animal off her head and threw it on the ground, the circle turning to look at where the animal had come from.

A mare covered in a bright yellow hood on the roof of the water-wheel house, standing next to a sack full of squirming hedgehogs, with a very ornate metal bow floating in the air next to her was waving at the circle: “I think you could use some help”

Gudaa shrieked and called all of her water elementals to her, the hundreds of elementals that were holding up the barns swarming to her like a tsunami. The barns fell over piece by piece as the elementals let go of the structure they had been holding up after knocking the outer walls and superstructure apart to reveal themselves.

Amidst the loud crashing noise, the sound of timbers snapping and wooden planks breaking as everything collapsed the mystery mare leapt down to Speaker and Cash, turning to face Gudaa: “I have been authorized to use terminal sanction. You will cease and desist all activities not related to your purview of managing the brown river this instant. Comply or I will mine you for starmetal myself!”

“Curse you!” Gudaa shrieked as her mighty form flowed over to the water-mill, crashing through it as she dived into the water and disappeared. The hooded mare effortlessly leapted to the side, landing near Cash and Speaker.

Sunrise and the foals came running out of the barracks, finding the rest of the circle staring at the strange hooded mare who had joined the circle down on the ground.

As the dust settled on the collapsed water-wheel the circle became very curious as to who this strange hooded mare-do-well was…