The Price of Love

The cool night air would have lent a peaceful feel to the base camp, except that the place was filled with Griffins, and they were anything but peaceful for the most part. They were loud and boisterous, and often got into fights. They gambled their wages away, and would have drank their winnings away, except that Major Bloodclaw frowned on drinking while out in the field.

Twilight Sparkle was in no shape to notice any of this when they arrived in the camp. Bloodclaw promptly kicked her out of the chariot upon landing, and when she tried to get up, he kicked her back down, causing her to land on her broken wing. Ignoring her tormented cries of pain, he grabbed a clawful of her mane and pulled her back up to her hooves. Half dragging her along, he pulled her to a tent calling for a pair of guards to follow.

Once inside, Bloodclaw’s Aide-de-Campe pulled a length of chain with a collar attached out of a box. He hooked the free end to a post in the center of the tent, and then hooked the collar around her neck. His next action was to produce a folding chair, which he unfolded and offered it to the Major, who took a seat in front of the trembling Alicorn.

“Do you know why you are here, Twilight, in this camp, late at night, with none of your friends around to comfort you?” When he received no reply, other than a barely perceptible shake of her head, he continued, “It is because of Celestia’s arrogance that you are here. Her arrogance, and her failure as a world leader. Yes, I know, Equestria is a mighty nation, who lords over the whole of the Earth, but that is just a house of cards, and when that house of cards tumbles, all the rest of the nations that are part of that house of cards will tumble with her.

“We Griffins do not want that. We worry for our fellow neighbors, who are stuck under the hooves of your precious princess. But Griffica is a strong nation, and we seek to be stronger still, so that we can be strong for other nations to rally around.” Getting up to leave, he told her, “I do hope that you understand sacrifices must be made, young Twilight, for the sake of others. This is a lesson your princess in Canterlot will soon learn in a very painful way, I’m afraid.”

Once Major Bloodclaw got to his command tent, he called in the unit’s messenger Griffin. Griffins had a means similar to Dragon fire to send messages quickly over long distances. Some Griffins were able to utilize magic through the use of runes, and they were often used for delivering messages between units in the field and headquarters, or for the Emperor to communicate with his diplomats in other nations, or many other instances where quick communication was a necessity. In this instance, he had sent notice to Emperor Ironbeak that he had completed his objective, and an inquiry to whether or not there have been any changes in his orders. After an hour or so of waiting, he received a reply.

Use whatever means you desire to obtain any and all information she has.

She must be kept alive.

Beyond that, you have free reign over her to do as you wish.

Prepare to move in three days as planned.

Bloodclaw was pleased with the reply. It had been a while since he had been given the opportunity to satisfy his desire for causing mental and emotional pain upon others. The one reason the Emperor allowed him to do as much as he did was due to the fact he was the Emperor’s most effective piece on the chessboard.

Bloodclaw felt a thrill run through him as he headed back to the tent where the captive was chained, urging him to hurry. But he forced himself to take his time. He wanted to draw it out. He wanted to savor it. He wanted to drink in every moment of her suffering. That was the reason he had the ponies at the train executed in such a brutal manner. Seeing a pony die, or even being the one to take that pony’s life did little to excite him. But to see a pony whose soul is slowly fracturing, watching it splinter more and more until it finally snaps, is simply orgasmic in its power.

Yes, the thrill was upon him now, and he felt a need to sate his desires.

It took only one look for Twilight to realize what he intended to do. No amount of her feeble struggling was able to stop him, and her screams and cries could be heard throughout the valley all night long.

It was just getting dark as the platoon formed up in a field behind the train station in Marelone, just five miles from the border with Griffica. They would very soon be boarding the extended chariots for the trip to the site of the train attack. A total of seven chariots would be used. Three of them would transport the Royal Guard while a fourth would carry the unit’s supplies. This included all their gear, rations, a lot of water, extra medical supplies, ammo for the bows, and the tools and explosives for the three demolition’s experts. Lastly, because of the likelihood of there being wounded, three ambulance chariots were coming with them.

Major Spearhead stood before his platoon and the drivers of the chariots. “Mares and gentlecolts, you all know the importance of this mission. The lives of Princess Twilight Sparkle, and her little brother, Spike, hang in the balance. Right now, the princess is being held captive by a barbarian demon of a Griffin. And Spike, who is bravely making the trek across fifteen miles of rough terrain, will be waiting for us to come get him and his sister. Are we gonna let those two brave souls down?” he asked, letting his voice wash over them with its power.

“HELL NO, SIR!”

“These same Griffins brutally murdered twenty-two mares and stallions. Some of them were Royal Guard. One of them a recently retired Wonderbolt. And the majority of them were friends of ours,” he continued, his voice echoing throughout the field. “Will we let that stand?”

“HELL NO, SIR!”

“You, my brothers and sisters-in-arms, are the cream of the crop. It is you that makes Equestria shine as the greatest nation in the world. When evil rises among us with intent to cause our great Equestria and her Princesses harm, will we back down? Will we cower in fear?”

“HELL NO, SIR!”

“Some of us may fall, but remember this, as long as the Equestrian Flag flies high, and as long as we never give in to tyranny, we shall live FOREVER, be it here in Equestria, or guarding the Gates to Elysium. Royal Guard, Wonderbolts, Equestrian Guard, Royal Navy, we are ALL EQUESTRIANS! We stand PROUD! We stand FIRM! And we shall emerge TRIUMPHANT!”

“OOH-RAH!”

“FOR OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS! FOR OUR PRINCESSES! FOR EQUESTRIA!” Dusty bellowed proudly.

“OOH-RAH!”

“Ooh-rah, My warriors! Load up! Tonight, we ride into Hell!”

As one, the mares and stallions of the rescue platoon boarded their chariots, heading straight to the gates of Tartarus.

The flight to the train attack proved to be uneventful, with only a few Griffin patrols spotted that were easily avoided. The five Wonderbolt proved their worth in gold with their flying ahead to spot potential trouble and guiding them through. While the Wonderbolts would have been able to deal with the patrolling Griffins had contact become unavoidable, it would have most likely alerted other Griffin units in the area to their presence, making a rescue all but impossible.

They reached the wreckage a little past midnight and quickly established a base camp. The first order of business was to set up camouflage netting near the treeline so that the chariots could be concealed from any passing Griffin patrols. The camouflage was augmented by a concealment spell by Lance Corporal Lunamoon. With luck, it would successfully keep the chariots and their drivers, along with the three medics with the ambulances, hidden from any enemy eyes until the platoon returned. Their gear and weapons came next. It did not take long for everypony have their full loadout ready to go.

Within an hour, everything was set for them to march.

Dusty and Silver found the five Wonderbolts gathered on the opposite side of the train. They had found Fleetfoot and the other executed ponies. None of them were able to hold back the tears of rage that they felt. Fleetfoot had been one of their closest friends, in a unit where everypony considered one another family. Dusty fully empathized with them, for Royal Guard units often formed bonds within that were just as tight. And a whole squad of his ponies were among those brutally murdered in this clearing.

“Gather around everypony,” the Major called out. When everypony was present, Dusty spoke up. “This is why we are here tonight. These brothers and sisters of ours, callously slain for no reason other than Griffin cruelty, will not be forgotten. And Princess Twilight is now held by those same butchers that murdered our brethren. For our Princess, and for our brothers and sisters, we shall rescue her, and exact revenge for our fallen. First Sergeant. would you lead us in prayer, please?”

Though it would normally be the unit Chaplain who would lead the prayer, or the unit commander if there was no Chaplain with them, it was Silverwing that was the one most considered the father figure for the company. Even Dusty thought of him in such a manner, and it only seemed right for Silver to be the one to call upon the Goddess on their behalf. Silverwing’s deep, gravely voice carried strong in their hearts as he led them in prayer. “Our Goddess Above, we ponies beseech Thee today, that you may guide the souls of our fallen brothers and sisters home, that they may gather at your side in the Elysium Fields. We pray that you may watch over us, so that we may be able to rescue one of Your own from the clutches of those who commit evil acts upon Your ponies. Guide us, we ask, that our hearts may stay true to You, in this dark hour, and that we all make come home safe. In Your name we pray. Amen”

A collective “Amen,” echoed through the ponies, all adding their individual prayers that Faust may protect them.

Kneeling down, Spitfire gently closed Fleetfoot’s eyes, saying goodbye to one of her closest friends.

“Staff Sergeant True Flight,” Dusty called out. When the head chariot driver stood before him, Dusty instructed him to have the bodies prepared for transport home. Nopony would be left behind. Dead or alive, all would return home.

The journey proved to be much more difficult than Spike had anticipated. Fifteen miles might have been a long, but still fairly easy, walk back at home. But here in the forested hills deep in the heart of the enemy, Spike discovered that there easy strolls, and there are desperate treks of survival through Hell. This journey had proven to be the latter. It did not help matters that he did not know the area, had to avoid patrolling Griffins on occasion, and was hindered by a broken arm. Still, in spite of the odds, the young drake managed to find the location of the camp.

With the number of Griffins around, including numerous individual Griffins on guard duty around the outskirts of the encampment, Spike had almost been found on a couple occasions. Discretion is the better part of valor, he had heard his big brother say once, and he took that to heart. He found a spot to hide about three hundred yards to the south of the enemy camp.

Once he was safely hidden, all he had to do was wait. Opening his pack, Spike pulled out a pen and a sheet of paper to send a message to Princess Celestia, so she and Princess Luna may know that he made it safely to the target location. When he received the reply, it just stated their continued gratitude, and asked for him to wait. Help would be there soon, and they would get him and Twilight home.

Spike hunkered down, pulled out a snack and a small bottle of water, and watched for his rescuers.

Twilight shivered as she laid alone in the tent. Though it was cool inside the tent, it was not so cold that she would shiver from it. Instead, what had her shivering was the events that had happened in the past twenty four hours plus.

She had been badly injured during the crash, and then after had been forced to bare witness to the brutal and horrific slaughter of several innocent ponies. Upon arrival here, she had been chained to a post, and that is when the torture had truly begun. Throughout the remainder of the night, and for the whole day after, she had been beaten numerous times. The few times she tried to resist, she had been beaten only worse, being powerless to stop them or try to escape. Between the inhibitor ring, the shackles, the broken wing and dislocated shoulder, and the collar chaining her to this spot, there was nothing that she could do.

And it went beyond simple beatings. They also used electrified sticks they called cattle prods. Those were agonizing when they jammed them into her shoulder or flank, but that was not the only way that they would use them. The pain and misery increased a thousandfold when they used them inside of her.

And they would use psychological torture on her as well, all in an attempt to break her, and to get any and all information she knew that the Griffin Empire could use. Twilight was incredibly smart, and had access to knowledge that any nation with intent of causing Equestria harm would thirst for, and the Griffins would use any method they could to get that knowledge.

It was working, too.

The worst though was how the Griffins would use her. That violation alone is what was breaking her the worst. Even more so, because they did not use that so much to extract information from her, but to sate their own personal lusts. Every time they used her in that fashion, she felt emptier and emptier inside. Her soul dimmed and turned into a cold lead ball, and her mind would shut down for a while.

She wished that she could die.

When Major Bloodclaw walked into the tent, Twilight scurried as far from him that the chain around her neck would allow. It was not enough, no distance could ever be enough ever again, and she was reduced to huddling next to the wall of the tent in terror. “Please, don’t hurt me. I’ll be a good pony, just don’t hurt me any more,” she begged at barely above a whisper, her face a terrified mask as she forced herself to gaze upon the face of her capturer.

“Now Twilight, is trying to get away from me being a good pony?” Bloodclaw chided. When Twilight cringed and shivered more violently as the simple light rebuke, he chuckled softly, thoroughly savoring every little bit of it. “If you come closer and tell me what I want to know, I won’t have to use the prod on you again,” he gently, almost encouragingly, told her.

Twilight shook her head in fear, her trembling becoming even worse, unable to bare the thought of being any closer to the Griffin.

“Come here,” he instructed, more forcefully this time.

Though fearful of being near him, Twilight was more fearful of what would happen if she disobeyed. She slowly crawled over to him and rested her head on the ground at his feet. “I’m sorry. I’ll be a good pony,” she whispered. She let out a cry of pain as she felt her tormentor grab a clawful of her mane and lift her up by it. The terror inside her reached a new height when he pulled out his dagger. Flashes of memory hit her. She saw the knife saw through Fleetfoot’s throat. The horrible scream that turned into a wet gurgle echoed in her ears. The blood splattering everywhere. The flopping of the body as Fleetfoot was drowned in her own blood played in her mind over and over. The sheer terror in her eyes as she knew she was dying, and having to watch the light fade from her eyes. The panic hit her full force, and Twilight struggled to get away, crying and begging incoherently, until her mind broke, and she went limp as her bladder emptied itself.

Bloodclaw simply stared into Twilight’s haunted, tear filled eyes. He drank in her fear, her misery, and the remnants of her soul. It thrilled him more than anything else could, and he relished every moment. He knew at that moment that he had broken her completely and totally. While her body may eventually heal, if given the chance, her mind would never truly heal from this, and Bloodclaw loved it. He slowly traced the line of her jaw with the flat of his blade, thrilling every time she flinched. He decided he should keep something of her. A momento to remind him of one of his greatest accomplishments; the breaking of an Equestrian Princess. “I really do like your mane. Such a pretty design. Simple and elegant. I think I shall keep it.” With a quick flick of his wrist, the edge of his dagger cut cleanly through the strands of her mane in his grasp, dropping her to the ground before him. As she lay there, crying silently, he methodically began to cut off the remainder of her mane, and then he removed all the hair from her tail in the same fashion, leaving behind little more than a short, ragged bit.

He let her lay there, sobbing, as he slowly ran the tail across his beak, letting her scent fill his sinuses. The aroma of fear, mixed with blood and other fluids, aroused him, and he looked down upon her with intent. He would again sate his arousal, and he grabbed her by the flesh of her neck. Her screams of pain only served to excite him even more.

Later, after finally quenching his needs, he left her laying there, used and catatonic.

The few hours of waiting were some of the worst in Spike’s life. During the pre-dawn hours, Spike could have sworn that he heard Twilight crying out in pain at one point. He had no way of knowing just what the Griffins were doing to her, and his rather active imagination stepped in to fill his mind with image after horrifying image of the Griffins torturing, mutilating, and killing his sister and best friend. By the time dawn arrived, he felt sick to his stomach, wanting nothing more than to rush in and rescue her or to simply break down and cry.

It was a massive relief when he saw the Royal Guard pony. The early morning light revealed him to be a deep blue color, almost the same coat color as Princess Luna, with a dirty blonde, almost orangish colored, mane. When the pony made eye contact with Spike, the young drake jumped up and was about to call out to him, but the guard quickly put a hoof to his lips, motioning for silence, and then motioned for Spike to get back down.

Spike did as instructed, and watched the guard turn and made numerous hoof signals behind him, Spike saw another pony appear and return some more hoof signs, only for the new one to disappear again into the forest. The first guard then made a few more motions towards his left, and then approached Spike slowly, pausing every few steps to check around him. Once he finally was within a few yards, he quietly called out, “You Spike?” When Spike nodded his head in the affirmative, the guard waved a wing over towards his left, and another Guard pony stepped out of the bushes. This one was an orange Pegasus, with a mane and tail similar in coloration to Shining Armor’s.

“I’m Corporal Dancing Dead, and this is Corporal Flash Sentry. We have a whole platoon right behind us, and they’ll be here any second,” the first one said to Spike.

“Don’t worry, Spike. We’ll get you and Princess Twilight home safe,” Flash added.

A sense of relief flooded through Spike, and he broke down crying. Flash and Dead moved to his side, both wrapping a foreleg around him, offering whatever comfort they could for the brave, young Dragon who had performed a minor miracle getting here, all out of love for his sister who was still held captive by the brutal monsters who had attacked them.

Dusty, Silver, Spitfire, Trixie, and Big Bang, who was one of the demolitions ponies, watched over the camp, scouting out how they would attack. It had been relatively easy for the five of them to get this close. A hoofblade up into the base of the skull, compliments of the First Sergeant, silently removed the lone Griffin guard they came across from the equation.

“That tent in the center, the one the Griffin came out of, I saw what appeared to be a pony inside with a purple coat. That would be the princess,” Silver stated.

“Gonna be a tough nut to crack, this camp. The good majority of the Griffins here are elite Griffin soldiers. We’re going to have to take out as many as we can in the first few moments,” said Dusty as he continued to scan the camp. “Corporal Bang, can you place claymare mines in certain locations so that the tent the Princess is in would be untouched, and yet take out a few certain strategic points? Preferably where there are a number of clustered enemy?” he asked the demolitions Guard pony.

“Not a problem, Sir. I believe I have the best locations picked out already. The charges can even be set to fire off a single remote detonator. With your permission, I’ll get Shaped Charge and Blast, and get it set up,” Big Bang replied.

“Do it. And report back here when you finish,” ordered Dusty.

“Sir, I can use offensive illusion magic as well,” offered Trixie. “I have a flash-bang spell which would disorient the Griffins nicely, making them much easier targets. Each flash-bang would disorient the ones used against for about ten to fifteen seconds, plenty of time to take them out with arrows.”

“An excellent idea,” said Spitfire. “If we’re unable to safely get the princess out of the battle zone, then what will be our orders, Major?”

“Simple enough. Guard the tent. Let no Griffin get close. I’ll have the demolitions team backing you up. They can fight pretty good, as well as create mayhem and destruction with their bombs. But if at all possible, get her away from the battle. Her safety is the top priority above all else,” he instructed. “First Sergeant, go bring up the rest of the platoon. As soon as the charges are set and everypony is in position, we’ll attack.”

“On it, Sir.”

Once Silverwing returned with the platoon, Major Spearhead passed out his orders. When the first volley of arrows were fired, a salvo of their explosive tipped ones, Big Bang would trigger the claymare mines. At that time, Trixie would cast multiple flash-bang spells to blind and disorient as many Griffins as possible. Following that, they would launch three more volleys of broadhead tipped arrows, and then swoop down in to take the camp. The three demolitions ponies would join with the Wonderbolts to secure the princess, exfiltrating her away from the battle if possible, guarding her with their lives if not. The rest would be attacking any and all remaining Griffins. It was a simple plan of attack, designed to be entirely unfair to the Griffins, and to maximize the odds that all the ponies would survive the fight.

In moments, everypony was in position. The only two who were not joining in on the attack were the two medic ponies, Sunny Hearts and Healing Touch. The rest knocked their bows, or in the case of Big Bang and Trixie, prepared to launch their own attacks. Once Dusty had his selected target sighted in, he gave the command, “FIRE!” and released his arrow. The others fired immediately, and thirty-seven arrows flew towards their intended targets.

Almost all arrows flew true, with the exception of the one launched by Silverwing. He had been aiming for Bloodclaw’s head, and the combination of Dusty’s bellowed order and seeing the first arrow hit the Griffin next to him, blowing his upper body in two, was just enough warning for him to move. This caused the arrow to hit him in the upper shoulder at a glancing angle instead, momentarily saving his life. That mattered little, as the sudden detonation of the mines created further chaos and death all around them. Further adding to the fog of war was Trixie’s well placed flash-bang spells. The confusion, combined with the arrows raining down upon them, and the number of Griffins killed by the claymare mines made it so when the platoon charged down into the camp, it was more a massacre than a battle.

Silverwing found sight of Bloodclaw once again, and made a beeline straight for him. The Griffin Major was shaking off the effects of the flash-bang that had disoriented him, and had just yanked an arrow from his shoulder. He had just enough time to draw his dagger when the First Sergeant caught him in a flying tackle as he wrapped his forelegs around Bloodclaw’s head, and letting his momentum swing him around over the Griffin’s back. Necks were not designed to turn that way, and Silverwing heard a very satisfying snapping sound. The Griffin simply collapsed underneath him, and Silver finished the job by bringing an armored hoof down upon his head with a satisfying crunch.

Looking up, the Pegasus saw that the attack was over just as quickly as it had started. Trixie stood off to his right, holding a bloody machete in her magic, which she had used successfully against two Griffins herself. The Major was off to Silver’s left, and had just just gutted a Griffin Sergeant with his hind hoofblades. The scene was pretty much the same throughout the entire camp, with zero loss of pony life. Some had minor wounds, but none were enough to slow anypony down.

Dusty and Silver looked to one another and simply nodded to each other. Knowing the battle was over, Silver barked out the command for everypony to form up, then called the two medics down from their hiding spot to tend to anypony in need of their attention.

As soon as the commands were issued, him and Major Spearhead headed over to the tent where the Wonderbolts were waiting for them. Lieutenant Soarin approached them, saying. “Sir, Sarge, you two need to see this,” as he beckoned them to the tent. When Misty opened the tent flap, Dusty felt sick to his stomach at what he saw while Silver let out an unholy, rage filled curse.