The Black Company in Equestria

“But if he didn't attack your herd, why are you fighting him?”

“That's what mercenaries do. People who need our services can hire us to fight for them. Its a business contract. They hire us, we do the job, then they pay us and we go on our way. Back in our world, this ruler wanted some wizards dealt with, so he hired us. Grayborn was one of them. We just ended up chasing him all the way to your world.”

“That's horrible! How can you kill other humans for money?”

It was mid-afternoon. The others were all out and about: Jackal and Marsuf were setting more traps in the valley, Egg and Flick were out foraging, and Lamb, Priest, and Jacky Boy were off scouting the surrounding area. After our initial meeting with Crystal and Moonbright, I had taken Lamb aside and suggested I take the ponies away from the camp and talk to them alone. Despite their outward bravery, it was clear the two pones were badly rattled from their time in captivity. Crystal flinched at any sudden movements and Moonbright was practically glued to her mother's flank. Even if we were allies, it would take some time for us to get used to each other. I was hoping some quiet conversation could take the edge off the ponies' fears. So far, I only seemed to be making things worse.

“Believe me, all we do is necessary.” I said, edging around decades of Company history. “Look at it this way, what do you do when another group of ponies wants your land?”

“Well, we welcome them and invite them into our community of course.”

“Okay, but what if they don't want to share with you? What if they want all the land for themselves?”

Crystal looked confused. “Why would they do that? There's plenty of land for everyone around here.”

“Point taken. Alright, what's something that's not common around here?”

“Umm, well, there's the clay beds down by the river.”

“Perfect. So, what would you do if some other group of ponies tried to take over those by force?”

Crystal looked more confused than ever. “I-I don't understand. Why would anypony want to fight over clay? We'd gladly share what we have with them.”

“Alright, lets try this again. Is there anything in the area that would try to hurt you and couldn't be reasoned with or befriended?”

She frowned. “Not really. Sometimes creatures come out of the Everfree Forest, but we can always scare them off or lead them away from town.”

“So you're telling me that you've got no army, militia, guard, or anything like that, and that none of you have ever had to kill something?”

Crystal's ears flattened against her skull. “No...no,” she said quietly, “that would be awful.”

“I'm sorry.” I said. “I don't mean to be insensitive, I'm just trying to learn about your people.”

I desperately cast about for another topic of conversation.

“Tell me about that mark on your flank.” I said brightly. “A...pot, is it? I'm guessing that's not a natural mark.”

Crystal perked up. “My cutie mark? Yes, its a vase actually. It symbolizes my special talent for pottery.”

“Huh, guess I never pictured unicorns making pots. Of course, I didn't know unicorns existed until today either, so what do I know?”

Crystal smiled shyly. “I know everyone thinks earth ponies are the best at that kind of thing, but my stoneware is the finest in town. Ponies come from all around to buy my pots. Even Lady Stratus herself praised my work.” she finished proudly.

“That's...interesting. I guess it would make picking people out of a crowd easy enough. So how do you get one? Work hard enough at something?”

“More or less. When a young colt finds their special talent in life, a mark symbolizing that talent appears on their flank.”

“Let me guess, magic?

“Of course.”

I shook my head, more in amazement than disbelief. Jackal was going to have an aneurysm trying to figure all this out.

She craned her head to the side. “So, what's your cutie mark?”

I shrugged. “Don't have one. We humans don't have anything like that.”

“But then how do you know what your talent is?”

“Well, considering I've been with the Company for almost fifteen years now, its safe to say I've found my talent. Besides, sometimes you only get one path to take.”

“Oh. That doesn't sound very nice.”

“Yeah. I get the idea our worlds are very different.”

“Different doesn't have to mean bad.” Crystal said warmly. “You and your friends are different from the other humans. You treat us like friends instead of pets or slaves.”

“Believe me, we're just as glad to know you. Right now, we can both use all the help we can get. Speaking of which, you mentioned a Lady Stratus earlier. Is she the ruler of the area?”

“That's right. She and Lord Cirrus live over in Windsoar Castle.”

“And how far away is Windsoar Castle?”

“About five days walk.” She waved a hoof towards the north. “Maybe a little more, I haven't been there since I was a little filly.”

“And would this lord and lady have troops that could help us?”

“I think so. I mean, they'd at least have a personal guard. I'm sorry, I don't know much about that kind of thing.” Her ears flattened down again.

“Stop doing that!” I snapped.

“E-excuse me?”

“That thing with your ears and the apologizing. Look, I understand you don't know some things that might be good to know right now, but you're still miles ahead of us. We know nothing about this place. So stop being so apologetic and try being a little more assertive. Here, I'll show you. Ask me how far it is to Windsoar Castle.”

“Um, how far is it to Windsoar Castle?”

“About five days walk to the north.” I said in an exaggerated falsetto. “I know that because I'm a smart pony; not like you, you big, dumb human.”

Moonbright giggled.

I grinned back. Progress.

We spent the rest of the afternoon together. Crystal told me stories about her family and their life in Canterberry. It seemed like the kind of life too perfect to be real: picnics and festivals and snow fights and races. She said that even the weather was perfect, constantly watched and controlled by the pegasi. A part of my mind filed that piece of information away for later, even as I listened to her tell me about cloud racing and tornado wrangling.

There weren't many stories I could tell her in return that wouldn't shatter her tenuous trust, but I tried to remain as truthful as possible. As my predecessor and mentor was fond of saying, truth hurts now, lies hurt later.

I didn't tell her about the battles and the marching and the long, grinding sieges. Instead, I told her about how the light sparkled off the crystal minarets of Basrim, and the smell of the great spice market of Dobrudska. I told her about watching the great sea serpents dance in Sevaufeth Bay until the very water glowed. I told her about the seven gates of Malzenberg and the jade colossus of Rhulath. We told stories until the sun began to set and the chill wind drove us back to camp for warmth and food.

“Speaking of food,” Crystal said as we hiked back to camp, “I understand you humans eat all kinds of things.”

I got the feeling that she was choosing her words carefully.

“Comes with the job.” I agreed. “In our line of work you can't afford to be choosy about what you eat. That won't be a problem, will it?”

She shook her head. “I know plenty of wild animals that eat meat. Even griffons eat it, although I've never met one.” She smiled shyly, looking up at me. “Its just going to take some getting used to, alright? I mean, you're twice our size and built like a predator. Any sensible pony would be just a little apprehensive about trotting up and saying hello.”

I grinned back at her. “Fair enough. Speaking of food, we'll need you to show us which local plants are safe to eat and which aren't.”

“Oh, that's easy!” she said enthusiastically. “The only thing you shouldn't eat around here is Snakeweed. It grows down by the river. Its not poisonous, but it tastes awful. And you shouldn't eat anything you find in the Everfree Forest unless you're certain you know what it is.”

“That's the forest across the river?”

“That's right. Be careful if you go in there, all kinds of strange creatures live inside that forest.”

I silently wondered whether a race of magical, talking, brightly colored ponies had any right to call other creatures 'strange'.

Dinner was a surprisingly cheery affair. My brothers and I were old hands at savoring feasts like this, knowing it could be our last good meal in a long time—or ever. Crystal and Moonbright were celebrating their first dinner as free ponies. Both seemed to handle our eating meat fairly well, even if Moonbright's stare held more horrified fascination than polite interest.

Afterward, we held a council of war. According to Priest and Jacky Boy, our initial plan to stay close to the gate and wait for our brothers to punch through was looking less and less tenable. Their scouting trip had found new defenses erected on the hill above the tunnel, with cavalry patrols combing the valley below. More troubling was the steady stream of warriors they had seen emerging from the tunnel. Either our brothers were doing an admirable job of giving Grayborn false hope for victory, or he was preparing to abandon our world entirely. In either case, the hundreds of new warriors in this world would make life difficult for us. Flick, seconded up by Marsuf and Priest, suggested stealing a wagon and making our way back through the gate by posing as guards for a supply caravan. Lamb shot that plan down. Jackal was for staying put and letting his traps and our arrows deal with searchers. His plan was to harass Grayborn by night and hide away by day, always keeping on the move. If worst came to worst, we could always escape over the hills. I brought up what Crystal had told me about Lord Cirrus and suggested we head north to raise support. This got their attention. After some careful questioning, Lamb began to come around to this course of action, although he wanted to know why Cirrus hadn't launched an attack to retake Canterberry. Crystal admitted with some confusion that she didn't know, but hotly rejected Priest's speculation that Grayborn and Lord Cirrus were allies, saying that pegasi would never be friends with a man like Grayborn. Apparently both Lord Cirrus and the majority of his subjects in Windsoar were pegasi, the most militant of the three races. Jackal objected to this plan, saying that throwing ourselves on the mercy and understanding of an unknown lord was too dangerous. I countered that we carried proof of our friendly intentions with us in the form of Crystal and Moonbright. The beginnings of a heated argument were cut short by a distant outcry. A sudden flash of orange light burst from the darkened valley below.

Jackal cocked his head. “Deadfall, first line, left side. They must be working their way up along the rim.”

“They won't be alone.” I said softly.

As if to illustrate my point, a second orange glow momentarily brightened the opposite valley wall.

“What do you think, Lamb?” Jackal asked, his eyes half closed. “We can sit here and string them in all the way, or move before they get too close.”

Lamb glanced behind us, where the last red glow of sunset was fading behind the hills. “The sooner we move, the better for us, light be damned.” he decided. “Break camp and be ready to march in two minutes.” He collared Jackal and myself. “You-” he prodded Jackal in the chest, “-make sure we can seen them coming. Marus, get me a route to Windsoar.”

I turned to look for Crystal just as she trotted up to me.

“How can I help?” she asked, looking concerned.

“I need the fastest road to Windsoar, or failing that, one that will keep us hidden.”

She thought for a moment. “Well, the fastest way is the north road over the river, but he probably has guards on the bridge. I think the best way would be for us to swim the river above the bridge, and then take the north road from there.”

I smiled to myself. Thinking tactically already.

“If you don't want to be seen, we should stick to the hills. They start curving west after a while, but by then we should be far enough away to cut east without being seen.”

“Sounds good. Lamb, got your course.”

Lamb shouldered his pack. “Lead on.”

We struck out, climbing a narrow game trail that zigzagged up a rocky bluff and out of the canyon. As I slithered over the rim, careful not to be silhouetted against the sky, I glanced back. A dense fog was rolling out from where our camp had been. Already the near half of the valley was drowned in a thick black mist. Between the shadows and the traps, Grayborn's hunters were in for a long night.

We crossed the river upstream from the bridge. The water was wide and deep, but not particularly fast. We forded it without being detected and with little trouble. There was a brief moment of excitement when the log that Priest and Marsuf were using to ferry their clothes and equipment across rolled, condemning the two of them to spend the rest of the night in wet armor.

Once on the other side, we stayed off the road for a few miles until the suddenly thickening forest forced us to either take the road or cut our own trail. We took the road, still wary of pursuit from behind or patrols from ahead, but we saw neither that night. We left the road shortly before dawn, making camp for the day in a small clearing where a huge tree had fallen and died. The clearing was choked with dense, wiry bushes laden with strange dark berries. Crystal delightedly informed us that they were called blackberries. They proved delicious.

We spent the day resting as best we could in the thorny tangle. Most of us napped in the small clear space around the fallen tree trunk. Jackal went so far as to scrape out a shallow hole into which he curled himself, snarling at anyone attempting to rouse him. The rest of us took turns standing watch. Despite our concerns about pursuit, the only traffic we saw all day was a lone rider headed back towards Canterberry.

Crystal and Moonbright found me on watch. I was sitting in the shadow of a particularly large blackberry bush, allowing me to watch the road while remaining hidden.

Crystal plopped down next to me with an exhausted sigh. “I thought we'd never get away!”

“Lamb harassing you again?”

“Yes! He keeps asking me questions about Windsoar and whether it has walls and towers and things like that. I told him that I had only been there once when I was young, but then he started asking how many soldiers Lord Cirrus had and whether the place could 'stand a siege'. What's a siege, anyway?”

“Its when you try to take a city away from someone. Usually it means going under or over or through the city wall.”

“Oh. Does it take long?”

“It depends. Sometimes it takes years.”

“Wow!” Crystal paused to nibble thoughtfully on a blackberry. “But what happens if you can't get in?”

“You leave. Company's only done it three times since I joined, and all three times it was because our patron backed out of the contract, not because we were beaten.” This was said with some amount of pride on my part. Only one other mercenary band had anywhere close to as good a record with sieges as the Company, and they exclusively specialized in siege work.

I wondered what would have happened had the Company ever faced them over a city. Lieutenant Viorel would kill to get his hands on their siege engines, were half the tales about them true. I reached up to pluck another blackberry.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Crystal stiffen.

“Don't move.” she whispered, slowly lowering her horn at something to my right.

I slowly turned my head in that direction. A striped green snake was slithering towards us through the brush.

“Don't. Move.” Crystal hissed, her horn beginning to glow.

“Mine!” Jackal shouted, diving out of nowhere to pin the snake to the ground with both hands. The three of us scrambled back as the wizard deftly shifted his grip to immobilize the thing's head.

As he triumphantly held his prize aloft, the snake opened its mouth wider than I would have thought possible, baring two stubby fangs. Twin jets of venom sprayed from its fangs into the wizard's face.

Fortunately, it takes a special kind of wizard to run with the Company. Fast as the snake was, Jackal was faster. He squealed and ducked away, twisting the snake's head away from his own. The stream of venom that should have struck him full in the face merely grazed his left cheek. The two of them thrashed on the ground for a moment before Jackal wrestled the thing into a sack.

Lamb and Priest crashed through the brush, hands on their swords. We all stared at Jackal as he got back to his feet, grinning from ear to ear. “Got a snake!” he said, holding up the wriggling bag.

“He got you a little too.” I said, pointing to his face. The exposed skin on his cheek and ear was already turning red.

Lamb sighed. “Priest, if he dies slowly and painfully, please let me know.” he said, disappearing back into the brush.

Priest grasped Jackal's chin, tilting his head to the side like an artist examining a painting. “Crystal, do you know that breed of serpent?”

“Its a Swamp Spitter.” Crystal said, staring at Jackal like he was insane. “The venom isn't deadly, but it burns if you don't clean it off.”

“Ah well, I suppose a painful death was too much to hope for.” Priest said cheerfully, wiping his hands.

“The biggest danger is getting it in your eyes.” Crystal went on. “If you don't wash it out, it'll blind you.”

Jackal's grin grew wider. “Ohh, yes.” he whispered to the bag. “This is wonderful.” He whirled and vanished into the bushes.

“Don't forget to wash that shit off!” Priest called after him. He looked over at me, shook his head. “I'm going back to sleep.”

I settled back under my bush.

“Is-is he insane?” Crystal asked, staring after Jackal.

“Probably a little. Most wizards are. Hell, not just the wizards, most of us are probably insane to one degree or another. Like you said, what kind of person kills for money?”

Crystal's laugh was tinged ever so lightly with hysteria. “I'm starting to understand that.”

For the next three days we journeyed north, traveling by night and hiding by day. We saw nothing of the enemy except lone riders hurrying along the road. Lamb's strict orders to remain hidden were obeyed, although the riders were eyed hungrily by whoever was on watch. On the fourth day, however, things changed. As we prepared to break camp late in the evening, Priest reported seeing a fire back down the road. Jacky Boy and Flick were dispatched to investigate. They returned with intriguing news: one of Grayborn's supply caravans, bound for somewhere ahead of us, was setting up camp for the night not a mile down the road. Five wagons with teamsters, a few mounted outriders, and twenty ponies were an enticing target, even for our small band. It was the last item that got Crystal's attention. She begged Lamb to help free her friends. The rest of us backed her, eager to stick a thorn in Grayborn's side. Lamb gave his consent, then gave his orders.

We struck from the deepening shadows as Grayborn's men were cooking dinner. Undisciplined and unprepared, the enemy was dead or fleeing within minutes of our opening volley. Marsuf and Egg gleefully ran down the fugitives while the rest of us secured the camp. I helped Crystal free the captive ponies. They huddled together, bewildered at the sudden turn of events. I let Crystal approach them first while I helped the others rummage through the wagons. They were filled with the usual army gear: food, tack, clothing, bits and pieces of armor, several bundles of spears. There seemed to be an unusual number of arrows and bowstrings present.

After a few minutes Crystal came back with a large black stallion in tow.

“This is Cinder.” she said. “He was our neighbor back in Canterberry. Cinder, this is one of the humans who rescued us.”

“Can't thank you enough.” the pony said, holding out a hoof. I took it, somewhat awkwardly. “Name's Cinder Forge, and I hafta say, you fellas are a sight for sore eyes. Thought we'd spend the rest of our lives hauling these dang wagons.”

“Marus, Black Company.” I said. “Happy to help. Freeing Grayborn's captives is priority right now.”

“And speaking of priorities, we need to get moving soon.” Lamb spoke up. “Are the ponies fit to move?”

“I'm fit, but I don't think some of the others are.” Cinder said. “We ain't exactly been getting vacations, if you know what I mean.”

Cinder led the way back to the other ponies. They stared up at us with some apprehension, but they seemed fairly calm, especially with Crystal there to explain things.

“Alright, listen up, everypony!” Cinder said, looking around the group. “I'm sure we've all got questions, so let's let Crystal and her friends say their piece.”

Flick mumbled. “Lovely, I'm playing backup to a magic pony.”

“These men come from another world, just like him.” Crystal explained. “They're here to kill him and help us take back our homes.” Her voice started shaking. Lamb stepped in.

“We're heading for Windsoar. You're coming with us, unless you'd rather strike out on your own.”

There were murmurs of surprise from the group.

“Uhh, boss?” Cinder spoke up hesitantly. “You don't wanna keep going this way. Grayborn's army is camped at the edge of the Everfree. Its a war zone out there.”

“Is there a way around?” Lamb demanded.

“Not without going the long way 'round through the Everfree.”

“War zone with whom?” I interrupted.

Cinder shrugged. “Don't know, we never went to where the fighting was. Probably the Windsoar pegasi though. No one else around could put up a fight like them.”

“How far from here to Grayborn's camp?” Lamb asked.

“Should be another day, maybe a little less.”

“Alright, we'll discuss it on the way.” Lamb decided. “Marus, Priest, empty out this wagon and grab some extra food and water from the supplies. Flick and Egg, head back to our camp and grab our gear, we'll meet you there. Jackal, Marsuf, stack the rest of the supplies with the other wagons and burn them. As for you ponies, if you can walk, great. If you can't, ask someone to help you into the wagon. We'll have some food for you in there and you can rest up. Jacky Boy, you're with me. Let's get these horses hitched up. Move!”

Priest and I kicked the bundles and bales out the back of the wagon, then helped the ponies up inside. Many were in bad shape, we had to carry several from where they had collapsed on the picket line. Besides the marks of brutal and repeated whippings, there were no serious injuries; the ponies had simply been worked half to death. I helped Priest lay them out near the front of the wagon where he could work on them. Meanwhile, Jacky Boy and Lamb had cobbled together a crude harness to hold two of the escorts' horses that seemed to be in fair condition. It would be a tight fit, but we managed to load all the injured ponies into the wagon, along with some supplies. Priest was already doling out flatbread cakes and water from one of the bags.

I walked beside the wagon with Cinder and the others as Lamb whipped up the horses and we rolled out of the camp. I looked back over my shoulder as our two resident pyromaniacs touched off the remaining wagons in a massive orange fireball. I hoped our new friends got some small consolation out of the fact that Grayborn's men would be going hungry.

Egg and Flick were waiting for us as we came abreast of our camp. We took up our packs, rotated a few ponies into the wagon, and marched on into the night.

We made good time, all things considered. Aside from Crystal and Moonbright, none of the ponies could keep up the pace for long. They had, after all, been pulling heavily loaded wagons all day. By the end of the night, the wagon was nearly overflowing, with ponies packed into the bed and spilling onto the driver's board. Lamb was wedged into the center, doing his best to drive the wagon with an exhausted pony curled up against him on either side and a third on his lap. The rest of us helped with the overflow, cradling a pony apiece in our arms as we walked alongside the wagon. I must here make an official note: Let the Annals show that at no point in the journey did Priest gently stroke his pony's mane and scratch behind her ears, and that any statements made to the contrary are baseless slander.

**

“Well, that's a battlefield alright.”

“That must be Windsoar way over there.”

“Lot of open ground between here and there.”

“No way we're getting the wagon across either, that field is solid mud.”

Jackal, Lamb, and I were crouched behind a rotting log on the edge of the forest. A few dozen yards in front of us was a crude dugout, part of a chain stretching off in either direction under the eaves of the forest. Grayborn's men had excavated a few feet of earth, piling it along the front and sides, then laid logs across the top. A shallow trench ran along the back, connecting it to its fellows on either side. A slow, steady drizzle beat down, completing the bleak picture.

“Alright, we'll wait for night, sneak across under cover of darkness.”

“They'll be expecting their supply caravan today.” I said. “When it doesn't come, they're going to go looking for it”

“We'll risk it.” Lamb said.

“We can hide in the forest,” Jackal spoke up, “but how long will we last before Grayborn's cavalry hunts us all down? I say we go now. I'm willing to take that chance.”

“But I'm not.” Lamb replied. “I'm going back for the others. You two stay and keep watch.”

Lamb folded himself up against the log and closed his eyes, whispering under his breath as his hands dipped into various pouches and pockets. I checked my crossbow and settled myself in a position where I could see but not be easily seen. Of course, all there was to see was a stretch of muddy trench and a few dugouts, beyond which lay a wide plain of churned mud. There was no sign of life anywhere. The only sound was the steady patter of rain on leaves.

“Cheerful place.” I murmured to myself.

Lamb returned in ten minutes with Flick and Marsuf.

“Alright, we've found a place back in the trees where we can hide for now.”

Jackal came out of his trance. “I still say this is unwise.”

“Duly noted.” Lamb unslung his crossbow. “Now follow me.”

“If we're spotted, you run as hard as you can.” I said. The semicircle of ponies stared up at me. “You get across the field to Windsoar and you'll all be safe. We'll be behind you to ward off pursuit.”

“And be shot full of arrows.” Flick pushed past me. “Come on, we're taking the dugout.”

“Coming.” I turned. “Cinder, you're with us. You'll hold at the edge of the forest. Once we have the trench, we'll signal you to go back and get the others. Crystal, you keep them together.”

“You got it, boss.”

“I'll do my best, Marus.”

The drizzle had trailed off by the time we were all in position. The overcast, cloudy day dipped into inky darkness. A fire burned inside the shelter before us; to our magically augmented vision the dugout was an island of white-hot light in a sea of cool blue twilight.

“Grayborn needs to have his boys dig their shelters a little closer together if they want mutual protection.” Priest whispered.

“Leave a note.” I whispered back.

Jackal finished setting his spells and we attacked. It was nothing epic; Jackal whipped aside the blanket hanging over the entrance and the rest of us pincushioned the surprised warriors inside. Jacky Boy and Marsuf entered to finish off any survivors while I gave Cinder the high sign. He galloped away for the others.

Twenty ponies aren't exactly quiet, but bunched together we could all just fit inside Jackal's spell zone. We sloshed across the field, the line of fires behind us diminishing with each step. It was a long, wet, muddy walk, but at least it was quiet. No arrows winging out of the darkness or shouting horsemen swooping in to run us down. At last we stood before the gates of Windsoar and were challenged by the guards. Anticlimax. I can live with that.