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The Griffin And The Snowstorm
We Need To Coperate If We're Gonna Stay Alive.
Cold...that's all he felt as the icy winds whipped over him and flakes of snow pelted down on him. It had been only a few moments since that horrifying sound of metal screeching was followed by The Friendship Express tipping over and cars detaching as they flew around crushing trees and silencing the unfortunate passengers who suffered their timeless ends.
What was he doing before that? As he struggled to get on his feet, muscles aching as the joints and ligaments holding them together only wanted to remain motionless and let the cold freeze them up his memory slowly came back to him. His name...it's Louis...Louis krelborn. Yeah and he was working as Filthy Rich's tax lawyer filing some end of year deductions and other issues that seemed...so insignificant now. What with the snow pelting down on him so cold even his parka seemed inefficient in keeping warm.
Louis shivered as he tripped on something and felt a stinging pain as he landed face first on something hard and...metal. It was the rail for the train. Louis groaned as he felt something rattle around in his mouth, then he spat two then four of his teeth into his hand. Great, just what he needed. On top of who knows what could have happened to him from being flung from a train wreck, he was missing teeth without a dentist for miles.
He looked up and saw somthing in the distance along the train rails, it couldn't be...where some cars still standing upright? If they were that meant...shelter. It was as if a new energy had surged within him, Louis pushed his glasses up onto his face and took off running toward the towering dark shape careful of the wooden ties that he stepped over as he followed the rail back. The snow failing harder now, the icy winds were like blades and felt coarse on his skin, his hat and scarf had been lost in the crash, his one hand was exposed to the elements and getting numb.
At long last he reached it, the blue and red tpainted metal of the dining car, Louis looked trying to see which, if any of the other rail cars where attached. In the haze of the storm he could see the baggage car; a few first class cabin cars, and the caboose or the engine's office car. Louis reached up and banged his hands on the door as hard as he could hoping someone inside would open up and help him inside.
It was too much...with a few final raps on the metal...he groaned in weakness and fell on his back, before his vision faded he saw a pony like shape above him, wings spreading out, and a horn glowing.
"I think he's dead Twilight." Louis heard a voice saying, though it sounded like it was a million miles away. He could only see blackness but he could hear voices and shuffling as they moved around. Slowly everything came into focus.
"No Rainbow, he's still breathing...but I think he's the only other survivor....my Celestia...everypony else...dead." he recognized the other voice...it had been only a few hours ago when this mare had been wishing the city of Canterlot a merry Hearth's Warming though that day was still a few weeks away. When his vision returned, Louis knew just who it was. It was Princess Twilight Sparkle herself, standing over him, her horn glowing as she tended his wounds.
"Hello Princess Twilight." Louis said as his tongue felt at his mouth where the teeth had previously fallen out, thankfully Twilight had fixed them. Twilight blushed hard hearing that, she still wasnt used to hearing that. Louis looked around to find himself sitting on a couch in the dining car, a fire crackling away in the fireplace, the lights where on thanks to the cars having emergency backup batteries in case they got separated from the locomotive.
There where three others in the car with them; Gilda, a Griffin on her way back to Griffinstone, which was having its best Hearth's Warming in years since the city discovered the scones that made them realize pride again. And Twilight's friend Rainbow Dash, both of who had "salvaged" a bottle of hard Sweet Apple Acres cider and where downing shots of it like water. Twilight rolled her eyes at this as she watched her friends get more and more plastered.
To Louis, the fine guilded gold and silver of the dining car's lamps; floor molding, and the eastern influenced chairs and couches had seemed like a little slice of paradise on the ride before the crash, now it felt like it was the only bit of civilization in the midst of a tragic loss.
"Twilight? Are you girls the only ones still alive?" Louis said sitting up to look around; as he spoke, Twilight began stoking the fire to keep it going as Rainbow got comfy on the couch will Gilda fiddled with a radio.
"I'm...sorry but we found nopony else...oh Celestia I checked every body I could find...all dead. Some of them....I can hope they died instantly." Twilight said burying her hands in her face, and she began to cry. The Princess Of Friendship herself,a symbol of unity and togetherness especially in the face of adversity and she was sobbing at the thought of all the dead piled up and strewn around outside in the aftermath of the crash.
He couldn't stand to see her like this, Louis got up in spite of the lingering pain, and gently placed a hand on Twilight's wing, he stroked the soft purple plumage of her wings as they both looked out the window. The snow came down harder and harder; wind rattled the glass in the panes of the windows as the storm raged on. "We'll make it Twilght, we just have to stay together and stay strong."
"The train company will send a crew to inspect what happened in about three days....we'd better get comfortable." Was all she could say.
The Griffin And The Snowstorm
Don't Forget To Come Back For Us.
"Hey dweeb! Quit hogging the hot water in there! We don't know how long we're going to be stuck out here!" Gilda shouted as her talon raked against the bathroom door. It had been three days since the crash, and there hadn't been any word from the railroad company on being rescued. Twilight said the most likely reason was the storm, the Friendship Express was run almost entirely by earth ponies and even if the weather team was above the clouds working on trying to make a break in the storm they'd made it too strong to do much beyond maybe a brief dent in it that could allow fliers to get above them.
"Tough break for you Krelborn, you're the only one of our group without any natural talent for the skies." Gilda had said as he got dressed behind a wooden folding screen. Her words prompting him to ask Twilight,
"I thought you said she had a revelation on the importance of friendship?" Louis said as he stepped out from behind the screen. Twilight was busy packing two...yes only two backpacks for a trip, something Gilda took notice of as she scarfed down a hunk of braised ham and eggs.
"Where's my bag Dash?" She said as she finished her breakfast with a loud belch, the unicorn Rarity wouldn't approve. Rainbow and Twilight both looked at her with somber looks.
"Look...Gilda I know we're gal pals and all...but I'm an element of harmony and Twilight's gonna need all of us to get that storm under control, it's grown too strong from being left to its own power." She said as she zipped up a sturdy snowsuit as did Twilight.
"So...you're just gonna leave me with the hairless ape?!" Gilda said angrily her eagle wings flaring open as her talons slammed so hard on the table it made the fine China plate shatter into fourths. "The three of us can just fly, you and the princess can clear the skies then he's home free why did I have to babysit him?" She asked folding her arms across the plumage poking out of her bulky Hearthswarming sweater.
Twilight sighed heartedly knowing that it was not going to be easy, "because if you leave someone alone in total isolation for extended periods of time, then they could crack. Louis no offense but I'd hate to leave you here only to come back and see that you'd gone crazy from the solitude."
Louis understood, he knew just what Twilight meant in total isolation without anyone to talk to or even any format of mental stimulation, even the hardiest of men could go stark raving mad and end up talking to inanimate objects, leaping at shadows, or any number of crazy things.
"No Twilight it's okay...I honestly would appreciate having company while riding out the storm." He started only for Gilda to screech and retort with a bitter,
"We'll I don't, and if I can't go neither will you right Dash?" She asked but Rainbow was already sliding the car door open for her and Twilight to step out into the temporarily calmed weather. "Dash? What are you?"
"I'm sorry Gilda, but Twilight needs me and ALL the elements if we're gonna have this storm under control, just...keep each other company and maybe even you'll both be....friends." She said with a false sense of optimism, Gilda wasn't too sure about that.
"Fine! Be that way go! But I'm not gonna keep this....thing company Dash, the second he starts talking to himself I'm duct taping him and locking him in the mail room!" She shouted angrily into the sky as she watched the two ponies get smaller and smaller as the flew above the clouds and disappeared from sight. Gilda'shouting tone changed as she watched the snow start to fall to earth again heavy and cold. "Don't forget about me Dash." She said, a tear in her eye a tear she made sure to wipe away before stepping back into the car.
The Griffin And The Snowstorm
Coping To Survive
"Damn it Krelborn! You call this food?! My scones before Pinkie fixed the recipe tasted better than this!" Gilda shouted as she picked up the ceramic fine China bowl in her talons and flung it hurtling into the wall of the dinning car. The bowl of split pea and ham soup shattered with a loud crash and the shards of the bowl lay on the floor as green soup ran down the wall. Louis had scrounged up the ingredients from the thankfully still working fridge and though he wasn't the handiest cook in the kitchen, he thought he had done a good enough job making soup.
"You know, the food's actually pretty good when you don't mix it with wallpaper." He said snarkily back at her as well as he could, while crossing the room to clean up the mess. It had been three days since they last saw Twilight and Rainbow. Louis took up residence in the sleeping car that had offered a private room, not sure if it was good to hear that Gilda had taken to sleeping in the baggage car, despite their being plenty of private room cars still standing.
"Eh a little roughage never hurt, we don't know how long we'll be held up here, don't want to go soft sleeping in the cabins you know." Was her logic anyway, always had to be a show offor with how strong she was. Didn't give her the right to bad mouth Louis' cooking though.
"Still no word from Twilight and Dash, the storm's finally broke through." He told her as he helped himself to his own soup. He sat down at the marble table the dining car had with a fire cracking away. He was trying to hide some concern. The batteries providing them with electricity were running low, and once they ran out it wouldn't be long before things would go from bad to worse.
So now here the two of them were, still surrounded by cold and snow outside and making due with little they had. Louis and Gilda sat across from each other by one of the windows, the only thing either of them could see for miles around was empty vast white. A carbed ebony and ivory chess set had been set up on the table, and despite her abrassive personality Gilda was proving herself quite the player.
"So...Did you have any plans for Hearthswarming?" Louis finally asked moving a Rook in place. Gilda only made a few feathers ruffle with that soft noise most birds and bu extension giffins made. kinda a mix between a hoot and a screech.
"Griffins never really celebrated the holiday you know? we mostly kept to our own traditions and holidays...not that we were the type to celebrate anything...least not till recently...check by the way." Gilda said as she moved her "princess" or the Equestria chess equivilent to a queen. Louis looked over at her, his eyes gazing into the amber ones she had, even in a simple game if wits her eyes had constricted into that focused locking gaze a bird of prey had.
"So tell me, what holiday do you griffins celebrate this time of the year? If your not into pony ones?" He said moving his prince piece to the saftey behind his royal gaurd and bishop pices, most of the pawns where captured by Gilda.
"Aw,what do you care? no one gave a damn about us griffins and our traditions...not till recently anyways and even then it was just that map of Twilight's that even brought our lives to anyone's attention....check again by the way." She said capturing a bishop.
"Well...I don't exactly have anything to do for a while, and I'm a good listener, so you can fill me in on your holiday Gilda...oh and by the way....check...mate." He said as he blocked Gilda's prince from all sides with his last remaining pieces.
"You cheeky bastard." was all the placated but oddly sated griffin could say, "Alright I'll tell you."
The Griffin And The Snowstorm
Long before the birth of Princess Celestia, the Griffins had an empire that rivial the one that her birth would give rise too. It was our land promised to us at the base of the mountians that later became our only home today. Griffins were some of the best jewelrs; treasurers and merchants in the world and we lived in our land with our customs and our society. Then across the great sea where we had our first city of Griffinstone, the Equestrians sailed onto our shores in long ships that cut across the waters as troops with spears and long shields marched through our streets and right up to the front of our good King Gilbert at that time with a demand.
The general of the Equestrian army came saying he offered a diplomatic "olive branch' to the Griffins to have our lands united under the banner of their own growing kingdom. At first we adopted the culture of the Equestrians fairly well untill the true colors of the old kingdom began to show. it started simple enough with things like cerfews and "ordinance rules" like clearing streets for advancing gaurds and tipping your hats to officals. Soon they began moving in on taking more from us, our history and our heritage all but forgotten as The Equstrian royaly family became the only authority to honor and the only one to be held worthy of praise. Statues got replaced; books rewritten...or banned every trace of our old lives wiped away...or so it seemed. Deep in the caves just outside the city, there was a great griffin named Gideon. Gideon lead the young and old to the secret caves deep away from prying eyes to educate them on our ways, our culture, and history.
From the traditions of how to raise hatchlings to the history of our people. Many called him foolish for doing so. Saying he'd be punished; brought before the general or even queen Faustus herself who if she was angry enough with him she'd have him turned to stone and put in the royal gardens. Gideon refused to be afraid, he carried out his teachings to the griffins even with all the danger doing so would bring. When he was found out by the gaurd, they took all his things and had him jailed for a month. When he was released, he assembled an army of those who followed him and drove Equestria back to their land.
when all was said and done, the city was in shambles, and the lighthouse which was meant to burn for all time had gone out. The griffins were bitter much like we were time and time again. gideon had the lighthouse cleaned up as best as it could be and even though the beacon was unlikley to ever burn again he had it lit. The others thought it would last a day at best but the fire lasted week, and its said that in the time it burned the treasure of Griffinstone was found and placed in the lighthouse before we decided to move to the new Griffinstone high above the clouds so none would ever dare try and tell us how to live.
"And so every year Griffins light a lantern and keep it lit every night for a wek before the pony holiday Hearths warming, Just to further spite them...at least that was the idea before. We gather as Gideon did and for that time we put aside our love of riches to share one thing. The idea that someday we'll have the fortune and glory of our olden days...and I'm missing that holiday being stuck on a stranded train with you Krelborn...So yeah I'm bitter, bitter as hell." Gilda said finishing her story. Louis looked at her with a glint of a sympathy in his eyes. He gently placed a hand on the side of her white eagle down and gave it a few strokes.
"I'm missing spending time with my family too, back home more and more folks lose sight of what really matters in life. Friendships drift apart day by day, year by year. Family members who used to spendevery weekend or some time together only see each other on that one day a year because it's more like something they're "Supposed" to do. Not a reason to reminisce and really cheirsh each other in ways family only can." Nothing ever stays the same and time can be so cruel, nobody understood that better than Louis. He got up and placed a hand on his chin, he paced the floor a bit before making his way to the doors of the train car. Gilda watched him as he came back carring the green train lantern, the kind the conductor would use when the signal was all clear for the train to go at full speed,
"OH..how cute, you think that can substitute for..." she said nothing as Louis lit a match to ignite the oil and the lantern gave off a soft glow. He placed it in the window and sat down on the couch looking at her without anything else to say besides...
"gonna get cold tonight, almost out of heating power." Gilda didn't need to hear more. She got beside him on the couch and placed a wing over him. The softness of genuine eagle feathers warm enough to keep the coming cold at bay...for the night.
