Bronze Tiara

Chapter fifteen

With this being only the second time, the mare had ventured down the shafts of a mine, this trip was starting to unsettle her gut far more than the first. As Bronze trailed a few of Serens’ soldiers in front of her, and even more behind carting the explosives. Subtle as they may try to be to one another, she could still hear the occasional question one would ask another of who the cloaked figure was with them.

Until, one actually caught up with her as they walked, “Pardon miss,” the gryphon male kept up the formalities. “What brings you on this little venture? Seems a tad dangerous, with what we might be facing.”

‘I could probably end you before you took your next breath,’ Bronze glared at him from under her hood. It had been a while sense one looked at her with worry of her own capabilities, and it wasn’t a feeling she liked getting from others. Though with a sigh, and the relaxing of her jaw, Bronze gave the male the benefit of the doubt. “I am here on the behalf of Mister Marble, the owner of this mine. Having dealt with these things before, it was thought that I might be able to assist.”

“Wait, you’ve dealt with them before?” the gryphon about stopped in his tracks and caused the one behind him to bump in to his flank, “Like fight them? Or just see them getting fought?”

Bronze rolled her eyes from behind the vail, debating how much to feed the soldier, but at the same time not seeing the harm in throwing them a bone. “Actually both, different town from here obviously… want some advice?”

“Why certainly,” he said with a perk in his tone, as Bronze saw a few of the ears from those around even start to tune in.

“The neck, it seems that whatever is giving them… life, is housed there,” she brought a talon to the nape of her neck like she had shown Glimmer Knight what seemed like many moons ago. Unsure how much that word to him had gotten around their ranks. Bronze looked back to the various armaments that those with her were carrying.

On top of their usual weapons, Grace certainly made good on her part and ensured her troops were armed with the best. For those with the more dexterous abilities, namely the gryphons and unicorns with them, a rifle found its place either slung across their back or held up in an aura. Leaving a pistol to rest against their hind legs or side as a backup. Even a few that carried the explosives walked with a rocket launcher on their back.

“Hmm those should be able to do the job quite nicely,” she pointed to the arms that the gryphon carried. Ignoring the metal tube of destruction, the thought of using that in such tight quarters made the mare twinge, “I saw a few other soldiers using them before… newly issued?”

“Oh these?” the male swiftly pulled out the pistol as she showed it off to the mare, unaware of her familiarity in the tech, “hot off the presses it seems, I guess they pulled them from those dogs and the kingdom.”

‘And they certainly started mass producing them,’ Bronze had gone from seeing a few of Serens’ own carrying her weapons, to now entire parties having them in record time. Slowly the gears in the back of her mind started to turn once more as it went towards furthering her technical prowess.

‘Seren would have even more resources at my claws than the Gryphons or the DDR, imagine what kind of works I could create, or at the very least improve with it all,’ larger weapons, more specialized air vehicles, better hand-held versions for troops. As many ideas that started to pile up in the mares’ mind, one finally broke the surface and silenced all the rest. ‘No time for war games… still have to work on fixing things.’

Getting back to the task at hand the mare continued down with the party, keeping a close eye out for her creations as they reached closer and closer to the sections in question. As they did, Bronze could feel the uneasiness in her stomach grow with every step they took.

“Ma’am?”

“Yes?” Bronze inquired, wishing she could see more than a few feet past the unicorns guiding the way with their horn.

“You had talked to Mister Marble I heard,” the gryphon asked, “and what had been put out to us is that were supposed to cave in part of the mine, correct?”

Slowly Bronze started to remember why she had created the automatons in the first place. They didn’t ask questions that she didn’t feel the need to answer, never the less, the soldier beside here wasn’t a hollow suit. “The idea’s simple, the part they’re supposedly in isn’t used, break those supports, and crush them under the weight.”

“And… how do we get out?”

“Lay charges on a fuse and run,” the uneasiness though from his grimace didn’t help ease his mind, even if it wasn’t hers to ease in the first place, “besides, there are plenty of tunnels around the shaft, more than enough avenues of escape.”

That seemed to satisfy the male more than anything as he picked his head up, “Sounds like a solid- PLAN!” with a dull thump and the clanking of metal, a few of the unicorns in the group came over to check out the sound.

With the light of their horn, the gryphon laid face first in the ground. Though a quick shake of his head later he seemed to walk it off, “You alright?” one of the unicorn mares asked, as she shined the light of her horn around looking over him.

“Yeah, just tripped over something.”

A few of those with torches, and the unicorn in question turned their gaze to just behind them, and there on the ground they found what must have been missed by those up front. A scattered pile of scrap metal it seemed laid tossed in the tunnel like trash. “Poor waste of good scrap,” the gryphon picked up the section, the mare with them however, knew better.

With a clank the cylinder of metal he had picked up opened on its hinges, as the straps designed to hold it on hung by their rivets, “That’s not scrap,” Bronze pointed out as she picked up a few more of the pieces. A breast plate here, part of a visor there. Nothing that would make a full suit, but diffidently more than one had been expended by the looks, “it’s all armor sections.”

“But… aren’t we the first ones down here?” the unicorn asked her superiors.

The Pegasus mare, that Bronze had identified as Frostfire, stepped back from the front of the group. “We are, at least by all accounts… though if these things are hollow suits of armor,” she pulled her blade out as her eyes turned towards the depths of the tunnel, “Then this might be where they’re putting those suits to use.”

‘I was afraid of that,’ Bronze gulped almost loud enough for it to echo along the walls like a drop of water as they pressed on.

Walking further now after tossing the pieces, two things were noticed to the group. One, as they looked to the edges more closely, they started to see more and more scattered parts of armor. Dents, cracks, and rust all indicating why there were tossed to the side out of imperfection. And two, there seemed to be a draft that was growing with every pace.

Finally, the dim light of the end came to their focus when they rounded a corner, as the group slowed to a crawl and scrapped their way forward. Frostfire fell back from her position and came up to Bronze, “As I heard you’re here because you’ve dealt with them before, and on behalf of the owner, correct?” she asked, making it painfully obvious that some of her attention was going to the mares’ odd metal horn.

“Yes,” Bronze answered flatly, waiting to hear what the Sargent had in mind. Whist ignoring the obvious.

“I need you then to sneak up front to the opening with a one of my guards, take a look, see what we’re dealing with,” without even a glance the Sargent volunteered one of her own, “Dartwing here will accompany you.”

The gryphon that had been chatting with Bronze popped to at the drop of his name, “Roger that Sargent.”

With a gesture, Dartwing started creeping his way up front past the group, as Bronze followed leisurely behind him. The light from the cavern in question couldn’t have been much, only torches and what might have been carried by air ducts the mare had figured. ‘A lot of scouting we’re gonna be able to do…’ she shook her head, never the less her and her companion stooped to their stomachs as they exited the tunnel.

Moving between various carts and equipment that had broken down along the slope. The pair slowly would peer from around the corners of countless piles of debris to check if they had a bead on them yet, or if there were any scouts above looking for intruders. Dartwing looked behind him at the mare and urged them both forward. Keeping their silhouette low to the ground once more.

From their vantage point up in the cavern, the pair could barely make out the movement of those on the ground floor a few hundred feet below from the offered light. Though the automatons moving along the sloping edges that lead down where it was a tad darker, told them they were in the right place. Pony, gryphon and Diamond Dog types all crept along as they stood guard and carried various sections of armors down to the ground floor to be worked on.

‘Why are you still going?’ Bronze asked to herself as she watched her creations bring the raw materials down, with only one purpose she could think of in mind for them, “You were supposed to stop…”

“There…” Dartwing pointed out from across the way, as the mares’ eyes followed his talon, “I was told we were looking for support beams… not a miner but that’s one if I ever saw it.”

Indeed, even with all her professions and skills, mining never was one of them. Though Bronze still had to agree, if there was anything down here that would be helping to hold it up, that was it. Crisscrossing the span of the shaft, the logs of wood a few ponies wide braced themselves against one side as they angled up in to the opposite to keep the walls from not so much collapsing, but toppling over in to the open space that made up the mine. How they lasted this long without rotting away on their own, the mare had little idea. As Marble said though, his dad did build things to last.

Only giving the soldier a nod, both of them knew they’d found what they came for, and Bronze followed him back to their group as a few torches were brought up as they approached. Frostfire stepped up to the plate as she looked at the two, “Well? How screwed are we?”

The gryphon bit the back of his tongue for a moment before he thought how best to put it, “Well… you’re probably right with your earlier assumption Sarge.”

“… Damn…” the Sargent pulled out the map that Marble had written on and marked up, calling a few torches over for more light she looked over where the charges had to be placed, “Would these points still be viable from what you saw? To your knowledge that is, you were with Mister Marble while he was marking them.”

Bronze looked over the map, there wasn’t much to the plan in the first place. Put charges, light them, run, place goes boom. Though the more she looked it over the more she saw they’d have to get closer to the base of the shaft in order to make it work, a place the mare didn’t want to go if she didn’t have to.

‘Nor would I want any of them to have to deal with it too,’ Bronze told herself as she tried to think of this plan moreover, not from the view of a miner, but the view of a pony who’s done her fair share of destruction.

“We want to avoid the ground floor, I can say that much,” she started off slowly, putting the pieces together as she went, “if this is where they’re being made, then we could still follow this plan with little change, those closest to the base however, will have to keep them busy.”

“Hmm… Makes sense, most of them would be at the ground likely too,” Frostfire looked over the mare for a moment, before asking the obvious, “So what did you have in mind?”

Bronze pointed to the upper support and the two below it, “We don’t have to destroy all of the supports, that’ll take too long… but what we could do is destroy the first couple at the top, them falling, and the weight alone should break the rest on their way down.”

“Should break, key words there,” the Sargent looked over the schematics once more as she considered the idea, “Still… it would give more time for us to get out as they fell, and we brought more than enough explosives to continue the job if need be.” Looking at the back to the rest of her troops, and then towards the cavern a head, Bronze could hear the mares’ own gears grinding in her head as she tried to think of every possible pro and con to the plans.

“We’ll go with yours,” Frostfire answered after a few more moments of debate, as she called those with the explosives ahead to her. “Those fliers I have with me will take charge of setting the goods, we’ll have a sixty second window though after they’re all set off to vacate.” Turning her attention to the rest of the group she tried to keep herself down so as not to give them away as she briefed the mass, “the rest of you on the other hoof, will have to cover us, they have some of the same arms we have now and are likely more proficient with them. They have range, power, and skill… but we got surprise,” Frostfire gestured a few of hers right below in command up front, “those planting the bombs will go out after you have their attention, keep em off us, got it?”

“Yes Sarge,” they said with all the enthusiasm of addressing the princess.

“Alrighty… lets get to work.”

While she might not have been a mare totally unfamiliar with war and fighting, to be apart of it so closely, and on this scale, was a new story for her to tell. She had watched from afar as it was waged, and supplied the means to cause destruction on a mass scale. Yet, even with all the background of a cool-headed tactician, Bronze still found her heart fluttering in the base of her chest as she stood side by side with those of the nation she once tried to decimate.

“Do you need me to explain it again?” Dartwing asked as he saw the blank expression on the mares’ face while she held on to the rifle.

Shaking to get her wits back, the mare dropped rounds in to the box magazine and slid the bolt forward chambering one, “I think… I got it,” she tried to play dumb at first, hiding the knowledge behind her grin.

“Well, you’re a natural,” the gryphon snickered for a moment before looking at his group laying along the cliffsides edge as they looked over in to the cavern, and then down the tunnel they had come from. Lined now with gryphons and Pegasy rearing to go like a flight strip, “You don’t have to be here though; it will be fairly dangerous after they notice us.”

Bronze thought for only a second of walking down that tunnel and letting them go at it with her talon work, but with a mental kick to even the idea of leaving them to clean up her mess, the mare stood firm. “Not happening, it might be dangerous… but no more so though if they were to remain and I didn’t do my part.”

The gryphon looked to his left, as another of his comrades got the go ahead. Lining down the sights, the unnatural equine across the space from him only felt the first punch of the round as it blew the side of the neck plate out. Before any action can be done, a quick follow up shot finished the job and dropped the living suit to the ground.

Two shots, kick starting dozens of others.

The pings of metal over the stone around her sent Bronze to the deck for but a moment at she gathered herself once more. The mare had been shot at before sure, but not so many of her own creations had turned their barrels towards her at once in the past.

‘Steady now,’ the mare closed her eyes and breathed, with the calm exhale she opened as focus returned to them, and a coolness that could bring a morning frost.

Laying the length of the rifle along the edge as a support, her sights found themselves on the first target. Gryphon automaton, flying up the opposite wall of the cavern. A steady trigger-pull later, and past the flash of her muzzle the mare saw it start to drop as she worked her way to the next target.

Diamond Dog version, holding one of her gatling guns up in its metallic paws. The projectiles flew from its own barrels like a firehose. With many of those with her ducking their heads to get out of the fire, the mare followed suit, leaving the gravel to pepper across her face as it fell. Spitting the dirt from her lips, Bronze waited as the crank continued to turn and spew out lead.

‘Wait for it…’ she told herself, not to get too eager to be in the open once more, ‘wait…’

Just then the stream stopped, the hopper on the side of the gun ran dry. Flipping open the feed of the weapon, the dog didn’t take heed of the pony lining up their rifle. Leaving yet another victim to fall as Bronze pulled the bolt back and ejected the round.

Amongst her own kills, others joined their fallen as well from the well-placed shots of those that Bronze found herself in the company of. From the corners of her eye, she could see the discipline that had gone in to learning the new skills needed to operate such tech. A deadly new skill at that.

Though as one would fall, several more rose to take its place from the darkened depths. Dog versions of those past creations of hers continued to come up from the pits along the swerving edges, only to be followed soon behind them by their counterparts of different varieties. All of which held arms to match Serens own in some respect.

The gryphons flew past the Dogs that acted as a shield, leaving them to open up with their own rifles. Picking off any of Seren that stayed out of cover for just a tad too long. All the while, the pony variety advanced on towards their cover without so much as a hint of falter from walking in to the muzzles of gun fire. With the extra support the mechanical mutts in question were given free rein to open up with their arms once more.

Widening her eyes in fear, and with nothing more than split second decision on instinct. The mare rolled further to one side as a metal tube was raised up one a dog’s shoulder, and let loose on their position. A few of those unluckily enough didn’t die right away from the blast, they instead found their new home somewhere on the bottom of the shaft without so much a peep.

All around her, whatever remained of the soldiers will to fight and to try clear this place started to dwindle. Some of those that held firm at the edge of the shaft, now found themselves taking cover amongst the metal wagons that once held raw ore. With a tug of her tail, Bronze found herself unceremoniously dragged back further to better cover by the gryphon that had made the trip down.

Backing themselves against the sturdy metal plating of a cart, Dartwing checked on his side bags. “Are you good for bullets?” he asked while reloading himself.

A quick nod later, and a peek of her head, found Bronze joining him back from behind their makeshift shield as several rounds started to spark against the hull. Leaning back and bringing her rifle up overtop the cart, the sights fell on to at least one of the aggressors. A bullet later, and the back of the gryphons’ weak point was torn out.

While Bronze may have been focusing on those coming up to greet them above and below, and tried to avoid being blown to pieces. Another had been watching the intended idea of keeping them occupied fall apart before her eyes. With a reluctant shake of her head, and a stretch of her wings, Frostfire lead those that held the package up into the cavern.

Turning her attention up to those soaring overhead the various pieces of equipment that had made their embankment, Bronze watched as they shot past the metallic gryphons occupying the skies with them. The Sargent herself even taking one down on the way, separating the head from its body just below the enchantment point. Quickly though, with a new target in site. Many that put fire down on her turned their barrels skywards.

With barrels spinning, the guns from the dogs peppered the sky leaving rounds to skip off the surfaces above and spark like small stars. A few found their mark, and brought a flier or two down in a death spiral. Never the less, the Sargent persisted and soared higher with those that followed to carry out the task. A kind of determination one mare could admire.

With a kick to his hind, Bronze drew the gryphons’ eyes back down to the ground, “Come on! They need our help.”

Throwing caution to the still air around them, the mare took aim at those that would seek to bring down the party. One shot from her rifle became two, then four, and soon a volley was brought against the antagonists with help from the combined arms of those around her. Dartwing cycled his weapon like one of the DDR soldiers when she had first instructed them. Calm, cool, and collected as he put round after round through the chamber.

It wasn’t a large turning of the tides, not even a ripple. To the mare though, anything would help with finishing the job at hoof, and hopefully, burry some of her past regrets along with it. Between having to target both above and on ground level, more of the automatons met their end, now matching Serens’ own losses.

A rocket on the other hoof, tends to tip the scales a bit.

The blast from behind her broke even more of the cavern slopes, causing them to cave in to the bottom like they had before. Dartwing shot back and flexed out his wings steadying himself, but before he could grab hold of his companion, Bronze watched as he disappeared in to the dust kicked up from the explosion. Leaving her to fall amongst those not gifted with flight.

A second of thought, and Bronze regretted not getting those wings finished when she could have. Working with what she had, her talons scrapped in to the sides of the cavern. Digging in to the stone and soil, she felt her fall slowing a bit, but not enough to completely stop. With a thud, and likely various amounts of cuts and scrapes across her, the mare found herself covered head to hoof in soot and dirt at the bottom.

Peering up above and using the tattered remains of her cloak to shield her from the fine particles, she could barely see the light that made it down to the caverns as she covered her mouth to stop from coughing. Down here though, it might have well been a walk in a cave at night, even the few glints that reflected off of what Bronze could only assume were exposed gems higher up, gave the impression of stars. Looking around she could get an outline of those that had made the fall with her, unlike her though, they remained still.

Gulping from the stagnant surroundings, a stark contrast to above. Bronze paced herself along the ground, trying to watch her step as best she could. ‘Alright, I didn’t give them night vision or anything, so it should also have a disadvantage,’ she tried to calm herself, ‘and if there’s slopes leading down, all I have to do is find one and get out of here… before they set off those charges, yeah… easy enough.’

With a grimace still from the trek she’ll have to make, Bronze stepped up and over a rock, as it slid out from under her and she fell to the ground once more. However, the rock came back. Swinging from over her head, the mass pushed a gust of wind that ruffled the mares’ mane and sent more dust kicking up. When she looked up though the settling debris, what greeted her was a sight for far less than sore eyes.

A dull shimmer of jeweled envy rose up from the base of the cavern. Holding at eye level with her as it stared in to her own, picking her out even without a trace of light to shine. As she moved from one side or the other, so did those glowing orbs as if tracked her. Bronze stopped there knowing it was pointless to try and outright run. Her blood running cold as she saw the glow, and started to pace back.

It hadn’t attacked since she’d been down here, which gave her a breather, but also showed the mare a view she hadn’t expected. Something in these eyes seemed different than what she remembered; it wasn’t the same admiration she once knew. No, even with only a pair of orbs to paint the picture, she could still sense the betrayal it felt.

She held her breath, waiting for it to strike, though to her surprise it just stared. “It’s over, boy…” Bronze muttered, just barely audible over the dulled commotion above. Raising up her talon, she tried to reach out towards it, “things have changed, it’s time to stop,” but the form shirked it away like a foul stench. From that action alone, eye lids or not, Bronze could feel it peering into her.

Bronze watched, holding her talon still hoping it would concede. Though the only answer she received was the tilting of its head before her, as the seemingly floating orbs glaring up to the fighting over top them. With that, the head raised up higher and higher, several of its own over hers as it continued to stare at the spectacle of conflict above. The rustling behind her told her what she couldn’t see.

Intentional or not, the tail that swiped towards her almost made contact, almost. Bronze ducked beneath, and let the limb snake past as she followed the length to the body. Running past, she expected it to try and strike at her finally, though as she kept her ears open more than her eyes. The mare became painfully aware that the space around her was getting a lot less cramped than before, and her presence became an afterthought to it.

“Stop!” she yelled hearing the clanking of claws against the walls, racing towards the sound instead of the sane approach and running from it, “Please! I said stop!”

Leaping towards the noise more than anything, and hoping for the best. Bronze latched on to a few of the plates that ran along the frame, holding on with all her gems would allow as she rose with it from the darkness. She didn’t know how fast those soldiers would be able to plant the charges, all she hoped is that it would be fast enough to bring this thing down with the cavern.

Sargent Frostfire landed on a pony creation with her full weight and speed from the decent, crushing most of the suit under her. The battle taught mare made full use of her skills, as she avoided the few shots that those armed tried to plant. Instead, she met them with her own blade, using her wings to get in close to where their weapons were useless.

Helping one of her soldiers up to their feet, she called out to her ranks with a voice only a leader could muster. “Let’s go! Full retreat!”

While hearing your superior saying that to you under normal battle field conditions would mean your rapidly approaching demise by the enemy, this time it screamed to those with her to clear way to finish their job. Fighting tooth and nail with what remained in front of them to get clear, those that had the bullets left shot on to clear a path as the ground beneath them began to shake.

A talon grasped on to the side of the ledge, then another, each the size of a gryphon on its own. The rattle amongst the cavern earned the attention of both the Sargent, and all those present as Frostfire looked with a mix of bewilderment and shock as she found herself locked in a trance at what was coming forth from the deep to meet them.

A form of the fully grown dragon in the mine shaft wouldn’t be a surprise to most as they would try to seek gems, and would sometimes go to the source itself. However, if their enemies halt of the attack didn’t tell those present that this wasn’t an ordinary drake, then the glare they all received certainly made up for it. The seemingly unworldly glowing green eyes that stared down the mare, sent a chill down Frostfires’ spine in a way she didn’t know was possible.

The carefully laid sheets of metal formed each plate on it clanked from every motion it took, though the soldiers that had come to crash its party didn’t seem to be of concern. Its heavy claws strode across the edge of the shaft above them, grabbing on to the edges not far from those of Seren as more of its frame came in to view. From snout to tail it radiated its power like its flesh and blood relatives, though in this form it was an abomination only the most insane could muster.

Frostfire, a flier herself, saw the folded-up appendages along its back, as canvas stretched from vein to vein in support. How it’d even be able to take off with all that weight, she couldn’t imagine, but if real dragons could do it… why couldn’t this monstrosity?

Amongst its folds however, she caught sight of something, and while many of those that joined her were awestruck. Some didn’t seem to pay the new comer any respects of its power. The heavy armor it donned reflected the rounds fired at it as if they were gnats, and the emerald eyes turned towards those that tried, as even the other automatons outwardly backed off from their own onslaught.

One swipe of its tail later, and several more families would be getting news now of their loved one’s perishing. They too joining those at the bottom of the shaft. One that would not fall to join them however, continued to grasp firm on its back plating.

Bronze didn’t know how she would from this vantage, but if those that came with her were leaving, then it must be done. “It’s over! Do you hear me!” she shouted towards it, ‘not like this, don’t let it end like this.’

Clawing her way up, the head that loomed above twisted its neck around to view his carryon. It didn’t speak, it shouldn’t be able to by her design. Yet, even with its lifeless jeweled eyes, Bronze could see the wounded thoughts that ran through its stone mind and soul. It was in pain, and she brought that pain to it.

Throbbing its back too and froe, the mares’ talons scrapped against the metal as they looked for a place to latch on once more. Between the plates she had been fine, but with it bucking she soon found herself falling again. With nothing to grab on to from her place, Bronze stared as it went up.

Just as the flash joined past it.

The shaft rocked almost as much as the dragon did when it threw her, causing already looser pieces of shale and stone to crumble from the sides. Bronze couldn’t care still; she couldn’t even feel the shaking from her predicament. The only thing she saw was the dragon reaching one of the vent shafts Marble had pointed out, along with who knows how many of its creations.

Her creations.

Closing her eyes once more, Bronze waited for it to come, fighting the one tear she held for it, ‘I wonder which will kill me first,’ she asked, not daring to look back as the falling supports above started to give way one after the other, ‘the impact against the bottom, or the debris…’

The clenching of hooves around her waist though asked a different question, “Why are… you so… heavy!” Frostfire asked as her wings heaved the mare up and to the exit, not so much flying but gliding most of the way under the weight.

Heaving from her lungs and gasping for a decent breath in the ever-clouding air. The Sargent tucked herself up in to a ball, as she and Bronze tumbled towards their entry for cover. Hitting the ground almost as hard as she did not too long ago. Both mares found themselves with their eyes peeled towards the ceiling of the tunnel, ignoring the collapse from the shafts if only to have a breather or two.

The few moats of light left in the cavern quickly found themselves extinguished as the rest filled in. The supports from the entry tunnel thankfully holding firm as the entire party were once again basked in darkness. Those with the ability lit their horns as they assessed the damage, leaving the pair to take a moment.

“Thank… you,” Bronze coughed out between breaths, turning her head towards the mare to see if she was going to make it.

“Don’t mention…” Frostfire coughed out a wad of dirt, “it…” leaning up to her own hooves, she waved off those in her company that tried to help her as the stubborn mare finally found her footing. The looming question on her mind pressing with each ticking second, “What the hell was that thing?”

“I couldn’t tell you…” Bronze lied like she had done so many times before, as she joined the Sargent on all fours, ‘… I made it.’