Boreas' Gaze

by TundraStanza

Rating: teen
Tags: Crystal Ponies, Griffons, Violence, Dark, Alternate Universe, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Adventure
Length: 16078

Lost to time, the Idol of Boreas once united the Gryphon Kingdom in pride and splendor. Pushes from King Sombra's invasion may mean a young gryphon has to reclaim this statue and the power it carries inside.

As if things in Griffonstone weren't bad enough, the war between Celestia's subjects and Sombra's slaves has spread this far. Greed guides the reluctantly lent talons. The few gryphons that do fight can see that a brainwashing king has no intention of paying his mercenaries.

But that might not be enough to stop the fighting and get the ponies to take their problems off gryphon lands. On a whim, one gryphon chases down the last known location of the Idol of Boreas. If the legend is true, it might be the only thing that can save Griffonstone.

No creature wrote down exactly how it was supposed to do that.
---
Takes place in one interpretation of the "Sombra war" timeline. This story will most likely contain some degree of violence and mentions of death.
(Where is the Code Geass tag? Well, anyway... Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion belongs to Bandai, Sunrise Studio, and Goro Taniguchi.)

Published 2020-01-23 04:50:01 UTC
Last updated 2024-03-24 20:13:11 UTC

Ch. 1: Sure is Windy Down Here

They called it the Abysmal Abyss. If creatures showed anything through their naming conventions, it was that they liked alliteration. It was also proof that their humor was heavily dependent on puns. Still, it was kind of hard to get mad specifically at the old cartographers. Heck, it was hard to hear oneself thinking anything at the moment.

"Why is this wind so darn loud?!"

That was what one climber wanted to shout. However, the mentioned wind was pummeling the cliffs and rock face so much. The annoyed question simply vanished upon leaving the beak. Flying was out of the question, due to the strong winds attacking from every direction. Skeletons remained on a few of the cliffs where unlucky visitors tried and failed to fly out.

Despite the grim signs, the young body of white fur and violet feathers continued to slowly descend. He was using a collection of ropes tied to a big rock several feet away from the edge of the cliff. Dark brown eyes kept darting around the rope, the abyss wall, and the darkness below him. His striped tiger tail kept itself wrapped around his right, hind thigh.

He had been slowly sliding and stepping for what felt like a long while. Some stray gusts felt like they were cutting under his feathers, straight to the skin. It was impossible to tell if he was sweating from all the effort, what with all the blasts of dry air trying to discourage him. Still, he kept crawling down and looking for something.

Sometime after his own beak had vanished in the darkness, a little bit of red glinted on a crooked cliff. He tried swinging a little to get the rope closer. When he grabbed the cliff, he realized that his talons weren't grasping stone. They were touching bone. He shivered while doing his best to remember how to breathe normally.

What he hadn't seen was how the swinging motions had sawed his rope at the top of the abyss. He did, however, feel a sudden weightlessness as the length of his rope fell past him. Holding onto the bones with both sets of talons, he managed to pull himself into a cavern in which the rest of the bones were sitting.

"Arimaspi." He shook his head before looking around the rest of the cavern. Within a moment, he found the source of the red glint. It was attached to the base of an ornate statue that could fit atop a king's talons. Holding it himself, he observed the patterns carved into the gold and couldn't help but exhale in awe.

...

He could have sworn someone just spoke to him. Yet, there was no else there. He took a look outside the cavern. The winds would never stop, so he had to make a judgment call on how long he needed to rest before he left. Reaching the talon holding the Idol of Boreas back, he willed his tail around to secure it. He cracked his knuckles before digging his talons into the rock face outside the cavern.

During the climb, his thoughts strayed to the current events. Sombra's Crystal Empire had invaded and spread claim across much of the land. At first, Celestia's own forces had managed to keep the fighting contained to Equestria. But the mind-control spells placed upon the crystal ponies' helmets kept them fighting long after normal minds would have succumbed to fatigue and injury. The Princess had needed to call in more support.

Some of the neighboring creatures joined Sombra's army as a means of knocking Celestia down a peg or two. Others joined the war on either side, expecting compensation for military service. But word got out that the only reward Sombra offered recruits and mercenaries was another helmet and permanent mind-control. After that, the chance of maybe getting payment from Celestia sounded a little more enticing versus never getting to eat or enjoy benefits under Sombra.

What was this gryphon hoping to accomplish? He thought if this idol brought unity and pride to the gryphons before, maybe they could get at least some hope. Maybe the nostalgic urges would give them back some drive to live for in this world. It would take something more than that, sure, but he figured it could at least be a starting point.

When he pulled himself safely to the top of the ledge, he gasped. A squad of Sombra's army had lined up and some of them had bows with ice arrows pointed right at the gryphon. A whisper floated in the back of his head. As the arrows were let loose, he flung the Idol of Boreas up in front of his face.

In a brief moment, he thought he saw a female gryphon with white feathers and light green fur. She was holding her talons off to either side. The instant passed as all of the arrows had landed into the idol in a flurry, freezing the idol and the rest of the arrows colliding with it. It then shattered, launching gold dust and shards of ruby into his eyes.

He screeched and quickly rubbed his eyes.

"Listen carefully, Gylpher. We don't have much time."

He stopped rubbing. "Who...? Are you the girl I just saw inside the idol?"

"These slaves will not pause for long. They will rearm themselves by the time we finish this conversation. You will have to stop them from killing you."

"How am I supposed to do that? I've just been blinded by the debris!"

"I have a proposal. You and I will enter a pact. I give you the power you need to save yourself. You will owe me a favor later."

"Most of the books I've read have been scraps, but even I know that making deals with devils isn't a good idea."

The voice chuckled. "A devil? I suppose that's fitting for me. Still, do you think these brainwashed ponies will have a better offer?"

He grunted. "Seems like life has turned into nothing but 'maybes' that are better than certain deaths." He tapped his chest with a talon. "Fine, lady. Let's make a pact."

Her presence mentally nodded. "Then by the power of Boreas, I grant this vessel the sight of release!"

...

He blinked once. He blinked twice. He blinked a third time. His sight had returned, and he could clearly see the emotionless helmets and the arrows wielded by them. Yet, he felt no glass or irritation in his eyes. It felt as if a huge surge of strength lifted his head. He flapped his wings, spreading them out. He stared at all of his attackers with stubborn eyes.

If these slaves could have thought for themselves, they might have taken notice of the red bird-like pattern floating in the gryphon's eyes. Alas, they merely lifted their bows, preparing to fire again.

"Crystal Ponies, I beseech you!" He called out. "Cast off your helmets and denounce your king!"

There was a sound similar to an eagle's cry. The bird-like pattern flapped its wings and dove into the gaze of all who were looking at the gryphon's eyes. Something jolted the sleeping minds. Flickers of green in the helmets shut off, revealing the various colors of eyes underneath.

A soldier blinked twice. He dropped his bow and yanked on his helmet with both of his front hooves. Five helmets dropped to the ground at the same time. The ponies underneath looked around, not really knowing where they were.

Gylpher scratched the ground, growling. Four of the crystal ponies yelped and galloped away. He walked over to a still intact bow and a couple quivers of ice arrows.

"Hmm, these might come in handy later." He slung the quivers to either side and picked up the bow. He pulled on the string and gave it a twang. It was at this moment he noticed the remaining crystal pony shivering in place and whimpering.

Gylpher looked to the ground and saw a bow lying next to the crystal pony. He shrugged his wings and walked closer. With a sliding motion, he placed an ice arrow quiver right beside the bow. The crystal pony paused in her whimpering to look quizzically at him. There was a hint of a gem's shine in her gray eyes. Her yellow hide and short, red mane were faded.

"Why?" she managed to choke out.

"I can't leave you completely defenseless around here." Gylpher turned away. "But, uh... save one of those arrows for yourself."

He then proceeded to spread his wings and flew for home.

Once upon a time, Griffonstone was the proud capital of the gryphon kingdom. Now, the only resemblance it had was the species of its residents. Houses were in constant disrepair, nests were made of unkempt garbage, and the malicious red sky wasn't brightening any moods. It was mostly quiet, save for the occasional claw fights between two gryphons over a stray bit or fragment of a pearl. Those who hadn't stayed here were off fighting in the war between ponies.

Gylpher hadn't expected any creature to greet him upon arriving at his loosely thatched roof and nesting ground. So, the sight of a green, fuzzy tail darting behind his front door gave him pause. He landed on the dirt outside as quietly as possible. With one talon on an arrow in his quiver and the other talon holding his bow, he side-stepped before throwing his door open.

"This place is rather drab, isn't it?"

Letting the arrow slide back into the quiver, Gylpher lowered his talon to catch his balance. "How in the world...?"

"I mean, it's what I expected, but it's a whole other thing to witness the dull interior personally."

The female gryphon's green tail rubbed some of the grime off a small, empty bookshelf. Orange cat-eyes looked around the house with a sense of boredom. Her white feathers imitated a mane as she raised her head.

Gylpher walked over to a wall, sat down next to it, and sighed. "What are you? How did you get here? Why are you here?"

She pretended to scratch the back of her head. "I'm Rukh, I walked, and we have a pact."

"Rukh?" He crossed his talon arms. "I thought you were the Idol of Boreas."

"Correction: I was inside that decorative statue." Her eyelids were half-closed. "One of the gryphon kings of long ago thought it would be funny to trap me in that thing. Shame, he didn't live long enough to see the punchline of my escape."

"So you're not a normal gryphon." He set his gained weapons against the wall.

"Oh, lucky me. I made a pact with a genius." Rukh rolled her eyes.

Gylpher stared hard at her. "Tell me. What exactly is this power you gave me?" The red pattern shimmered off his eyes involuntarily.

She shrugged her wings. "The power doesn't have a name. It simply manifests between those that have formed a pact. In your case, it has taken on the properties of suggestion. Before you get any ideas, no. Your power won't work on me."

He gasped and the red pattern faded. "Back near the Abysmal Abyss, how did you know my name?"

"When those ponies broke the idol, some of it made contact with your eyes." Her tail twitched. "In that moment, my soul connected with yours, showing me all of your memories."

"Hang on!" He held up a talon facing her. "All?! Even those times I-"

"Do you really want to continue that tangent, or do you want to ask the more important questions?" She lifted a talon, palm-side up.

"Guh... fine." He groaned before shaking his head. "What happens now? Is my soul forfeit to the games of your whim?"

"On the contrary." Rukh walked over to a straw nest against the back wall. "I'm not into the dark magics of succubi and sirens. Where appropriate, I'll do everything in my power to make sure you stay alive. I can't exactly collect my favor from a corpse."

"Which reminds me, what is this favor you want from me?" He walked over and shut the front door.

"I'll let you know when it's possible for you to act upon it." She walked around in a circle before lying down on the nest.

"What is that supposed to mean?" He stared at her incredulously.

"There will be plenty of time for that later." She lowered her head and closed her eyes.

"Hey! I still have questions!" He pounced onto a spot right next to the nest.

Rukh turned over on her back. Her chest rose and fell deeply. She appeared to be sleeping. Gylpher pinched the upper part of his beak and sighed. What was he supposed to do now? The Idol of Boreas was destroyed, and now he had some ageless stranger taking up his entire bed. To top it all off, he apparently had a power that could surpass King Sombra's mind control.

He chuckled in disbelief. Power to rival a king, huh? He wasn't interested in aiming for a royal throne. The last gryphon that had held that title lost focus when a singular trophy was lost. That kind of position was just asking for a lifetime of blame. He thought that perhaps he could just hide his power for now and bide his time for something to happen.

Three knocks came from his front door. Gylpher shook his head. If it was someone from the Gruff family demanding spare change again, he was just going to tell them to buzz off. He walked over and pulled the door open a crack. Gray eyes under a red mane looked back at him.

Author's Note

Yes, technically this is my second attempt at a Code Geass story. Here's to hoping that it will turn out better.
...
So, considering the "Sombra war" timeline began roughly where Season 3 opened, things that happened after, such as Gilda finding the idol and watching it fall further into the abyss, never happened. It is probably safe to say that the idol was still somewhere near the grave of the cyclops-esque thief. Other discrepancies in historical events will come up later. This is the only warning I'll give to readers that strictly read the cartoon-canonically plausible.

Ch. 3: Court is in Session

*Tap! Tap!*

The gray unicorn with black mane and goatee put his hammer to the side. "Every pony, be seated! Attorneys, give us the opening statements."

Gylpher held the side of his beak against his talons. His eyes drooped a bit while the words of the lawyers became white noise in his mind. It was mostly formal jargon. Why couldn't they just get to point? His train of thought was interrupted by a different set of talons gripping his wrist-area.

"Thought you'd leave me alone at your house, did you?"

"You weren't even in the house when I was taken aw- What?!" Gylpher snapped to attention and looked at the grabber. "Rukh? How did you get here?"

"I'm an immortal devil, Gylpher." She deadpanned. "I own the shortcuts I traverse to keep an eye on you."

"These seem less like the immortals and more like unicorn magic spells." He raised his brow. "Particularly the teleporting and this telepathy you're doing right now."

"To be fair, unicorn ponies still haven't quite worked out the kinks of telepathy." She loosened her grip slightly. "Anyway, just thought I'd check to see what you plan to say during your testimony."

He pretended to scratch the air right next to his beak. "Don't hold your breath. I was going to stick with the bare minimum and get out of here quicker."

"And just what is 'the bare minimum'?" She raised her free talon to the side.

"The Prosecution calls the bird-cat to the stand!"

"You're about to find out." Gylpher stood up and one of the guard ponies led him away from his seat.

One of the ponies in attendance looked in Rukh's direction, faced forward, then did a double-take. But she was no longer there. The pony scratched his ear before looking back at the floor of the courtroom.

"Name and occupation?"

The gryphon stared at the unicorn in the judge's seat. "Gylpher and... does Adventurer count as an occupation?"

"I suppose it will do." The judge held a stoic stare. "Mr. Darkbright?"

"Thank you, Your Honor." The prosecutor trotted over to the right of the witness stand. "Mr. Gylpher, where were you when the previous witnesses were just outside of Griffonstone?"

"I was rock-climbing in the Abysmal Abyss," he answered.

"Abysmal Abyss?" The prosecutor held back a chuckle. "Is there really no better mountain nearby for you to train your muscles?"

"Your Honor..." interrupted the defense attorney.

"Mr. Darkbright, please keep your questions related to the case." The judge gave him a look.

"Very well." The prosecutor shrugged. "Mr. Gryphon, when exactly did you encounter the crystal ponies on trial today?"

"Midday to late afternoon?" Gylpher shrugged his wings. "It's hard to tell when the sky is always red."

"All of them testified that when they saw you, they ran." The prosecutor walked to the other side of the witness stand. "Did you notice anything strange before they made a run for it?"

Gylpher crossed his talons. "Well, yes. I thought it was very strange when I told them to take off their helmets, and they actually listened."

A breeze passed through the courtroom, despite that all of the doors were locked and there weren't any windows.

"You... told them... to take off their helmets?" Mr. Darkbright's brow rose.

"Yes." Gylpher nodded. "Did I stutter?"

Many of the ponies in attendance murmured to each other. What was this gryphon talking about? How could some creature that couldn't cast magic overpower the dark magic helmets with nothing more than a voice?

"Mr. Gylpher, this is a serious question." The prosecutor glared at the witness. "Do not lightly make jokes."

"I have yet to tell any jokes here, Mr. Darkbright." Gylpher's tail swished.

"You can't just tell some pony in Sombra's army to take off their helmet." Darkbright shook his head. "If any creature could do that, we wouldn't be having the war right now."

"Well, that makes sense." Gylpher nodded. "Not all creatures have this kind of power."

Manes went out of place. Murmurs became open conversations. Yelling tried to overpower the number of other voices filling the courtroom. That in turn led to more yelling.

*Tap! Tap!*

"Order! Order!" The judge insisted.

Darkbright slammed a hoof against the wood of the witness stand. "Are you saying you have the power to win a war?"

Gylpher waved a talon dismissively. "Don't put words into my mouth. If I ever got involved in the war, I'd likely be just as vulnerable to weapon fire as any other mercenary."

"But you do claim to have power that can overcome Sombra's brainwashing with a command." The prosecutor lifted his hoof and pointed it at the gryphon. He was practically breathing in everything the witness was exhaling.

Gylpher's talons were balled into fists under the stand's wooden counter. "Please don't point at me. In fact, go to the corner and think about what you've done."

Unseen by anyone in the room, a little red birdie flew between Gylpher's eyes and Darkbright's. Something inside the prosecutor's mind snagged like a tripwire. Pointing was rude. He needed to think about what he was doing.

"Alright then." The prosecutor put his hoof down and trotted away from the witness stand.

The courtroom's attendees stopped talking to watch what happened next. As the prosecutor turned away from the witness, his hoof steps were stiff and deliberate. His eyes locked onto the room's far corner, as if drawn by a magnet. Then, he stood still right in front of it.

"Mr. Darkbright?" The judge tilted his head while asking for him. "Are you... finished questioning the witness?"

"I cannot leave this corner." Darkbright did not turn away from the spot. "I need to think about what I've done."

Gylpher clasped his talons over his beak. Dear Boreas, what had he done? He looked down and exhaled. If this power was using him to bring about some greater good, it sure had a weird sense of humor. He needed to be careful about his suggestions and orders.

The judge cleared his throat. "Based on new evidence brought to the court's attention, I now declare the charges against the current crystal ponies on trial to be not guilty. However, Gylpher the Gryphon must be detained until further notice."

As soon as he lowered the hammer again, two guards cuffed Gylpher and dragged him out. Attendees murmured and yelled again as soon as he was out the door. Rukh stood on the building's roof and ran the claws of her talons along her beak. Her claws somehow looked sharper upon holding them up.

"Gylpher!" Cold Quartz ran out after.

Two other guard ponies galloped out and pulled her to a stop. "Stay back, miss! He's dangerous!"

"But he's..." Quartz watched with longing eyes at the gryphon being pulled away.

Rukh muttered with a venomous gaze at the horizon. "He's mine."

Gylpher found himself back inside the interrogation room. He looked down and exhaled. His tail hung limply through the open back of the chair.

"Was that really the 'bare minimum', Gylpher?" Rukh silently walked in without disrupting the matter around her.

"I think I get why I did that." He stared at the mirror on the opposite wall. "Before Sunset Shimmer entered this room, I gave myself a compelling order. 'If you must go to court, be as forthcoming as possible'."

"Hmm... you're as curious as I am." Rukh sat down and crossed her talons. "You wanted to know if you were as vulnerable to your power as other creatures." She looked at both of their reflections. "So now you know. But where do you go from here?"

"Rukh." He looked his professional partner in the eye. "Would you mind telling me everything you know about this power?"

She chuckled. "Tell you what: If you make it through whatever Canterlot puts you, I'll give you that information."

"Tch." He leaned his head back. "I really can't use it on you."

"Nope." She used her tail fluff to brush the tip of his beak. "Remember your place and we'll get along swimmingly."

"Maybe you should cash in that favor now." He gently shoved her tail out of his face. "At the rate things are going, I might not be around long enough to fulfill it."

"Perhaps I'll wear your pelt after they execute you." She leaned her back against a wall. "Centuries have made my kinks rather weird."

Gylpher squinted at her. "You're a sick female, Rukh."

Rukh shrugged her wings. "I lighten the mood whenever possible."

The next day...

A door slam woke Gylpher up. He looked around the room of mirrors. Rukh was nowhere to be seen. All that was there aside from himself was the interrogator from yesterday, standing in the doorway. She had her sunglasses back on, leaving most of her current mood hidden from view.

"You're being escorted to a different location," said Sunset Shimmer.

He rubbed some crumbs off his beak. The ponies' poor excuse for grits had kept him from starving during his night of detention. "Where would that be?"

"You'll find out when you get there."

She levitated a cloth around. In a rush of dark blue lines, Gylpher lost his line of sight. Had they already figured out his power was in his eyes? Something sounded like it was clicking, and he felt his talons being restricted. He was being magically tugged forward, presumably out of the interrogation room.

"Why haven't you tried running or flying, Gryphon?" Sunset's voice broke the noise of steps along the ground.

"I agreed to be taken into custody." He idly scratched his fur with his right wing. "A few seconds of freedom wouldn't be worth a pound of feathers for a lifetime being hunted by the law."

"You're... submitting because of pride?" Her tone was one of confusion.

"Pride, stubbornness, circumstantial acceptance... you can call it whatever you want." He tilted his head. "Why? Are you worried about me?"

"Maybe I'm just thinking out loud." The words she spoke after that sounded like a muffled, "Don't mind me."

He shrugged and held his head to look straight ahead, even though he couldn't.

"If you are trying to trick me, this isn't a very good attempt," she commented.

"And it would have been more efficient to execute me in that isolated room," he countered.

"Not my call." Her voice went lower.

Aside from footsteps, no more sounds were exchanged between prisoner and interrogator.

"Thank you, Sunset Shimmer. Please, untie our guest."

A new voice entered his head. He could tell it belonged to a female. Most likely, it was a mare of a slightly higher station than the interrogator. Although, her order seemed a little out of place.

"With all due respect, y-" Sunset's voice stopped short. "The judge deemed him dangerous."

"I would like to form my own opinion," said the mare. "I have precautions in place."

"Very well." Sunset sighed.

The shackles clacked open and the blindfold was lifted. Gylpher flinched while he blinked a few times to adjust to the brightness. It wasn't long before he opened his eyes wide. His beak opened as a reflex.

"Please wait outside." The mare glanced over at Sunset and two guard ponies by a large set of doors.

The three addressed ponies slowly nodded once before trotting out. Both doors collided loudly shut. Gylpher was alone with the alicorn, the last one of her kind in Equestria. That moment was lost when a familiar wing brushed against his side.

"My, my, getting an audience with Celestia herself." Rukh sat on her haunches. "How did you get so popular?"

"That voice sounds familiar." Celestia raised her brow. "Golden Grain? I thought you were a hippogryph the last time we met."

"I no longer use that name or that species, Princess." Rukh pulled out a file and ran it across her talons. "It's 'Rukh' now."

Gylpher held up his own talon and shook his head. "Wait, slow down! You two know each other?"

"It was a brief meeting before she took up Equestria's mantle." The other gryphon glanced at the shine of her claws. "That, and before the hippogryphs left into isolation. Details."

"So, you're the source of this young male's unnatural persuasion." Celestia closed her eyes. "I had my suspicions, but I wasn't entirely sure until now."

"Don't give me all of the credit, Celi." Rukh stared deadpan. "Gylpher released me from my imprisonment. I figured the least I could do was offer him an extra tool to survive."

"I suppose it was." Celestia revealed her pink irises again. "Too much power in any creature's possession is dangerous. If Sombra is ever defeated, I hope no pony as dangerous as me ever rises again."

"As... you, Princess?" Gylpher lifted his brow. "Pretty sure you get tired as much as any of the other ponies can."

"I wasn't always so easy to retire." She shook her head. "Do you know the story of Nightmare Moon?"

"Uh, from what I gather, you used the Elements of Harmony artifacts to banish her." He pretended to scratch the air next to his beak. "When she came back, they wouldn't work for you anymore. So, you ended up offing her more permanently."

Celestia nodded. "That is what I mean. Is there nothing more dangerous than the one that can destroy a great darkness itself? I can't afford to cut myself loose like that, just because I feel like it. Otherwise, I'll lose more of the ones I care about."

Rukh flicked her tail. "So instead, you use your pride to loathe yourself. You've done half of Sombra's work for him."

Gylpher gave his pact mate a glare.

"What?" She barely glanced back at him. "I was simply saying what you were thinking."

He grit the inside of his beak before turning his eyes to Celestia. "Would you kindly tell me why you brought me here?"

His power's bird call flew from his gaze. But when it made contact with the alicorn's eyes, something got stuck. It almost felt like it was trying to swim through molasses. Before Gylpher knew it, his whole body swung backward and landed on the floor.

"Ow... what the...?" He grunted before rolling over.

"You don't need to control me, young gryphon." Celestia's tone was even. "I was getting to that part of the conversation."

"Rukh, what just happened?" Gylpher spun around.

"You honestly think Celestia has lived as long as she has without picking up a few counter-spells?" Rukh rolled her eyes. "She had psionic barriers mastered back when she was in the double digits."

Gylpher exhaled while rubbing his head. "Then how did my power work on that unicorn prosecutor?"

"Same fundamentals, different practicality." Rukh crossed her arms. "Kind of like how not every gryphon can cook, not all unicorns can protect their mind."

He looked indignant. "Hey! I've survived just fine off my own cooking."

Celestia cleared her throat. "If I may bring us back on topic..."

Gylpher resumed a casual sitting posture. Rukh nodded quietly.

"Normally, the noble parliament would demand that a creature with such incredible power should be locked away." Celestia folded her front hooves together. "Out of sight; out of mind. However, I believe we should make use of your power." She glanced out the window at the red haze. "This war has been dragging on for too long. Charging into battle against an enemy that barely tires is only resulting in less soldiers, be it mental trauma or casualties. It is time for a different approach."

"What do you want me to do?" He pointed a talon at himself. "Look all of Sombra's army in the eye and order them to stop? You know there's a thing called a blind spot that enemies can hit. I don't have 360-vision."

Celestia shook her head. "I won't ask you to do anything so drastic yet. We can start small and see how your power develops."

"Hmm." He tapped his claw on the floor. "Where do we start?"

"Really?" Rukh tilted her head. "No haggling for compensation?"

Gylpher pretended to scratch his head. "If there's anything left of the treasury when this war is set and done, I'll make a few demands. Otherwise, I might as well be asking for more air to breathe."

There was a faint smile on Celestia's face. "A pragmatic mind. We could certainly use more of those."

Her horn glowed golden. Three cans floated out and their tops were opened. Two of them floated to the gryphons while the third levitated near the princess.

"It isn't exactly a banquet, but we need to ration everything right now." Celestia magically pulled out some spoons.

Gylpher wasn't sure, but he thought he heard a vacuum cleaner as he shoveled preserved food into his beak. Celestia and Rukh ate their fill at a steady pace. The next few minutes were relatively quiet.

Author's Note

I imagined the judge being voiced by The Brain from Animaniacs.

Ch. 4: No Eyes. Thanks!

It breathed fire at the walls. It lost count of how many times it tried melting the stone. Its shackles were unresponsive to the flames as well. It tried lashing every which way it could, but it continued to be trapped. It needed to serve King Sombra, but it was too trapped to do so.

Its world was green and red, the blessed colors of its king's dark magic. Its head was held down by the weight of its helmet. It shook the chains again. It tried to breathe fire at them once more. This time, it coughed. It was failing its duties to serve its king.

...

It heard the hoof steps of Celestia's weaklings approach. It growled unintelligibly. It did not need language. Its king spoke for it and everything. It just needed them to let it out. It needed to slay the unbending to King Sombra's ground.

Then, all of a sudden... it saw a pair of crimson wings.

"Denounce your king and find a better path!"

The young dragon slammed his head against the wall behind him. After three impacts, the uncomfortable helmet fell away. His slit, blue eyes blinked before his blonde mane hid them from outsiders. Even so, he blinked a few times. Though he was very much still in a dungeon cell, he could see a variety of colors.

There were two guard ponies standing on either side of the barred door. The pony princess was standing right outside as well. He tilted his head when he saw the violet and white gryphon staring at him.

"Dude, what are you looking at?" Fume turned his wrists, rattling the chains in the process.

The gryphon turned his head to look behind himself. "Well, he's talking. That shows promise."

Fume grunted while tugging at the chains. "Hey! Don't ignore me when I'm talking to you!"

The gryphon returned his gaze to the teenage dragon. "Just hold still. We'll have you out of here in a few seconds."

After a go-ahead from Celestia, one of the guards trotted in with the keys. One after the other, he unlocked the chains of the dragon. Said dragon massaged his wrists and ankles before crawling out of the cell. As soon as he stood upright, he held up a claw to his head and groaned.

"Are you alright?" asked the princess.

"Just peachy." Fume shook his head. He blinked and did a double-take at Gylpher. "What's a gryphon doing in Canterlot?"

"I could ask the same thing about a dragon." Gylpher countered.

"I was a prisoner. What's your excuse?" Fume crossed his arms.

"Funny, so was I." Gylpher used his wing's feathers to point at himself.

"You think this is a joke?!" The dragon tackled the gryphon against a wall.

"Ngh... kuh!" A couple of striped hind paws pushed the weight of scales back.

Slit eyes stared at each other for a second. Then, both of the creatures flew to close the gap. That was the case until a guard's spear handle pressed against the dragon's chest. Likewise, a large and white wing halted the gryphon.

"Gentle males, that's quite enough." Celestia looked with stern eyes at them both.

Fume snorted out a puff of smoke. "Dragons don't do anything gently."

"Said the dragon who was pulling his punches," muttered Gylpher.

Fume stepped back from the pole weapon. "I just didn't want to crush your scaredy-cat half too quickly."

Gylpher stared deadpan. "Both of my halves are from predatory animals."

"Well, good for rocking you." Fume put his claws against his sides.

Celestia cleared her throat. "Might I suggest saving some of that fight for the war zone?"

Fume shook his head. "No offense, Your Highness, but I'm through fighting for ponies, crystal or otherwise."

Gylpher raised a talon. "Do you have a plan to avoid Sombra's capture? Because, it looks like that didn't work out for you the first time."

Fume growled in a low tone. Then, he looked toward the princess. "Where's the next battle?"

Celestia nodded. "Talk with Shining Armor. He can get you started."

Gylpher walked into five more cells in that dungeon. Five more times, he used his compelling gaze and commands. This time, the freed mind slaves were crystal ponies. After they left their cells, Celestia offered them a choice: Fight on her side, or take up work that could still be useful to her army. There was some hesitation, but they all agreed to the latter.

As the guard ponies escorted the crystal ponies out, Gylpher grunted. He leaned against a wall while holding a talon near his head. Rukh appeared silently and gently lifted her pact mate's beak. When Gylpher opened his eyes, Rukh saw the image of the bird wings were shaking. She also thought she saw a watery tear.

"It's hurting now, isn't it?" She wiped the droplet away.

"I've had worse headaches." Gylpher moved his talon to brush Rukh's off his face.

"Your power is growing, implanting itself deeper into your very being." Rukh didn't budge.

"What are the side effects of this power's growth?" He lowered his brow.

"When it reaches full maturity, you won't be able to turn it off."

He gasped. "I'll need to be careful of who I'm looking at and what I'm saying. A sarcastic remark could be taken as an extreme command and cause a chain of events."

"Would it be so bad to have the power of a king?" Rukh tilted her head.

"From what I've seen, kings are either too broken up to keep the peace, or they're too power-hungry to know when to stop fighting." Gylpher looked down. The crimson birds in his eyes faded to dull outlines. "Not one creature is invincible. They shouldn't act like power can ever make them so."

Rukh sighed. "I expected that kind of response."

Celestia trotted up next to the gryphons. "I'm heading back to the front lines tomorrow morning. I've asked my guards that are staying here to look after you." She turned and gave a quick wink. "Do try to keep your orders within reason."

Gylpher rolled his eyes. "Your Highness, you're the closest thing this world has to a chance of winning against Sombra. Usurping your subjects in your absence is not only rude. It's counter-intuitive."

"I'm glad we agree." Celestia smiled thinly before trotting out of view.

After exiting the dungeon, Gylpher found himself essentially with free reign of the castle grounds. Two guard ponies were always nearby, but they kept averting their eyes. He knew why. They were being cautious of his compulsion power. When he heard the clang of a hammer against metal, he wandered over to an open room.

Within the space were several ponies working and covered in dirt. One was shoveling coal into a furnace. The next was dragging a rope along a pulley. Yet another was pushing a cart with various colored mineral ores. Cold Quartz was hammering something on an anvil.

Gylpher did a double-take. "Cold Quartz?"

The crystal mare narrowly avoided dropping her hammer near her hoof. She galloped around the anvil and up to Gylpher. She slammed her hooves around the gryphon in a hug. Slowly, he reached one talon up to her shoulder. His other arm was trapped by her embrace.

Cold Quartz's eyes suddenly bulged open and she backed off about three steps. "Sorry! I just-"

"No, it's fine." Gylpher waved his wings dismissively.

"I didn't know if you-"

"Just didn't expect it. That's all."

There was a bit of a pause. Most of the other ponies continued their work in the forge. A few slowed down while keeping an eye on the newcomer. Quartz's hide glowed ever so slightly.

"So, uh... they let you free?" She glanced at him.

He gave a half-smile. "More like they gave me a job without a title. I'm sort of a trainee in curing the brainwashed."

"Hmm, I did see a few more crystal ponies pass by, more than I remembered were at the courtroom." Quartz tapped her chin.

Gylpher glanced over at the anvil. "You've taken up a blacksmith position?"

"Oh, yes!" She trotted back toward her original spot and motioned for him to follow. "I told them about my experience forging ice sapphires into arrowheads. They wanted to see if I could do something similar with their supply of fire rubies."

"How did it go?" He walked close.

"Easier than I thought." She picked up the covered handle of the rod. "If it weren't for the red color, I might have mistaken the two gems to be the same."

*Twang!* *Zwip!*

About half of the oak, training dummy was incinerated. That was the damage assessed from one fire arrow. With the sudden weight imbalance, the rest of the dummy clattered along the ground. The test archer hoofed off her weapon and quiver to another pony. She then proceeded to trot off the range. Other ponies immediately galloped over to clean up the debris.

"Remind me never to mess with you, Quartz." Gylpher crossed his arms.

"Don't mess with me." Cold Quartz paraphrased.

He waved his wing dismissively. "I mean if I ever get in a situation where I'm stupid enough to try."

"Oh, okay." She chuckled. "I should probably get back to the forge. They're going to want a lot more of these fire arrows."

"I can see why." He glanced back at the singed mark on the archery range. "Get enough of those, and a blizzard could turn into a flash flood."

"There you are!" shouted a familiar voice.

Gylpher looked toward the sound of cantering hooves. "Shimmer?"

The interrogator slid to a stop and adjusted her sunglasses. "We need you at the courthouse, right now!"

He blinked twice. "Don't you ponies have restrictions on double jeopardy?"

"This isn't about your case. Just..." Sunset sighed. "Look. It'll be easier to explain if I show you."

"Hmm, guess I don't have anything better to do." He signaled a quick wave with his talon. "See you around, Quartz."

"Alright." Cold Quartz nodded. "Good luck with whatever that is."

Sunset Shimmer led Gylpher out through the hall. As per Celestia's instructions, two of the guards followed closely to either side.

"No blindfold this time?" Gylpher called out.

"The Princess trusts you enough to use discretion." Sunset turned her head slightly. "I'll let you prove yourself."

The gryphon smiled wryly. He flapped his wings and flew low as he followed the unicorn. The sky outside the castle was still quite red. It had barely been a day since he had seen the pink hue on everything. Yet, it felt like forever ago. There were some scratches on the buildings and paint was peeling off the "three horseshoe" signs.

He shook his head at how much the locals showed off their wealth.

It seemed the prosecutor was still staring at the corner of the courtroom. Whenever one of the other ponies in there tried to get his attention, he repeated that he needed to think about what he had done. Poking, prodding, and pushing Mr. Darkbright had no success in dislodging him. Loud noises and stomping hooves near his ears weren't budging him either.

Sunset pointed her hoof. "Can you do something about this?"

Gylpher looked down in thought for a moment. "Does anybody have a mirror?"

"Sir, this is no time for sprucing." One of the guards looked annoyed.

"I meant a mirror that could fit between the prosecutor and that corner." Gylpher waggled his talon for emphasis. "There's no way I can fit in there to look at him directly."

One by one, the nearby ponies shook their heads. That was until attention was brought to the pony holding out a compact mirror and some eyeliner. She was in her own little world. Sunset trotted over and promptly levitated the compact out of this pony's grasp. The compact floated over in front of Mr. Darkbright's face.

"Like this?" Sunset glanced at the gryphon.

Gylpher held up his open palm sideways. "Turn it a little... there! Hold it!"

"Every pony, avert your eyes!" Sunset called out to the rest of the room's occupants.

Conveniently, the gryphon and the prosecutor were the only ones who didn't comply. The former opened his wings while looking at the compact. He swung his right talon out to the side.

"Return to your daily routine, only breaking it when you need to work on your next case."

The red birds in his eyes screeched as they flew. The prosecutor's pupils dilated as the new words filled his brain. As the gryphon set his talon onto the floor, there was a slow nod from his subject. Routine was top priority until work superseded it.

"I understand."

Mr. Darkbright turned on his hind legs before briskly trotting away from the corner. The rest of the ponies opened their eyes and watched the prosecutor as he left. A couple of them sighed. The mare with makeup snatched her compact back with a huff. Similar frustration was on the judge pony's face as he trotted up to Sunset.

"Why isn't that gryphon in cuffs?" The judge pointed a hoof to his left.

Sunset stared back. "Princess Celestia has declared him free to move around, with the only restriction that he be constantly guarded."

"Flaunting her crown's authority again." The judge shook his head. "You watch. When this war is over, she'll be the next King Sombra."

Sunset rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I don't see that happening."

"And how can you be so sure?" The judge was barely a breath away from her.

Sunset shrugged. "Well for one, she'd look terrible with a black mane."

The judge's brow lowered. " 'The interrogator was humorous.' They'll write that on your epitaph." He flicked his cloak before trotting out of the courtroom.

"I guess your joke was too personal for him." Gylpher looked at her.

"That wasn't a joke." Sunset scratched at the tie above her chest. "The Princess actually tried that color before she managed to wash the dye out. I couldn't take any of her lessons seriously for a whole week."

"Huh." Gylpher rubbed the back of his neck. "And here I thought every creature's goth phase lasted at least a year."

"To each their own." Sunset shrugged. "Ready to head back?"

"Yeah..." He closed his eyes and rubbed the top of his beak.

Author's Note

It's no Strawberry Sunrise, but I'll take it. (End of my bad attempt at a joke.)
...
Yeah, I know. It's a slow schedule for uploading chapters. But I don't feel right pressing "Publish" every time I manage to slap 100 words together. I'd rather take the time to make them look somewhat decent.

Ch. 5: Golden Reprieve

Voices broke through the air. Yet, they rarely used words. Three different tones permeated the ears, clouding all thoughts. The body swam closer to the source of the hypnotic song.

"Golden Grain!"

A tidal wave rushed over the entire scene. There were some growls that sounded distant and warbled. When the observer regained their sight, their flippers were being held by Queen Novo.

"That song..."

The queen briefly glared at the water's surface above them before turning to look at her subject. "Those were the Sirens. They're one of the reasons why we must stay hidden in the depths. Please don't scare me like that!"

The observer tilted in the depths. "But... we're not related."

"Do not give me that caviar." Queen Novo hugged them tightly. "It's my job to look after the hippogryphs as a whole. That means all of you are my family. If even one of you perishes, I grieve."

Slowly, the observer hugged her back.

After swimming through several layers of a seaweed forest, they climbed several steps carved into a mountain. They did not even notice the sudden absence of water on their beak. Hunger drove them to clamp down on some clay ore, just to get something in their stomach. They flew over a few dilapidated houses, piles of nests, and small tug-of-wars.

"Gylpher. Coffee. Now." A blade of grass danced around inside the father's beak.

"Yeah, yeah."

The observer grabbed the handle in their talon and poured out some hot, nasty-scented liquid. The larger gryphon gulped down the cup's contents and threw what little was left. With what felt like boredom, the observer caught the flying mug just in front of their face. They proceeded to drop it into a pile with several other mugs.

"When are you going to do something useful with your life, son?"

The observer glanced back. "When are you?"

"Pah! Shows what little you know, cub." He kicked his chair over with a hind paw. "While you were off wasting your time climbing rocks, your mother and I actually did something worthwhile."

"It's not a waste of time." The observer scratched the floor. "It gets me exercise and a better understanding of surroundings."

"We're going to show that alleged princess that you can't win wars with scraps of loyalty and laughter." He put on a sash with a black unicorn's pattern in the middle.

"What? But you said that's a war of ponies. You can't go joining a side just because it's darker!"

The father and mother gryphon opened the door and marched out.

"Mom? Dad? Wait!"

The observer leaped and bounded toward the front door. Yet, it seemed to be getting farther away with each step. They felt like they were running through a room full of murky water.

"When are you coming back?"

Gylpher's eyelids twitched before slowly opening. At first, all he could identify were some soft, white leaves. He took in a deep breath. When he detected an unusual scent, he blinked a couple times. He jerked his head up, but was stopped by a couple rough arms holding his back.

That was when he realized that the "leaves" were actually feathers. He stared at the daring eyes of the other gryphon in the bed.

"Why are you in a rush to leave me?" asked Rukh.

"So much for not being a succubus." Gylpher wriggled one of his wings free.

"You're still innocent." She rolled her eyes. "And I was trying to break the ice."

"Your suggestive tone of voice tells me otherwise." He looked deadpan.

"I had a dream from your point of view." She pulled him back down a little. "You had one from my perspective, didn't you?"

His eyes widened. "How did you know that?"

"It was probably a combination of the connection between our souls and sleeping in such a close proximity."

He turned his head ever so slightly. "Did either of our dreams actually happen in the past?"

"I imagine the details were a bit off, but parts of them looked accurate." She ran her talons over his head. "You get bed-feathers so easily."

"H-Hey!" He pushed her front limbs away. "As if you've never been a bit ruffled in the morning!"

"If I ever was, I've long forgotten." She rolled over and sighed. "I'm no longer in the mood."

"Shh! Don't say stuff like that." He looked around the room wildly. "Somebody listening might get the wrong idea."

Her left wing whacked his face. "It was a joke, Tiger."

Gylpher slowly pulled himself off the bed to the floor. He looked around the room. Various decorations with little in common were toppled against the walls. Most of it was too broken or dusty to identify. He massaged the back of his neck and breathed out. When he opened the bedroom door, some pony gasped before putting their hoof down.

"Quartz?" Gylpher blinked. "Not that I'm displeased to see you, but what are you doing here?"

Cold Quartz cleared her throat. "I was just going to see if you wanted to join me at breakfast."

"Sure." He nodded, stepped out, and closed the door.

"What about Rukh?" Quartz moved to indicate behind.

"She'll find her own food." Gylpher waved his talon dismissively. "Maybe she'll even teleport there first just to spite me."

"Oh." Quartz scratched her head.

Guard ponies and other staff were in three lines in the mess hall. Those that had trays of rations ate in relative silence. Once they were done eating, they shoved their trays through a hole in the wall and left. It was about as factory-esque as the smith and practice fields.

"Is it against the rules to talk here?" Gylpher looked around.

"No." One of the guards ahead of him in line briefly turned his head. "There's just not a whole lot to talk about. We all know we're at war. No need to drill that into our heads."

"Oh, I see." Gylpher went back to following the line one step at a time.

After some slop and awkward stares, Gylpher set aside a few minutes to tackle the practice field. All ten of his practice arrows hit the round target 200 meters away, but none of them were on the bull's-eye. He spent about a minute and a half kicking the martial arts dummy. However, he underestimated how sharp his talons were when he went for a side scratch. The noise of the stuffing leaving the bag led to some pony asking him to leave.

A couple guards escorted the gryphon to the dungeon cells. Two more of Sombra's soldiers had been captured. With a glint of Gylpher's power and three simple words, the prisoners were more than happy to remove their green-eyed helmets and take up Celestia's banner.

Today, Gylpher's head felt fine. So... maybe six or seven commands in rapid succession is the limit I can manage right now? Rukh said the power would eventually embed itself completely. She said I wouldn't be able to turn it off when it's done. Will she be the only one I can talk with normally without worrying about giving commands? He briefly grimaced. Cheery thought.

Author's Note

Yeah, I know. This isn't a very long chapter. But I kind of wanted to allow a rest period in the reading.

Ch. 6: The Swindler, the Smuggler, and the Starter

Gylpher ended up taking a walk through the city. Of course, two guard ponies were constantly tailing him. Tempting as it was to use his power to order them to go away, he was already on thin ice with their government after that mess with the prosecutor. He wasn't ready to give them more ammo that would only work against him. He'd rather find something that could really turn the tide against Sombra and finally end the war.

Given the sky's crimson cloud layer, it was difficult to remember what other colors were. All of the buildings reflected ugly red tints of whatever they were supposed to be. Most of the windows on the lower levels were boarded up. At one corner, a pony in rags was pacing around. She shook a can around while a gurgling came from under her skin-covered rib cage.

On another street, there were broken signs planted in the ground. Many of them had the same picture on the front. Were the three, purple horseshoes supposed to mean something? The gryphon shook his head. He lifted his wings over his head to avoid rubbing against the signs.

He nearly ran beak-first into a pony passing across. Upon another look, Gylpher saw at least a few ponies limping along. Bandaging and red spots were haphazardly arranged on their limbs. One member of the crowd fell to the ground in a coughing fit. Right as Gylpher decided to turn around and regroup with his guards, an irritating voice broke through the sickly cries of pain.

"Step right up, every pony! Step right up! Have I got just the thing to make all your problems a thing of imagination!"

Gylpher tilted his head and raised his brow. Further along the street, he saw an off-white unicorn twirling a red mustache. That unicorn was wearing a pair of blue overalls and an almost flat hat. In a matter of seconds, the stallion had fit as many unrelated adjectives together to describe a tower of bottles labeled "Flam's Miraculous Gin". A random pony on crutches took a swig, then started tap-dancing with a grin on her face.

The lone gryphon rolled his eyes and turned to leave. However, he halted and did a double-take. Both of his escorts had managed to get to the front of the line and were trading bits for a bottle. He gently rubbed his eyes with his right wing.

"Why, I guarantee this stuff will make you strong enough to challenge a gryphon!"

"Huh?" Gylpher pulled his limb away and stared at the swindler.

"What do you say, Beak-Mouth?" Flam called out. "Care to try your luck against a genuine, gin-nfied customer?"

"I'll take him on!"

All eyes turned to see a unicorn stallion in rags. He gulped down the contents of a whole bottle. He chucked the bottle at the ground where it crashed into pieces. He then proceeded to rip off his rags with one hoof. The gathered crowd voiced their awe.

Gylpher deadpanned. The unicorn confidently trotted toward him. The colors and mane looked an awful lot like Flam, minus the facial hair. There was also a thin layer of green magic surrounding the horn and the hoof. He leaned back up on his hind hooves and punched the air a couple times.

"Come on, Bird-Brain! Give me your best shot!"

Gylpher closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "You don't really want to do this." He stared at the taunting pony. "Do you?"

The red winged lights raced forth from his vision. Instantly, the naked stallion went back down onto all fours. His bravado gave way to a quivering lip and his mane stood on end. He trotted backwards a few steps.

"Brother, what are you doing?" Flam asked. "We practiced this!"

His brother turned his head and his body shook all over. "I...I don't want to do this." In the next moment, he was galloping away at full speed. Flam stammered and chuckled nervously. Many of the sick and weaker ponies stumbled away. Betrayal and disgust washed over the crowd.

Flam marched up and practically whacked his horn against the gryphon's beak. "What the hay did you do to my brother? We were just trying to make an honest living here!"

"Oh, sure. I won't judge you for taking part in preying on the insecurities of others." Gylpher shrugged his wings. "That's just life. But lying about another creature's strength to meet those ends?" He ran a talon through one of the pony's overall straps. "I take issue with that."

Glittering magic adjusted the unicorn's hat. Flam's mustache turned bristly as he turned around. He walked away about ten paces before looking back. "This isn't over, buck-beak. I'm going to make your life a living hell. You watch."

After the unicorn was a speck in the distance, Gylpher chuckled. "Too late. I have already reserved a dance with the devil."

"For someone so worried about abusing your power, you haven't exactly been cautious."

Rukh had found an old red ball. She was repeatedly tossing it just above her standing height. She didn't even look at the door as her eternal companion entered the room. After she heard the sound of the door closing, she glanced over. She switched the ball-tossing motion from her talon to her green-spotted tail.

Gylpher took four steps into the room. Then, his chest hit the floor. All of his talons were pulling at tufts on his head. He shut his eyes. He scraped the upper and lower parts of his beak against each other. A pulsing sound was echoing in his head that wouldn't stop.

But then, it did stop. He opened his eyes and blinked twice. When had he rolled onto his back? Why did it feel like something was scratching his belly? He craned his neck and saw Rukh's face pressed up against his torso.

He asked, "What the fluff are you doing?"

"Taking advantage of you." Despite her muffled voice, Rukh's words were still clear. "It has been too long since I could buzz the fur of a teddy."

"You snuggled me last night!" Gylpher tried to slide away, but failed.

"If you're a good little birdie, I might give you even more snuggles." She pulled him back within face-distance.

"Don't dress up your kink as a favor!" He tried to swat her with his wing. However, it didn't get far from under his back before swishing nothing but air.

Rukh pretended to pout. "And here I thought gryphons could only mate through anger nowadays."

"I thought you only knew about Griffonstone through my memories." Gylpher finally managed to roll over. "From where are you getting this vulgar information?"

"Your neighbors weren't exactly quiet during the red-eye hours." Her lifeless expression returned.

He shook his head. "Fair enough."

Guided hailstones littered the battlefield. Upon impact with the ground, they spread into glaciers. When the ice sapphire arrows hit soldiers on the field, they turned into blue ice sculptures with red splatters. Sombra's army even fired these arrows upon their own units if they could unnerve Celestia's squads in the general vicinity.

Two mares with straight mane-cuts, one pink and one gray, charged at the glaciers. Their front hooves jabbed out faster than any creature could see. A pegasus with one metal wing swooped down through the new opening in the ice. A couple dragons followed soon after.

A large feather floated down, momentarily catching the younger dragon's eye. In that moment, a talon ripped one of her fangs out. This talon was attached to a gryphon wearing a helmet of Sombra's army. The dragon attempted to breathe fire at her attacker, but the gryphon's other talon shoved an ice arrow through the flame. The dragon's eyes went wide as her frozen body was sent hurtling toward the ground.

Her vision went black as she heard a clay pot shatter.

As days passed in Canterlot, Gylpher wore a blindfold more frequently when he wasn't working. There were too many creatures with eyes. He could compel any of them with a command or a suggestion. He picked up a plank of wood on the road and used it as a makeshift walking stick.

Rukh had vanished at some point. Gylpher had tried to call her name a few times. Then, some pony told him that she wasn't nearby. Nobody knew where she was. He sighed and walked away. Rukh was immortal. She could take care of herself.

He spent his next several meal times with Cold Quartz. Most of their chats went absolutely nowhere. But the two hypocrites enjoyed each other's company.

A talon tapped Gylpher's shoulder. He reflexively swatted with his wing, but it was stopped by another.

"Celestia's back. She wants a word with you."

Gylpher lifted his blindfold slightly. "Where have you been?"

Rukh pointed both her wings toward one wall. "Visiting the Crystal Empire. I wanted to see an 'important wizard'. The reality was disappointing."

Cold Quartz gawked. "You went to the Crystal Empire?! Are you insane?"

Rukh shook her head. "I went mad several hundred years ago. It was boring, so I swam back to the surface."

Gylpher exhaled. "You dodged the part where she asked about going to Sombra's HQ."

"Compulsion-related magic doesn't work on me. Remember?" Rukh turned around. "Anyway, I gave you Celestia's message. I'm going to go sleep."

Gylpher shoved his empty can across the table. "You want to go with me?"

"Huh?" Cold Quartz blinked twice. "The princess didn't call for me. I can't just walk up to her."

Gylpher shrugged his wings. "I'll say you're my escort for today. If anyone has a problem with that, I can order them to leave you alone."

"Well, sure, you can do that. But, you shouldn't." She grimaced.

He slowly stood up. As he took a few steps, he lightly tapped his wooden plank along the floor. Quartz nearly bit her hoof while she looked left and right. Her hide glistened as she abruptly stood up. She galloped over to the gryphon's side.

Gylpher pulled down his blindfold and let it hang around his neck. Celestia had an extra line under each of her eyes. After a few seconds, Gylpher felt like his head was about to reel. He turned his gaze to his own talons to avoid pointing his power at the one occupant who could bounce it back.

"Can you endure it?" asked Celestia.

"It feels like a killer migraine about an hour after I give a command." Gylpher shrugged his wings. "Other than that, it settles okay."

Celestia turned her head. "And how are you, Cold Quartz?"

Quartz's eyes opened wide. "You know my name?"

Celestia kept an even smile. "Why yes. I've made a mental note of Patient Zero."

Gylpher crossed his arms. "My eyes aren't really a cure, so much as a workaround."

"A treatment, then," Celestia amended.

"Hmm, fair point." Gylpher nodded once. "Was there a reason you wanted to see me? Or did you just want to chat?"

Golden light surrounded Celestia's horn and a nearby prop. A wooden board and several, carved pieces arranged themselves along the floor. Celestia levitated all of the darker pawns to about eye-level. They shook around and tapped against the lighter opponents before settling down on either side.

"We've liberated several of Sombra's slaves, and he started to take notice," she explained. "When this war started, his attacks were in a line and plowing through the lands. Now, his pattern has switched to more hit-and-run tactics."

"That doesn't sound like him." Cold Quartz squinted. "He never gives a thought toward the lives under his hoof."

Gylpher scoffed. "Sounds like the king is getting desperate, if he's trying to preserve even the parts he doesn't care about."

Celestia nodded. "I believe we should use his paranoia as an opportunity. Most of our efforts so far have been warding him off, keeping resources out of his hooves. I doubt he'll expect a small team to risk entering the heart of his capital city."

"Was that why Rukh entered the Crystal Empire alone?" Gylpher glanced up.

Celestia blinked twice. "She did what?"

"Ah, that was for her own reason." Gylpher shook his head. "I should have known."

Celestia cleared her throat. "I probably don't have to worry about her, but do you know when she left?"

Quartz shrugged. "No, but she came back a few minutes ago. She said she was going to take a nap."

Celestia chuckled. "That does sound like her." She slid two pieces around on the board. "I called you here to ask if you'd be willing to lead this small team."

Gylpher deadpanned. "We've been over this. I can command five crystal ponies to stand down, no problem. But an entire army surrounding me on all sides is going to be impossible."

"You needn't convince the entire army." Celestia tapped the intricate dark piece. "You just need to convince one individual to stop the war."

The eyes of gryphon and crystal pony widened as they realized the implication.

Rukh slipped into the room and flicked the king piece with her tail. "Checkmate."

Author's Note

You ever get stuck somewhere and don't know how to proceed for a long time? For me, that was this chapter.

Ch. 7: The Black Pillar Cracks Beneath Its Weight

The Frozen North had a perpetual blizzard. Under a red overcast, ashes swirled around with the snow and wind. If one could make it through the freezing storm, a large city could be found. Luck would not be found for rest and resupply. All who dwelled in the Crystal Empire's capital were in shackles, wearing a corrupted helmet, or both.

Amidst the brainwashed army were a line of crystal ponies and some gryphons. Outside the city's fortified wall, two large dragons sat taller than the dark crystal towers. One head turned and growled while staring with blank, green lights where its eyes should have been.

A volley of arrows whistled through the sky. The dragon roared to the sky. Some of Sombra's army pulled back their own bows. Ice Sapphire tips flew upward and intercepted all of the incoming projectiles. Impacts with the Fire Ruby arrows released hot steam and cold water.

The other large dragon turned toward the opposite side of the empire. A wave carrying Celestia's banner was charging forth with battle cries. Dark helmets rushed to intercept the invaders. Crystal pony and gryphon slaves made up the defense.

"There's no way infiltrating the Crystal Empire will be that simple." Gylpher crossed his arms.

"That is why we're going to make a diversion." Celestia rolled open a map of the Crystal Empire's capital. "We'll have two squads run around the west and east sides of the city. He'll think we're going for a pincer maneuver. Meanwhile, your team will be flying overhead the army to the south. You'll be given an invisibility ward, but it only lasts a minute. So, you'll have to get inside quickly."

In front of the palace, Gylpher turned opaque first, followed by Cold Quartz in his grasp. Gylpher tried to fly as steadily as possible. Quartz aimed her bow and Fire Ruby at a window in one of the towers. Once she released it, the arrow burned a hole through the dark crystal exterior. Body slamming through the glass underneath was significantly easier.

"Quartz! Your back!" Gylpher called out.

"Huh?" Cold Quartz turned her head. She spotted the small flame between her mane and tail. She quickly rolled over on the floor. After she stood back up and saw nothing but a scrape mark, she sighed in relief.

The pair galloped around several corners. Eventually, they ran into the throne room. The seat and surrounding walls had the king's dark motif, but the king was absent.

"Sombra has been on and off the front lines as frequently as the princess," Cold Quartz pointed out. "How are we supposed to know where he is?"

Rukh tapped her talon against the image of a tower. "Instead of searching blindly, you'll make him come to you. He's rather touchy about the Crystal Heart. All you have to do is move it slightly off-center. He'll rush over to give an eyeful to the intruder."

Cold Quartz galloped up to one of the throne's armrests. She glowed until her mane and hide were in crystal form. A hidden passage opened in the floor. Stairs spiraled down into what looked like a bottomless descent. Gylpher exhaled, grabbed onto Quartz, and used his wings to safely glide down the center.

When they finally reached the floor, it was difficult to see much of anything. Quartz held up one of her Fire Ruby arrows. Gylpher pulled out an Ice Sapphire arrow from his quiver. The red and blue lights danced around the pit and revealed a door with a green eye above it. Gylpher reached out his free talon toward the doorknob, but the door somehow slid away. Confused, Cold Quartz tried galloping toward the door, but it quickly slid in the opposite direction.

Gylpher growled and looked up at the sliding green eye. "Stop!"

His power activated and covered the green eye in his red bird pattern. With the sound of a concrete brick on the ground, the door stopped moving. The crystal pony and the gryphon armed their respective bows and fired at the now motionless eye. It exploded into a spiraling light. The door opened by itself into a white space.

Walking through, Gylpher and Cold Quartz saw a second spiraling staircase. But this one surrounded a center column going up. The only similarity was that it was impossible to see the end from the starting point.

"Are you kidding me?" asked Quartz.

"We've no time to lose." Rukh appeared out of nowhere and picked up Cold Quartz. "Come along. No standing idle."

"We need to get a bell on you or something," muttered Gylpher before flying up after his pact partner.

Within a minute, both gryphons and the crystal pony arrived at the top of the tower. The Crystal Heart shined brightly while floating in the center of the space. Rukh dropped her passenger onto four hooves. Quartz shook her head to steady herself. Gylpher handed off his bow and quiver to Rukh. He then walked toward the Crystal Heart itself.

He breathed deeply, balanced on his paws, and reached around the sides of the heart with his talons. He shifted the giant crystal to a slight angle. A circle on the floor erupted with dark magic. It billowed around before taking the shape of a shadowy figure. Sombra's red and green eyes stared out of the darkness.

"That's mine," growled the evil king.

"I have a few ideas of what to tell him," Gylpher admitted. "But I'm open to suggestions."

Celestia gently smiled. "Whatever you say, keep it clear and concise."

The magical red bird flew from Gylpher's eyes before he even finished his command: "Suffer!"

Sombra's jaw went slack as his smoke rushed into a corporeal form. His vision vanished. It wasn't covered in darkness, just emptiness. His head hurt. His chest hurt. His horn hurt. His tail hurt. His insides hurt. Hurt, hurt, hurt. Everything hurt.

The ruler of an empire and a conqueror of lands was screaming in his own agony. He writhed with his back against the floor, but the pain would not stop.

Across the mass of Sombra's army, multiple green lights flickered out at once. Crystal ponies, gryphons, and dragons backed up a few steps and lifted off their helmets. Some of them looked around like they had woken up from a daze. Others smiled in relief. Still, others looked down as the horror of what they had been doing finally dawned on them.

Cold Quartz and Rukh each fired an arrow out of the tower's opening. They curved through the air and collided with each other. The fire and ice created a cloud of mist and a cold drizzle. It only lasted a few seconds, but that was enough. Celestia's army cheered in victory.

"I'll take the Crystal Heart to the capital's center," said Rukh. "Don't wait up." She flew out with the glowing rock between her talons.

Gylpher glanced over his shoulder at the still screaming target. "What should we do with him?"

"Hmm." Cold Quartz thought for a moment. "Leave him here for now. He needs to think about what he's done."

Gylpher raised his brow. "Was that supposed to be a joke?"

Quartz shook her head. "Come on. Let's get out of here before I get vertigo... or go deaf."

Sombra kept screaming.

Gylpher nodded and picked up Quartz. He glided down the height of the tower before he flew after Rukh.

With a renewed hope for peace, the crystal ponies channeled their positive emotion into the ground. The path lit up and empowered the Crystal Heart. Its magic chased away the dark magic that had bound the empire. King Sombra's conquest and the war had finally come to an end.

There was still work to be done. The Crystal Empire was annexed under Equestria's rule and plans were drawn to make reparations in both territories. Cold Quartz was given the role of leading the knights of the Crystal Capital. Under this captain, they would ward off monsters in the Far North and help move the heavier supplies in the city.

After living through the horrors of war, Shining Armor eventually settled down into a quieter life to calm down. One of the crystal pony mares took him in as her husband. What she lacked in physical strength, she made up for with optimism, patience, and a down-to-earth personality. It was funny, because she had a pair of wings that could tickle a smile out of the retired captain.

Sunset Shimmer continued her work as an investigator. With her help, Equestria's legal system was able to determine which of the prisoners of war were helpless victims of mind control and which had willingly joined on Sombra's side. She found it easy to forgive the victims, and considered taking the bar exam. The records didn't show whether or not she pursued that legal career further.

Celestia continued to rule as Equestria's sole princess. With the skies clear of red and suffering, creatures were now able to witness the rising and setting of the sun and moon. She had grown accustomed to moving the skybound bodies by herself for a thousand years. What was a thousand more?

Gylpher and Rukh were declared the viceroys of Griffonstone. While Rukh took every opportunity to sneak away when nobody was watching, she often returned when Gylpher was in genuine pain. Gylpher's power took over his eyes and he could not turn it off. As such, he often wore a blindfold to avoid giving an irreversible command by accident.

The one exception was when his parents came back to publicly apologize for their involvement in the war. Gylpher realized they were only sorry because they lost. He lifted his blindfold before requesting that they leave his sight. His parents were never heard from again.

Author's Note

Time to post this long overdue conclusion.

Ch. 2: Two Girls Spending the Night? Overrated

Gylpher couldn't believe what he was doing. He offered the crystal pony the seat across from his own at the table. He pulled out a bowl of grits from his rations and set it down in front of himself. He took in a beak full, swallowed, then cleared his throat.

"Why are you here?" He gave the pony a cursory look while idly rubbing the top feathers of his head.

She twiddled her hooves while looking down. Her long-ranged weapon was sitting on the floor currently under her hind hooves. Her tail was scrunched up and stiff at that moment.

"I... needed to see you again." She glanced at him before looking back at her twiddling hooves. "I, um... don't have anywhere else to go."

"This isn't a homeless shelter." Gylpher took another bite of his meal. "If you're looking for a handout, you've come to the wrong place."

"Then just put me out of my misery!" She banged her hooves against the table. "If you don't care about me at all, why did you save me in the first place?!"

The gryphon briefly closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He looked up. "Call it a moment of weakness. I can't stand the sight of helplessness. But I also recognize I don't have anything of my own to offer the less fortunate. Those other troops just happened to leave behind something and I happened to pass it onto you." He returned his gaze across the table. "Don't take it personally."

"But you do have something to offer." Her body briefly shimmered, gaining a semi-reflective sheen. "Your voice and your eyes... something in those broke through the walls that trapped me in King Sombra's will. You have a gift. You could use it to help so many creatures."

"Geez, lady. You are all over the place tonight." He held up his talons, palm-side up. "Are you suicidal or an idealist? Choose your platform and commit."

"Says the guy who can't decide between being empathic and isolationist." She crossed her front hooves.

Gylpher coughed, then devolved into a full-on laugh. "Ha ha ha ha ha! Ha... We're just a couple of hypocrites in this bloody world. Name's Gylpher."

"Cold Quartz," she said in kind. "Nice to meet you."

He sighed and pushed his bowl to the center of the table. "Tell you what: I'll let you hang around for a couple weeks until you can either pay rent or find a new home." He pointed a talon over his shoulder at the nest way in the back. "As you can see, my roommate is hogging the bed to herself. So, you can either find a spot on the floor to rest your head, or sleep outside. Your choice."

Quartz nodded her head with a smile. "Considering my former boss worked me 24/7 with no overtime pay, the floor sounds heavenly."

"Great." Gylpher stood up and walked around. "Knock yourself out."

He had a terrible crick in his neck when he woke up. The sky wasn't any less red through the one or two holes in the ceiling. After stretching and pressing his hind legs against his wall, he looked around. His nest was empty. Had yesterday's events been a dream?

Shifting his eyes toward the other wall proved that wasn't the case. The crystal pony mare was lying on her stomach. Her breaths sounded like a cross between snoring and neighing. He thought that was weird. As he tried putting pressure on his neck to alleviate the ache, there was a knock on his door.

Gylpher blinked. "If Rukh managed to slip into my house before me yesterday, why would she need to knock?"

Shrugging his wings to himself, he walked over to the door and opened it a bit. A gold-brass alloy was startling enough to wake him up. His tail immediately swished straight behind him. He cleared his throat.

"Can I help you, sirs?" He held the door ajar with one talon while making an expression with his other talon.

"We have reason to believe some pony of Sombra's army has taken refuge in this residence." One of the royal guards flashed his badge. "We'll have to look around."

Gylpher deadpanned. "I live alone."

"All the same, it's better to be safe than to miss one rogue element," the guard insisted.

The other guard looked past Gylpher's head and gasped. "Sir! I see her inside!"

The first guard lit up his horn with a blue aura of magic. It turned into a field around Gylpher and pushed him aside. He struggled to move, but found he could barely flap his wings against the magic force.

"Quartz!" the gryphon called out.

Cold Quartz stirred, sleep still having a dazing effect on her awareness. That was the case, until some hoof-cuffs were clamped around her front and back, left hooves. She gasped at the sudden feeling of metal and struggled to slide away. This only left her flipping onto her back. The earth pony guard pinned her down and started dragging her toward the house's entrance.

Meanwhile, the unicorn guard's eyes fell upon the crystal, ice weapons scattered under the table. "What's this? Mind explaining why you have enough tools of Sombra's army for two archers?" He levitated the objects closer to him while glaring at the gryphon.

Gylpher grasped his talons for what he thought was squeezing his throat, but grabbed nothing but air. "They were... just lying on the ground... and I picked them up."

The guard glared at him. "If you're hiding your true allegiance, we'll let the judges in Canterlot sort you out." He floated out a pair of cuffs around Gylpher's talons. "You're under arrest under suspicion of aiding and abetting the enemy."

Quartz slammed her right hoof against the floor. "No, no, no, no, no!"

Gylpher growled while turning his gaze to the earth pony dragging Quartz away. "Let her go! She's not working for Sombra anymore!"

Both guards blinked at the outburst. "What?/What?"

He pulled at the small chain connecting his cuffs. "Yesterday, I saw her pull off her helmet and denounce the king. She doesn't want to be with him."

Quartz whimpered. "He's right. Something he said while I was still under the dark magic's control struck true to me. I...I won't keep fighting for a king that doesn't even care about us!"

"A likely story." The earth pony guard deadpanned. "You expect us to believe you turned tail on the leader of your entire empire just like that?"

"If you guys won't be satisfied without an arrest," continued Gylpher, "then just take me. I'm the one who refused to cooperate from the start. Don't take it out on her."

"Now hold on." The unicorn guard looked back at his current captive. "We can't just ignore a potential risk."

The gryphon's eyes shook as he stared at them. "You're in Celestia's royal guard, right? You're supposed to be better ponies than Sombra."

An invisible hawk called as a red-winged pattern flew into the guards' sight. A slight detour curved some thought processes. What were they doing, arresting a pony that was guilty of no more than begging and pleading? How could they stoop to Sombra's level of force? In a world overshadowed by fear, they ought to protect innocence where possible.

"Mm." The unicorn guard nodded before looking at his colleague. "Release the mare."

"Yes, sir." The earth pony guard turned the key and opened the hoof-cuffs.

Cold Quartz rubbed the wrists of her hooves and looked at them with her wide eyes. "... What?"

The guards trotted out of the house with their one suspect and collection of evidence. There was a long, valley path to trot before reaching the closest train station. From the top of a dying tree on the side of one of the mountains, Rukh watched Gylpher as he was led away.

It had been a while since he had been so close to pony-made centers. Despite a bit of grease and hardwood patches, the train station still looked inappropriately colorful. No amount of red sky could hide how gaudy the architect had been. There was, however, a bit heavier tone in the way ponies carried themselves here. Chatter was hushed, quick, and without a single song to break the monotony.

He was half-tempted to rattle his chains to an old lullaby, just to see if that would garner a chuckle or a gasp of horror. The idea of just flying away did cross his mind, but he simply breathed quietly while the guards stood on either side of him. He was the one who had offered to be taken into custody. Gryphons were many things that ponies found questionable, but they weren't liars.

"Wait!"

Gylpher looked behind at the familiar voice. The train was just pulling up to the station at that same time. But he was more focused on the sight of semi-shiny yellow and red galloping toward him. She slid to a stop.

"Let me go with you!" Cold Quartz leaned forward.

He tilted his head. "Quartz, this isn't exactly a Flight School field trip."

"You're the gryphon who saved me even though he didn't need to." She held a hoof to her chest. "I can't just sit around in your house, waiting to find out if you're going to come back safely."

"So, of all the things you could do instead, you choose to get close to a gryphon in custody?" He held up his talons, stiff in the cuffs. "You know that might look suspicious and get combined with your past, right?"

She smirked. "We're two hypocrites in this bloody world, remember? Following the logically safest path isn't our style."

"Keh." Gylpher mimicked her smirk. "I never should have taught you how to debate." He glanced at the two guards. "What do you think? Is there enough room on the train for a plus-one?"

The unicorn mulled it over for a bit. "It'll make the paperwork more complicated, but I suppose we can allow it."

Quartz patted Gylpher on the back. "So there!"

When the nearest boxcar opened, the four walked inside. Nobody noticed Rukh hanging out in the far back, even when she choked on the taste of a raw potato.

Immediately after stepping off at Canterlot Station, a blindfold was tied around Gylpher's eyes. He felt the hooves of the guard ponies pushing him along. Apparently, they didn't want him to see exactly where in the city they were going. While his talons were tied up, he had to occasionally open his wings for balance, so that he wouldn't fall over his paws.

"Would you watch where you put those wings?" grumbled the earth pony guard's voice.

"Right now, I couldn't watch them even if I wanted to." He tried to deadpan, but they could only see his beak for reference.

"Don't take your anger out on this prisoner." The unicorn's voice chimed in. "He came with us willingly."

The first voice simply grunted. Gylpher didn't hear either of them talk for the rest of the outdoor walk. It was only by the sound of a door opening and the feeling of a harder surface under his paws that he could tell they were in a building. Several steps and one door later, he was made to sit down. Magic removed the cuffs around his talons and the blindfold soon after.

He was sitting in a room surrounded by mirrors, save for one door near a corner. The unicorn guard told Gylpher to wait there. Both of the guard ponies trotted out and shut the door. Gylpher looked around more thoroughly. He spotted a couple cobwebs in the dents near the ceiling. A single lantern with fireflies inside hung from the center of the top.

The gryphon looked at the mirror across from where he was sitting. He ran his talons through the feathers on his head, but it looked like a couple refused to straighten out. He shrugged and started preening his wings. His tail idly swung under his chair. He lifted his head as a stray thought occurred to him.

He looked at the mirror across from him again and stared intently. There wasn't any sound. Yet he could see it in his normally brown eyes. Something else was there behind them. It looked like the image of a distant red bird, stretching out its wings. Was that some of the power Rukh had given him?

The door swung open, snapping his attention away from his reflection. An orange unicorn mare in a business suit marched inside. Her pair of shades blocked her eyes from his view. Her mane looked like some creature had mixed up the red and yellow paints and pressed them over her head simultaneously, leaving a heavy highlight behind.

"Gylpher the Gryphon." The mare levitated a manila folder in a teal blue aura.

He crossed his front limbs. "Who is asking?"

"More like confirming." She lowered the file to her eye level. "How cooperative you are might affect how quickly we can get you out of here."

"Somehow, I don't see leaving soon as an option, even if I talk." His tail swung side-to-side.

"Like I said, that all depends on you." The mare's magic pulled out some papers from the folder. "How much do you know about current events?"

"Well, there's a war going on between ponies and crystal ponies." Gylpher held his talon off to the side before crossing it again. "Kind of hard to ignore when half my neighborhood decides to get involved for kicks and bits."

"Uh-huh. And what do you know about these crystal ponies?" She floated five pictures in front of him.

He gave the printed images a small glance each. "No idea who they are."

"Really? That's curious." The mare floated the photos so that she could glance at them too. "Because a quick chat with all of them revealed that they all recall seeing a gryphon that looks exactly like you before we detained them."

Gylpher grunted. "Convenient that they left out the part where they attacked said gryphon."

"So you have seen them before." She slapped a hoof against one of the levitating pictures.

He shrugged his wings. "Look, they're not my best buds. I only saw them briefly yesterday. You want their birthdays and favorite colors? You'll have to ask someone else."

"Duly noted." She looked through the pictures again. "They attacked you? What were you doing at the time?"

"I was out rock-climbing." His tail swished.

"Rock-climbing? Inside the Abysmal Abyss?" Her brow rose. "A bit risky, don't you think?"

"No more risky than strolling through the Everfree Forest." He separated his crossed talons.

"Hmm." She pressed the photos into one side of the folder. "That doesn't sound like it would be enough to provoke them into attacking you."

He held out his talon, palm-side up. "We are still talking about the guy that brainwashed ponies and new recruits without provocation, right?"

She sighed. "I get your point. Now... how did you manage to get them to stop?"

"I don't know." He shrugged his wings again. "Maybe they were so used to fighting weaker ponies that the shift to facing a gryphon scared the fight right out of them? Not my fault they couldn't tell the difference between me and a wild beast."

The mare briefly peeked her light blue eyes over the rims of her sunglasses. "Some of Sombra's army has looked our dragon allies in the jaw and yet they didn't stop fighting. What makes a gryphon more intimidating?"

Gylpher held one talon just under his beak. "If a dragon were to swallow a pony, there would at least be a chance they could attack the inner organs and cause pain that the dragon couldn't immediately grab or remove. If a gryphon uses lethal force with their beak, it's a small enough piece of the pony that can't fight back from the inside."

The aura vanished from the folder and it dropped onto the floor.

"That is disgusting." A chill went up the unicorn's back.

"Well, the idea gave you pause." He crossed his talons again as his tail swished behind him. "Is there anything else you'd like to know?"

She coughed awkwardly and levitated the folder close to herself. "Weapons found on your home premises match those used by some of Sombra's scouting units. Where did you get them?"

"The crystal ponies dropped them before they ran away from me." He held his talon to one side. "I went ahead and picked them up. I thought maybe I could use them if some other ponies in Sombra's army tried attacking me."

"I see." The mare adjusted her sunglasses. "We're going to have to keep you here while we review this information. There's a chance you'll have to give a testimony in court before you can go home."

"Figures." Gylpher sighed.

"I apologize for any inconvenience." She trotted over to the door.

"Hey..."

She paused and looked back. "What?"

"You already know my name." He stared at her. "Might you kindly give the common courtesy?"

There was a faint noise similar to a crying hawk. The unicorn floated the folder onto her back. Slowly, she lifted a hoof and pulled off her sunglasses. Her cyan irises made eye contact with him.

"Sunset Shimmer." She then walked out, leaving Gylpher to himself and his reflections.

Through one-way glass, Cold Quartz looked on with concern. She could see the unicorn grilling Gylpher for information, but she couldn't hear a word from either occupant. She feared the worst.

"He won't die today."

Quartz jumped at the female voice. She turned and saw the white-and-green gryphon sitting beside her.

"You're... Gylpher's roommate, right?" Quartz waved a hoof slowly. "My name is-"

"Cold Quartz, I know." Rukh waved her talon dismissively. "I'm a lighter sleeper than Gylpher realizes. I heard everything."

"Uh..." Quartz twiddled her hooves. "How do you know they won't execute him, just under suspicion of treason?"

Rukh swung her tail around to gently lift Quartz's muzzle. "Even if they try to pass such a judgment, I won't let it carry through. He owes me a favor, and I will collect on it."

As Rukh pulled her tail back, Quartz had a number of questions. Yet the tone in Rukh's voice compelled Quartz to hold her tongue and take it. Quartz turned to look at Gylpher again. The interrogator was already on her way out. The remaining occupant of the mirrored room looked like he was laying back for a nap.

Author's Note

Just because it's a "Dark" story, doesn't mean I can't make bad jokes in the chapter titles.
Be glad I didn't choose "Arrested Development".
...
Let's say there was a bit of an overlap where Celestia personally saw to the studies of Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle in the original timeline. If, by altering the past, Starlight Glimmer made it so that Twilight did not get personally overseen by Celestia, it could have potentially given Celestia more free time to pay attention to Sunset Shimmer and nudge her away from the not-so-good vendetta. Inadvertently, this creates a world where the mirror to the Equestria Girls' universe never gets explored.

In summary: Yes, Sunset Shimmer exists in this alternate universe. No, she isn't a generic high school bully that turns into a generic demon villain. Finally, she took work as an interrogator during the Sombra war.