To Save our Legacy

“Sit tight, Gaius. I'll be back soon.”

I tried to protest, but Älex would not have any of it. Something in the barely restrained bloody intent shining in his eyes told me to reign in my feathers and listen to him. Though, I’d rather much have preferred to accompany him to do… whatever he needed to do in that weird, ‘spirally’ mountain in the middle of the valley. That's where he said he needed to go, a… hive? A schangale… no, a… uh, chhhhangüeling…

Scheiße, I said it right the first time!

“... Okay.”

With his target in sight and mind made, Älex wasted little time in resuming his journey while I headed towards where he’d pointed me, carrying his heavy bag awkwardly on my back. How could I go around carrying this thing without tumbling every two steps? It felt all wrong and the shoulder pads weren’t where I felt they should be…

‘Whatever, I think there’s still some food left from my last scavenging trip.’

My ear tufts twitched when they caught a muffled bump or something like that, followed by a metallic clatter. Had he seriously just straight out jumped from the cliff's edge? He’d kill himself! He doesn't have any wi…

“Right, magiks.” I deadpanned to myself with a huff and resumed my gait in search of that clearing Alex had mentioned.

As I traversed the light foliage from the cliff’s rim, my thoughts were dragged again around my strange companion. I’d only known him for a week or so, but I believed I’d developed a solid opinion of him.

And you can sum that opinion to a single word: confusing.

When he had been captured by those… I'm not even going to lower myself to call them my brethren. Those Scheißkerle, I felt like the Blue Moon had smiled upon me, for he looked as little pleased to be treated like property to be spoiled as I was, and with the slavers focused on their newest toy, I had a window to plot my escape.

Then… well. I can't say I felt any sympathy for my captors. They deserved what they had coming after abusing me for the months after they’d grabbed me, dragging me from one place to another trying to sell me. It's not my fault I was born like this! I know there aren't many of my kind with this feline and avian heritage, but still!

And that hen… what she’d do to me while the others pretended not to notice. Over and over again…

A shudder shook my body from the tip of my beak to the end of my tail. No, I felt no pity for my captors. But the way Älex killed them… butchered them.

For a moment, I was not there, but three years ago in my village, watching helplessly as the Minotauren tore our village apart. There weren't that many of us; we were poor and underfed, and we had little chance to stop them.

Trapped under that magik dome he’d summoned around me, I saw a younger me watching my father face off against two minotaurs while my mom tried to fly me away from our destroyed nest before a hammer caught one of her wings, dropping us both into the snow.

I wanted to run, as far and fast as I had that day, when I saw my entire life torn to shreds, leaving me to fend for myself in the wilderness for years before I was captured.

A recurring nightmare kept inflicting itself on my dreams from that day onward, and it still does to this day on occasion. Our nests in flames, griffons butchered left and right by hulking, bipedal forms, the cries from my mother, the fate of my friends…

The day I met him, I saw a nightmare happen before my very eyes. But this time, instead of a warhammer coming down on my skull, a helping claw was offered to me, by a creature who somewhat resembled a minotaur, but claimed he was not.

… I didn't know what to make of things then. He claimed an urgency to leave that place before something nastier than those wastes of feathers came prowling around. He’d assured me that I was free to go where I pleased, that I wasn't going to end up trading captors with him; but it was in my ‘best interests’ to stick with him for the time being if I wanted to have even the slimmest of chances of making it through the night.

That creature had just turned a band of derailed slavers into a bloodbath without batting an eye, and now wanted us to turn tail, as if the spawns of Tartarus had just dug a hole to escape in front of our beaks.

I went with him, even when all my instincts told me not to trust him and dust off as fast as my wings could carry me. And I might've just done that if my stupid wing joint hadn't become dislocated, rendering me as flightless as a fletching six weeks out of their egg.

Then, as we took refuge in the den, I saw that he was as dubious to trust me as I was of him. But he offered help disinterestedly, fixed my wing, and treated a few other wounds I’d been dragging with me for a while, courtesy of that hen and our ‘fun times’.

I mean, I didn't miss how close he was keeping those weird swords of his when I became a bit too snappy. I apologized the next day. He told me it was fine.

I asked him about the slavers. He had agreed that the sentence was just, but he lamented how, in a better world, those monsters would've been given a fair trial and proper justice. Out here, one needs to get dirty and make hard choices. He didn't agree with his methods either, which brought me some relief, knowing I hadn't been rescued by a madgriff, or is it madhooman?... Whatever… I saw so much regret in him, and something in my feathers told me it didn't solely come from going feral on those slavers. Instead of a mindless monster, I saw a part of me in him. Lost, scared, regretful, alone…

I gave him a hug. I felt that it was the right thing to do. Mom would do the same for me when I was scared after a nasty thunderstorm. Or when I was very sick. I was always very sick when I was younger. I was too young to see it then, but it put a lot of stress on my parents.

I miss them…

We made a deal. I’d help him, and he’d help me. We’d travel together towards wherever he needed to be to do some urgent business, as he kept claiming, and then he’d take me with him to the pony village on the coast.

I was unsure how to feel about that. Stories of our Golden Age were far and between in my village, but from what little we could trust ourselves to remember, ponies weren't exactly the type of company a griffon might want to share, or any other non-pony for that matter. Father always told me to be wary of other creatures, griffon included, but especially ponies, even if there wasn't a reason we should encounter any so far north.

Älex had reassured me several times when I’d accidentally let that slip. He understood all the bad legends ponykind had won for themselves during all those centuries, and even claimed partial responsibility for it. How? All those things happened hundreds of years ago! Was he even around at the time? He wouldn't even be leftover bones today if that was the case!

I didn't ask, just took his word for it. He’d treated me nicely as it was and helped me out of a rough spot. It was that or returning to the wilderness on my lonesome. I didn't think I could trust my own kind after the treatment I received from those griffons, so risking searching for a griffon settlement to lay low was out of the question. If griffons could be such heartless monsters, I reasoned ponies couldn't be much worse. Little would surprise me at this point.

The density of vegetation around me became scarcer the closer I reached the aforementioned clearing. Just as he’d promised, an empty clearing of dusty dirt and the occasional weed hugged the cliff wall, allowing for a wide berth before being recalled by the forest.

I had enough space to light a small fire without causing a raging inferno, and if something nasty reared its ugly face around here, I reasoned I was well enough to at least slide down the cliff and put some nice distance between us. I'd find Älex halfway and we'd leave this weird place far behind us.

Leaving his awkward bag in the middle of the clearing, I set off to find some dry branches and leaves, and some nice toothpick sticks too to give the fire a nice kick. I had to teach myself a lot of things while I roughed it out in the wilderness, so I could trust my instincts to take over while my thoughts drifted back to my new friend… I guess I could call him a friend. The only thing he called me is ‘cub’ and I am NOT a little cub anymore.

He knew it riled me up, and it always brought a little laugh out of him. I reasoned that there were worse crimes than some playful banter. It's definitely what friends do.

He was so strange, and I didn't mean his looks. It was painfully true that neither of us must've been a joy to look at in our messed-up, battered states. He's just… different, coming from my limited knowledge regarding this world's intelligent creatures. In some ways, he had a lot of griffon in him, but then he did something seemingly completely out of character that left me gawking at him like he’d grown a second head.

He could be as fierce as that chimera he felled while I cowered in a tree, not my proudest moment...; or as sweet as a newborn kitten when you caught him in the mood. Roughing it up in the wilderness aside, he was actually a pretty mellow guy. He'd joke around sometimes, although I missed most of his jokes. He'd answer all the questions I had about the ponies, which was nice of him. Heck, hearing him talking about them almost sold me on the idea of living amongst them after we were done here.

‘I have to be careful. Everything about him screams that I should be fine trusting him. But there's this… thing about him. I just can't put my talons on it.’

Whatever the case was, this past week we’d spent traveling together showed me that I needn't be all jumpy and ruffled feathers around him.

Once I’d gathered a satisfying amount of wood, I returned to my impromptu campsite and dropped it unceremoniously, not bothering to build a ring of stones around it. The dirt was dry and loose enough, I could put it out anytime without an issue.

Without his magik gauntlets, I had to retort to the old trick of brushing two sticks together fast enough to evoke the wonders of friction. I could really use a pair of those things he had around his blunt claws, I mused. Pretty useful for lighting a simple fire or saving our sorry tails from a three-headed-three-breed monster.

‘Grover’s treasure, how can such a thing exist? It even talked! Like… talked! The three of the heads!”

One crazy tail to write home about, had I a home to return to in the first place.

~Dammit. It's been so long already, I barely feel a thing anymore...~

I was not sure whether to feel relieved or terrified.

What I was feeling at the moment was boredom and an unhealthy dose of fearful expectation to top it off. And I was mad, too. I was cranky with Älex having told me to keep to the sidelines while he went and faced something exceedingly dangerous, judging from the grave tone in his voice, and the numerous reminders about us needing to keep a careful eye on our surroundings the closer we got to our destination.

~I am not a little cub! I can pull my weight just fine! Verdammt, if it weren't for those glowy things on his talons, he'd be as defenseless as a newly hatched griff without me!~

Getting worked up over it was pointless, I knew. But still, I felt how in this last week of travel, he’d been pulling most of the weight for the both of us. I wanted to help. I knew that I could, injured wings or not. A griffon is more than just a pair of powerful wings, sharp talons, or an even sharper beak. I’d been hunting and foraging most of our meals, true; Älex’s little nose and ears couldn't hope to find prey even if it was frolicking in front of him. But the rest? That was mostly on him while he remained with me over and over again to rest and take care of my injuries.

I mean, I appreciated the concern, but come on!

Flopping down with a huff, I stewed in my anger while letting the rising flames warm up left my side, cooking some choice of words I'd have for him once he was back.

“Stupid hooman…”

There wasn't much else to do but wait. And wait I did, alone with my thoughts as sole company. Strange and confusing as he might've been, I couldn't deny the effect he was having on me. These last few days traveling together were the best days I could remember having since my days as a fletching with my family and friends. Even the simple fact of being able to talk to somecreature, to share a meal, to listen to his crazy stories… which I believed, for the most part, but it felt like half were made up on the spot… either that, or the hooman had surely been through a lot. Geez.

I felt alive again. I know it sounds strange, but I can't come up with a better way to put it.

Cocky and hesitant as I might have come up against his offers of living with his pony family, I couldn't lie to myself and say that I wasn't looking forward to it.

~Heh, and what will the ponies think of you, Gaius?~ I talked to myself, a poor way of fighting off the boredom that slowly settled. ~I don't think they're going to welcome us with open forelegs, precisely.~

I'd cross that bridge when I got there; we still had at least two weeks more of travel back to the easternmost end of the continent, according to Älex. Most of the time I ‘hitched’ a ride with the slavers; we’d kept north or as close to it as we could, so there was still a lot of land I hadn't seen. I was kinda looking forward to it, enjoying the sights and smells and sounds of nature without constantly fearing for my life.

It was shaping up to be an interesting trip. Plenty of time to listen to more of his completely made-up stories. I mean, an evil pony made entirely out of shadows and a bunch of long-lost heroes trapped in a place called ‘Limbo’...

Please, my mom had better bedtime stories.

Minutes turned to hours while I waited, changing sides to rest upon and walking circles around the clearing, drawing doodles of whatever came to mind in the dirt, scaring a few rabbits out of their dens, although I wasn't hungry at the time, so I let them flee.

A faint sound, coming from somewhere far in the distance, brought my thirteenth lap counterclockwise this time, around the clearing to a halt. I strained my ears to catch any other noises, but could only hear the music of the wind caressing the leaves of the nearby trees.

For what little I managed to discern, it had come up from somewhere in the general direction of the crooked mountain, but my avian eyesight didn't notice any appreciable difference from the past three hours.

With my tail twitching nervously behind me, I settled down near the edge of the cliff, digging my sight into the Hive, as Älex had called it, and waited with concern freezing my heart over.

‘I should've gone with him…’

Minutes passed without a change, but I remained at my post. Boredom and accumulated exhaustion fought a winning battle against my resolve to remain up and vigilant. As I felt my eyelids drop against my will, I could only ask the Blue Moon to ensure that he was okay and on his way back. Since enjoying these few days in his company, being all alone stung worse than ever before.

At some point, I ended up surrendering to the clutches of slumber. I can’t remember the moment I fell asleep, nor the content of my dreams. Just that they were calm ones, drifting to an odd tone towards the end, the reason I was snapped out of my midday nap. Whatever had infiltrated my dreams was also assaulting my nostrils. Sniffing hard as I blinked the cobwebs from my eyes, I identified the smell as something burning.

I quickly dismissed it as the fire I’d lit earlier so that Älex could find me, but something was missing. The comforting heat from the flames was no longer warming up my feathers. Through the corner of my eye, I found the fire had gone out already, only a wisp of smoke rising from the burned pile of logs. That told me two things. One, I needed to relight the fire. Two, what the hay was burning? The smell was too strong to be coming from the dead fire.

Standing on my legs and ruffling my wings lazily, I found my answer peering behind me. Dark columns of foul smoke rose from beyond the border of the cliff. I couldn't see the bottom of the valley due to the inclination of the rim, but I needn't be a genius to guess where it was coming from.

Just to confirm my eyes weren’t playing a trick on me, I stumbled my sleepy way to the border of the cliff, and my worst fears became true.

The ‘hive’ was burning. All of it, the flames swallowing the lush vegetation around it as well as the plant life growing over it. Puffs of smoke filtered out from every nook and crevice that kissed the exterior, telling me that the place was being cooked from the inside out. With my heart beating a mile a minute, I dug my claws into the loose dirt at the edge of the cliff, almost jumping down there and then to Älex’s rescue.

‘Slow down, Gaius, and think. We both know what happens when we rush mindlessly into danger.’

I debated my options. It was a HUGE fire going on, there was no way he could’ve missed it. Or was it his thing to begin with? Or perhaps it was provoked by whatever or whoever had drawn Älex in, to begin with! Was he trapped inside?

Was it too late already?

“Scheiße!!” I cursed loudly, slapping my tail against the dirt in frustration. ~Of course he had to go all alone! I could’ve just flown the both of us out if I had come with him! But nooooo, he needs to be the mysterious lonely hero going all by himself to get his flank whooped over by whatever it is that we came here for!! Aaargh!~

Storm clouds were building over my head, the boom of thunder bouncing all over the valley every now and then, but no rain fell to quench the flames. My feathers were ruffled and my fur stood on end.

Something big had happened, something… transcendental, it felt to me.

Pacing back and forth stirringly, leaving angry mounds of loose dirt with my claws as I stomped around the campsite, I ran over all the possibilities and outcomes I could come up with, slowly but surely discarding them one by one until a prominent thought stood up. It was reckless, impulsive, and most likely would toast my feathers a nice shade of brown, but I simply couldn't leave Älex behind to burn alive or something worse.

~Okay… Okay, deeeep breath Gaius.~

Returning to the cliff’s edge, I flared my wings open, wincing a bit when the still tender muscles of my right one complained about the exercise. The feeling of wind tickling my feathers as it ran under my wings was a welcome feeling. How I longed to get back to the skies. There’s no equal feeling like cutting through the air, tasting freedom with each wingbeat, letting the chilled, condensed water droplets from a wayward cloud sap the heat away after a nice flying session.

The best I could muster up now was a half-flanked glide with no promises of eating a few branches on my way down.

Tasting the wind and assessing its speed and direction, I was ready to save that hooman’s butt from being scorched. Perhaps I’d take a chunk of it if it was well enough cooked by the time I reached him as payment. Crouching down and extending my wings as far as the needles would let me, I clenched my hindquarters and prepared a griffon-patented powerjump.

~On three. One. Two. Thre-squack!!~

Just as I felt my paw pads leaving the ground behind, a shadow jumped from beyond the edge of the cliff, startling my wings to beat backward instead of downwards, bringing me down with them to an unceremonious landing on my rump.

“Ooof!!”

From my awkward position, I registered the muffled *thud* of something landing on the edge of the cliff. Once I’d twisted my way up to my paws, I found the shadowed object to be the target of my rescue operation.

Battered, and especially bloodied, Älex stood in a semi-crouched stance, using his huge sword to steady himself against the grassy ground as deep, exhausted puffs left his lungs.

~Ä-Älex?~

Panting and wheezing, the hooman realized rooted while catching his breath. He seemed, and smelled, like he’d run all the way back. That was one impressive leap, I had to admit, no doubt magiks assisting with it, but the feat was far down on my list of concerns, his sorry state being up-front the most.

No signs of burned flesh or clothes were visible, which was a small relief. I couldn't smell any signs of the touch of fire on his body either. But what I could smell, however, aside from sweat and grime from a long journey, was blood.

He was bleeding profusely from multiple points, most of them old wounds that had become open again. But what threw me most was the rivulets of crimson snaking down from his flat nose and funny-looking ears, as well as the corners of his mouth and his eyes, making him look as if he’d been crying tears of blood.

At my stuttered call, Älex lifted his head the smallest amount, enough to peer at me from the corner of his eye as his muscles struggled to keep him aloft.

“Aaaah…. Aaaah…. Geht es Ihnen gut?”

He had asked me if I was alright, to which, in surprise, I could only reply with a shaky nod, still drinking in the sight of all the damage he’d suffered while out there during whatever he’d been doing. He was looking worse than after facing the chimera, and that abomination surely had given him a run for his money.

What had happened out there?

“Good.” He affirmed and tried to stand up, but his legs failed and gave way under him, making him fall face-first into the dirt with his swords clattering beside him.

Stumbling over my legs, I rushed to help him, parking all opinions about his battered state for when they were relevant. I didn't know if his state was life-threatening. I only knew I needed to act, and fast.

“U-Um…” I tripped over my words like a scaredy chicken, supporting his bipedal frame against me as best as I could, my fur and feathers becoming stained with his blood.

“The salve.” He squeezed out between pants.

I remembered what he was referring to, that foul-smelling gunk those ‘bat ponies’ had given him for his journey. There should still be some left to use, although his wounds were numerous.

“R-Right.”

After making sure he could at least hold himself for a little bit, I scurried back in search of his bag and the precious remedy inside it.

Having left it a safe distance from the fire, I grabbed it between my talons and started rummaging through its contents. Food and smelly clothes made up most of his travel equipment, but no matter how hard I searched, I was seemingly unable to find the accursed jar with the greenish paste.

~Dammit, where did he put that forsaken flask…~

“Looking for this?”

Jumping out of my fur and two meters into the air, I dropped Älex’s bag clumsy and landed back on a crouched stance, ready to claw the face out of whatever had startled me.

My fighting spirit was therefore crushed, however, when my foe revealed itself as… I don't know how to describe him, and I say him by the masculine tone of his voice, might as well have been a ‘she’ or both for all I knew.

Standing tall and thin with the slender body of a… furred snake? With a dragon-like tail on one end and the head of an equine on the other. His limbs were a collection of different creatures, just as the tiny wings behind him. Cascading down his face, a white, scruffy mane almost masked his creepy, yellowish eyes and a prominent fang peeking out from his muzzle.

Finding me utterly baffled, the weird creature scoffed at me with a tired huff.

“Pluh-ease, I’m not that ugly, am I?” He asked rhetorically, bringing his slender snout too close to my liking with a mock sneer, only for a lock of whitish mane to fall over his face, obscuring his features. “Ugh.” Rolling his eyes, he snapped two lion-like digits over the offending lock of mane and, as if his fingers had become scissors, the lock of mane fell down with a swift swoop in front of me.

Wide-eyed and every single feather puffed, I offered no retort to his sarcasm, completely blown away by the creature in front of me. Was he friendly? A threat? Was he here to help us? Eat us perhaps?

The creature must’ve been already used to my flabbergasted reaction since he offered no further commentary. True to his taunting, he held the jar containing the slave on his bird-like claws and, as if I was a simple stump in the way, he brushed me aside and headed towards Älex, whose legs had failed him further, bringing him down on a ball of pain on the ground.

I was left peering at the nothingness for the time it took the gears to kick off again, the moment I realized my new pal was at the mercy of this uncanny creature. Protective instincts kicked in, and I was beside the pair with a flap of my wings, talons at the ready.

“Hey! Stäy avay vrom hi-!!”

But the strange being wasn’t eating my friend alive or anything remotely close. Cradling the sorry hooman on his mismatched arms, he cradled him in a more dignified position, the jar being kept close in his coiled tail.

Noticing the abrupt change of position, Älex’s eyes fluttered open from the brink of having passed out. He needed to blink twice to confirm the identity of the presence keeping him steadily seated while leaning against his lion foreleg. Instead of mirth and joy for finding an old friend coming to his aid, Älex’s already shattered mood turned as stale as a month’s dated expired milk.

“... No me jodas.” He mumbled in that weird language of him I had caught him muttering every once in a while.

“I’m happy to see you too, old friend.” The creature, seemingly able to understand him, smiled with a shit-eating grin, his sole fang peeking out creepily from his long muzzle.

Far from being scared, Älex gave out a sense of boredom behind the visible agony he was in, simply rolling his eyes and averting his gaze to anywhere but the creature’s playful eyes.

“Oh, can’t a valiant knight get some recognition from the princess in distress?” He asked jokingly, to which Älex answered with… uh, I didn't recognize the gesture. He just flipped his middle finger to the creature’s face and scoffed, eliciting a joyful laugh from the bigger being.

“Fuck off, Discord. Of all times, this is NOT the one I’m in the mood.”

‘Discord’, the being’s name, apparently, took notice of Älex’s mauled condition. With a thoughtful hum and a quick scratch of his goatee, Discord snapped the fingers on his bird arm. A flash of light blinded me momentarily, making me fall back on my tail with a pained yelp. Coiling my poor limb in front of me so that I could nurse it, I was blown away for the second time in the past ten minutes when all the blood, superficial lacerations, and grime sticking to the hooman disappeared with the flash, his torn clothes becoming as new and clean as straight out of the wardrobe. The worst injuries remained since I could still see the ugly scar of the manticore's sting peeking out from the uncovered part of his shoulder.

Whilst the change was as astonishing as it was welcome, it seemed Älex’s energy hadn't returned with his refreshment. Panting and heaving like exhausted prey, he remained wobbly in Discord’s gentle grasp.

“Thank you,” Älex spoke with a grumble, on the verge of normal hearing and not an ounce louder, yet Discord heard nonetheless, his grin widening to impossible sizes.

“I’m sorry, I haven't quite heard that, my ears are old and dusty.” He made a number of motions at scratching his right ear, the clawed digit going inside to the point he’d be scratching his own brain, and coming out with a dust bunny of absurd size which he promptly flicked away.

‘... This creature is creepy.’

“I said you can suck my dick, that’d make me feel better.” Älex fired in annoyance, but it flew over Discord’s head like a breeze.

“Always a pleasure, my little wayward buddy.” Unbothered by the hooman’s harsh choice of language, Discord chuckled like two friends going back and forth with each other. Slithering his way around the hooman like the snake most of his frame embodied, he curled his slender body around the hooman’s seated frame.

“I must simply tell you about my adventures these past eight years!!... Wait, how much time has it been here? It’s hard to keep track while having so much fun!! No matter, here,” He nudged the jar from his coiled tail to the hooman’s shaky grasp. “You can get all nice and slippery meanwhile. So, there I was…”

Sighing loudly, Älex opened the lid and dipped his fingers inside, coating them with a nice layer of the disgusting paste and going for the first wound in reach somewhere under his shirt, his jacket hanging open at his sides. I hadn't asked him yet about that strange sigil sewn into it.

Discord meanwhile began a detailed tale about traveling between worlds, enjoying the sights and foods, and wreaking 'healthy’ havoc whenever he was up to it, going so far as to team up with other Discord’s out there.

‘By the Blue Moon, there’s more than one…’ I couldn't help but shudder under my feathers.

“... so then, after finishing all the lobster-flavored ice cream they had, my cousin pointed me towards this crazy dimension…”

“Eris is still around?” Älex butted in, having finished with another deep cut on his left calf and going for another blob of the fastly diminishing salve. “What am I saying, of course she’s still around.” The growl under his breath denoted a lack of joy around the fact.

“Oh, she most certainly is!!” Discord was more than happy to confirm, knitting the hooman’s brow in a scoff. “She asked about you! Quite a lot, indeed…” The slender creature winked a yellow eye at Älex, the message clear as a summer day.

“Sure she has.” Älex put on an indifferent front, now tending a nasty scratch on his right forearm while pretending to be paying attention to Discord's teasing.

“Mhm! She wanted me to bring you around to the casino again! She said you two had a lovely time the last time you visited.” Discord clapped his mismatched claws and put dovey eyes at the hooman.

Älex humored him with a side look, seemingly more than used to Discord’s shenanigans.

“It was an interesting journey…” His voice drifted off, a shadow of a memory or two flashing before his eyes, halting his progress on nursing his wounds.

“Can you imagine it?!” Discord was suddenly at my side, hugging me with his lion limb around my shoulder, pressing his cheek against mine as if we had known each other our entire lives or something. It was creepy and almost made me shed my feathers from the start. “This human here, shoulder to shoulder with the evilest, most wicked beings of the nearby dimension, all bottled up in a temple of debauchery like my cousin's casino!! Oooh ho ho ho, the sweet chaos they could’ve unleashed together.”

A full-body shudder traveled Discord's entire length, his eyes staring dreamily at the sky while I tried my best to free myself from his grasp and put some distance between us. I wiggled my way out successfully as he daydreamed with a deep sigh, and used the breather to check up on Älex, who remained silent while treating the last of the most pressing injuries.

I couldn't help but ask. “Who is this guy?” I worded, more than a bit annoyed.

“You’ll get used to him… eventually.” He responded with a s little joy as my query. We both peered at the slender creature as he kept at his weird act of starry eyes and claws clenched together against his cheek.

“Ah… the old days…” He breathed out nostalgically. However, his daydreaming was squashed the moment he focused on the ugly plumes of smoke, tall enough to be visible from our angle. His eyebrows knit into a frown until a lightbulb literally went on over his head.

“Right, the reason why I’m here!” With a snap of his claws, he was beside us again, hovering on his little, mismatched wings while peering into the burning horizon. “Besides seeing an old friend, of course.” He added with a mischievous grin.

“We are not friends.” Älex felt the need to firmly refresh Discord’s memory.

“Agree to disagree.” Discord once again brushed the hooman’s lack of tact off. “I was actually thinking about checking up on you colorful lot, but I felt that somecreature had left the Game. Somecreature important.” He lost his hovering to stand beside the sitting hooman, a contemplative gleam in his eyes. “Chrissy and you finally scored your differences? A bit too much, if you ask me. I'd have gone for a nice scolding instead.”

“Chrysalis was no longer part of the Game, Discord.” Älex rebutted, sending the now-empty jar back to his bag with his levitation magiks, hugging his knees against his chest as I felt something eating my new friend fiercely, life becoming deem in his brown eyes. “And… yes, I guess we have.”

“Of course she is!” Discord, caring not for Älex’s darkening mood, clarified. “You know you don’t need to be an Empyrean to be part of the show. Take our old friends for example!”

“I’m not in the mood to discuss philosophy, Discord,” Älex growled, his tone telling me he simply wished to be left in peace to cook in whatever he was feeling. “It’s done, and a piece of me died because of it. Now I just want to return home and let my family tear down the remaining pieces for ditching them like I have for this stupid mission.”

“Hmm, if you say so...” Discord stroked his goatee in thought. “Can’t say I’ll miss her. We were never really close or anything. Two very different ideas of conquering Equestria. Oh, well,” He lazily stretched back in the air, his limbs popping like popcorn as they stretched almost twice in length with a big yawn. “At least the changelings can now be at ease that their evil Queen won’t be coming back to enslave them.” Out of nowhere, an actual bag of popcorn appeared in his bird claws, which he began to pop into his muzzle one by one as he took in the flaming scenario beyond the cliff as if he were in a cheap theater movie.

“... There are no more changelings.”

Both Discord and I had to do a double take on Älex’s almost whispered statement, the hooman not meeting our questioning gazes, but instead drinking in the product of his work.

“No schangälei-ugh.” The word still eluded me, such weird pronunciation these Equestrians had.

“Changeling.” Älex corrected me, giving me a reassuring scratch on my scalp which I happily welcomed. Those claw-less digits of his weren't all that useful in a fight, but bird could they give your feathers a nice rub.

“No more changelings?” Discord mirrored my question, landing back in the seriousness of Älex’s message. “I get there aren’t any changelings inside the Hive, since it’s now on fire. But you can’t possibly be telling me they didn't simply ditch that musty place and find a proper home somewhere else!”

Älex remained silent for a few seconds as his fingers brushed the roots of my head feathers, an almost therapeutic gesture for him as I found his breathing evening and muscles relaxing. Weird how that worked.

“Chrysalis’ was the last Hive in Equus. Ponies cared not about whether they were being reformed or not. They hated everycreature, including themselves. A changeling cannot live off of hate.”

Discord pondered the hooman’s word for a moment, his features saddening as the hooman’s remained in cold neutrality, yet I could almost feel his heart shattering over and over again. A lone tear was cascading down his left cheek, yet he forced his sight to remain fixed on the horizon.

I curled my tail around his bent legs and pressed against his side, thinking he could use the close company. It always made me feel better when I was sick or sad, even if other griffons would call me a ‘softy’. Älex welcomed my gesture by looping his arm around my back, the hand petting my scalp continuing to do so on my shoulder.

“She told me I should've stayed dead that day...” Älex broke the heavy silence with words that initially puzzled me.

‘Stayed dead? How could he not have stayed dead? Griffons don’t come back from being dead!’

“... She was right.” He concluded.

With a heavy sigh, Discord planted… whatever accounted for his rear beside us and looped his long tail around us, the three of us sharing the view of the fire consuming the nearby forest that surrounded the mountain, though thankfully it seemed it wasn't stretching much beyond that, the numerous streams slithering under the canopy making sure of it.

“Is that how you feel about it?” Discord, the bag of popcorn having disappeared from his grasp, asked the hooman.

“Yes,” Älex answered without a shadow of doubt.

Discord chewed down his answer for a moment before changing his approach.

“What about your friends waiting for you at the Bay?”

A twitch of Älex’s muscles told me Discord had struck a nerve, yet the hooman remained stone-faced.

“... It is selfish of me to think they’d miss me. They wouldn't have known me in the first place.” I couldn't fight down a disappointed mewl when his hand left my plumage to rent to his lap, where he fiddled with his thumbs in a gesture of conflict. “My mission at this time is pointless. It was always pointless. They never needed my help to protect magic. They could’ve perfectly dragged your ass through the magma without my help.”

Discord scoffed in offense for whatever reason. I was lost on these events Älex was referring to, that story having been part of his usual storytelling while we traveled.

‘Drag his butt through magma? Ouch…’ I winced inwardly.

“That is not the point, Alexander.” Discord followed after the hooman’s silence. I learned then the hooman’s full name, eliciting a surprise gawk from me which Älex didn't address. Discord crossed his arms over his chest and brushed his goatee again with a bird claw. “We don’t get to choose what we feel is deserved for us or not.”

“I still don’t understand, Discord. What is it that ties me to Equus? What does Harmony still need me to do?”

Älex peered down to his blunt claws, the gloves full of gems worn around them as the first time I saw him, not one coming out, not even when he bathed in whatever stream we could find on the way.

“Everything I’ve done here has been trivial. It doesn't feel important enough reason to make me the exception of the century!” His words carried a heated tone that was unusual for him. Where normally remain calm and collected, this particular topic was hauntingly fast to bring the colors out of him.

“I don’t know what to tell you.” Discord sounded apologetic. “Harmony and I have never seen eye to eye, needless to say.” His lion paw came to rest on Älex’s shoulder reassuringly, an empty gesture for the hooman. “But, if something I’ve learned from Fluttershy is that everything we do counts, one way or another, no matter how small or ‘insignificant’.

Älex inhaled sharply as Discord’s paw gripped his shoulder, sending it a heated glare before giving in and letting the slender creature do as it pleased. Even a blind griffon could see the relationship these two shared was more than a one-way thing coming from Discord. Whatever it was that’d happened between the both of them, it made Älex less than cooperative with Discord which, in present circumstances, I wasn't sure worked in our favor or not.

“They never needed me here,” Älex spoke to himself more than us. “Sunny and the rest had figured it all out before I even came here. I just…” Sighing loudly, the hooman rubbed his temples, his shoulders slumping and bringing Discord's paw with them.

“... Just do us a favor and take us home.”

‘H-He can do that?!’

“Oooh, eager to return to the missus, aren't we?” Discord shed his sorrowful mask for a knowing grin, which brought Älex to scoff for the hundredth time that day. “Sure, I can give you a lift.” With a flash, Discord donned a dark blue with white and golden highlight uniform and a matching cap. “AirDiscord will get you across the continent in a jiffy… If you can stomach the ride!”

Having given up trying to understand this nightmarish creature and his randomness, I followed Älex as he stood up with a grunt of effort, using a thumb to wipe some treasonous tears from the corners of his eyes. He levitated his bag and sword and fixed it all in place on his back.

I gave my body a good shake to lose the clinging dirt and debris from my plumage and waited with a cocked head to learn how in Grover’s name was Discord going to take us to Älex’s home, a literal continent away from here.

“Not my first rodeo, Discord.” Älex rasped, tightening the straps of his holster and bag. Peering down at me, he put on a pensive face for a moment before a conclusion took root in his mind. “I’m gonna need a bucket, though.”

“Hmm? What for?” Discord asked, looking over two rectangular pieces of paper with a lot of weird stuff and numbers written on them before ripping the upper part off and tossing them somewhere behind him. “I thought you were too tough a pickle to get replacement sickness.”

“It’s not for me.” Älex corrected the languid creature, patting me on the head. “He’s a griffon. You know they don’t deal well with asymmetrical displacement.”

“Ah, true enough.” Discord agreed with Älex, making me fidget nervously at their side. Was it something bad? Was I gonna be okay? Or…

With another snap of his claws, Discord procured a metal bucket out of the nothingness and handed it to Älex, the words ‘Hang in there’ with a cute picture of a cat painted on its side.

I was starting to get really nervous.

“U-Um… I am not süre avout zees.”

“Don’t worry, bird face.” Älex gave a reassuring smile and took a kneel by my side, seeking to calm me with some pats on my back which didn't really work that well. “First time’s always a pain in the ass for everybody, but your avian inner compass suffers a nasty tumble the more distance you teleport. You’ll be very dizzy, but fine. Trust me.”

“Um…” I wanted to protest, but Discord had another idea in mind.

“Very well! Ahem... Fillies and gentlegriffs,” Älex gave Discord that finger gesture again, which he ignored. “Welcome to AirDiscrod, your best and only intercontinental travel service. We ask that you keep all arms, legs, tails, and other limbs inside the vehicle at all times. Remember that our snack service will be available at all times during the flight. Please fasten your seatbelts and get ready for departure!~”

“V-Vhat is he sayïng?”

Älex simply shook his head side to side tiredly, a groan building in his throat.

“Don’t listen to him, he's just being an ass.”

“Tell Izzy that I’m looking forward to seeing her again,” Discord asked Älex, his lion paw open, a bubble of light slowly building atop it, crackling with energy. “And the rest too, I guess.”

“I don't think they’re that eager to see you again. I told them about my death.” Älex answered, allowing him a victorious grin over Discord's frown.

“Ugh, such a killjoy...” Discord scoffed, crushing the ball of light into his palm and readying his fingers for a snap.

“V-V-Vait, vhat do you mëan dea-”

“Ta-Ta!!~”

*FLASH*

I felt as if my insides had become my outsides and the other way around. For a second, all my senses became overloaded with light and noise and… things I cannot describe. Before I could form a single thought around it, whatever had engulfed us spit us out carelessly into what I recognized as a grassy meadow once I’d gotten my eyes to stop spinning.

Having ended belly up like a kitten asking for rubs, a prominent smell invaded my nostrils. Moist grass and fresh soil, but also a twinge of saltiness I remembered having tasted only once a while ago.

We were somewhere near the coast. We were definitely no longer in that clearing at the edge of the cliff.

“Mmmmggg, que asco de magia.” I heard Älex grumble in that strange language of his, having ended on his butt, rubbing his neck with a hand while the other stretched to recall his scattered equipment with his magiks. “You alright, cub?” He asked me while nudging the metal bucket closer to me with a knee.

Aside from the overall disorientation, the spots dancing on my eyes and the ants crawling over the tip of my limbs, I didn't feel that terrible.

“I’m not a cu-urk!!”

My complaint would’ve proved more effective had that day’s lunch, and the previous weeks’ too, not decided to rush up my gullet explosively and without warning. Reaching for the bucket instinctively, I proceeded to release the contents of my stomach in a pathetic show, like a young griff pulling out of their first barrel roll.

Kneeling beside me, a comforting hand rubbed the feathers on my neck as Älex waited for me to finish painting the insides of the bucket with my lunch.

“That's what you get from jumping the magnetosphere. You’ll be fine, Gaius, don’t force it.”

A minute or so in I found my breath again, his petting acting to soothe my sickness to a barely tolerable state. The fresh breeze coming from the sea did its part and, once I felt like myself again, pushed the foul-smelling bucket and its contents away from me and seated myself back on my haunches, feeling as if I were being rolled over by a freight train.

“... Nie wieder.”

“Heh, yeah, I’ve heard that before.” Älex chuckled as he patted me one last time, taking the bucket and disposing of its contents where it wouldn't bother anycreature.

“Come on.” He urged me to my paws once he was back. “If you think you’re feeling worn out, I’m literally moments away from passing out. But I gotta reach the hospital first.” He sunk a claw into my chest fluff. “And I need you to do something for me.”

“Vhat…?” I asked, half paying attention, half still reeling out from the tumble.

“But first,” Älex pushed on, pointing with a hand toward the direction of the ocean. “We gotta let all the ponies see you with me so they don’t start mass panicking… I hope.”

‘Great…’

Having heard from stories how jumpy and skittish ponies can be, I wasn't what you’d say looking forward to introductions. I could only hope my hooman friend’s presence was enough to reassure them that I wasn't here to eat them or anything.

What does a pony even taste like? I don’t know why, but for some reason, fruit always comes to mind… whatever. I’d kill for some fish.

Shaking the dizziness away, I found a nice, tucked pony town bordering the length of the bay, the blue ocean stretching beyond it until eyesight could reach. The warm colors of late afternoon had replaced the unforgiving midday sun before the storm cloud had masked it out of sight. We must’ve really traveled far if the sun had moved so much in the sky.

From our vantage point on the top of the grassy hill, some life could be discerned amidst the paved streets and two-story homes; a far cry from my village, I was ashamed to admit.

Equine figures sauntered back and forth, minding their own business. All in all, it looked like a nice place so far. Quiet. Normal, I guessed.

The mention of the hospital, while not surprising, only worked to re-spark the wisp of worry in my chest.

“Vill you be alright?” I asked with genuine concern. As we made our way down the hill and into the edge of town, I saw Älex’s gait become more like a stumble, to the point I had to press my side against him so he could remain steady against gravity’s gentle tug.

“Just need a thorough check-up and proper stitches to close my wounds. Also,” He worded, taking a raspy breath where his lungs struggled to supply him with oxygen. “Also… I need blood thinner and filtering. I’ve been stung by a manticore and bitten by a chimera’s snake head. I’m immune to both, perks of being off-worldly and all, but they can react badly and mess up some important things if I don’t make sure my bloodstream is clean. The venom not targeting me means I can't also target it to properly eliminate it through pissing, you follow?”

I didn't follow, only blinking owlishly twice while making sure he didn't trip and fall when grass became chiseled stone.

“... Should’ve listened to your momma and stayed in college, then.”

“College?” I asked with a dip of my beak.

“Fuck’s sake…”

Leaving behind whatever he was trying to explain, Älex directed me through narrow streets and even narrower alleys, seeking to avoid as many potentially panicking ponies as possible. Of course, luck can only carry us so far. The moment we stepped paw into what I could guess was some main street of sorts, what few pony heads still populated the street zeroed in on us with an eerie intensity.

“At ease.” Älex raised a hand before the screaming match could begin. “He’s with me. He won’t eat you as long as you give him something nice to bite instead.”

And with that, what little hopes I had for a smooth introduction shattered like glass in a blizzard.

“Kumpel!!” I yelled at the smirking hooman. How he could play pranks now of all times was beyond me. Still, it seemed the ponies trusted him enough to at least not shout the end of days at our arrival, just leaving us a nice wide berth as I followed the hooman towards the hospital.

Älex’s eyes darted back and forth as we traversed the street, most likely searching for his pony friends. But it was late in the day and most businesses were already closed, including a cart of sorts with a logo of a very appetizing shake of sorts in front of which Älex stopped for a second before continuing on our way.

The only ‘hospital’ I’d ever known was the village’s healing hut, where Miss Gothy would give me herbs to make me feel better on an almost weekly basis. I was always very sick when I was young, not so much now, thank Grover.

The building standing in front of me, however, was a proper hospital, three-story with a big number of windows which must’ve belonged to patient rooms, I could only guess. We crossed the big door, crowned with a big, red cross symbol.

With colorful ponies doing their best to act inconspicuous as they diverted their paths to stay well away from us, Älex headed for the reception where a yellow-furred mare sat in front of a desk with a bored expression, rummaging through some papers and occasionally writing something with a pencil on her maw.

It wasn't my first time seeing ponies. The slaver that captured me had made a few stops in far-off settlements with creatures of all kinds, a few ponies included. They all were crappy places, barely aloft where the worst scum swirled around to conduct business of the slaver’s kind. These ponies seemed nicer, at least. Scared out of their fur, but mellow and not eyeing me up like a piece of meat.

Älex knocked twice on the desk to get the mare’s attention. Not taking her sight up from the papers, the mare asked him for a moment until she finished with her current stack.

“Dew Flower, I kinda need your help, right now.”

Seemingly recognizing Älex’s voice, the mare finally dignified us with a bothered look, only for her pupils to grow when she caught sight of the hooman.

“Alex!” She cried in surprise, only for her brow to knit into a frown. “Alex!! Where in Tartarus have you been?! The lab’s three days behind because your butt’s been missing for two weeks!”

“I know, I know.” Älex didn't have the energy to deal with this right now, resting his weight against the counter. “I’ll punch some extra hours later. But,” he used his free hand to pull his shirt up for a first-row view of his numerous injuries. “I’m kinda fucked up right now.”

The mare’s previously wide eyes narrowed to pinpricks. “Oh my…” She squeezed out through a shaky breath.

“Yeah.” Älex lowered his shirt down and changed his weight to the other paw. “I’m taking a bed in two-b. Find Tenderhoof if she’s on duty and tell her I need wound treatment and blood detoxification asap.”

With a frantic nod, the nurse returned to her desk, this time to grab a… gimmick, I guess? She brought it to her ear and... began talking to it, as if he expected somecreature to answer back through that piece of plastic.

These ponies were weird. Älex was weird. I should start getting used to weird, or it’d be one headache after another.

Leaving the desk behind, Älex motioned me to continue. As we left the counter, the mare, still talking to that device… whatever it was, finally acknowledged my presence with a startled yelp which I brushed aside with a flick of my tail.

Älex ushered us up to the second floor of the massive building, heading towards the east section until finding a big letter B painted on the wall. Motioning towards that corridor, we dodged wide-eyed patients and nurses alike until we reached our destination.

An ample room with several hospital beds, none of them occupied until Älex dropped his stuff at the paw of the bed and planted his butt on the soft mattress with a long sigh of relaxation, his body on the verge of giving up from exhaustion.

“Mmmm, much better…” He groaned in bliss, wiggling deeper into the white sheets while removing his jacket and shirt, tucking them into a ball, and throwing them to the floor near where his bag and swords rested.

Not knowing what was next, I simply waited there, tapping my claws awkwardly against the marble floor, fearing Älex would pass out into sleep there and then without telling me what he needed me to do. Don’t get me wrong, I was digging myself one of those beds if he wasn't telling me anything soon.

Cracking an eye open once he’d shed the worst of the stress from his tired muscles, Älex peered down at me with a tiny smile. Motioning with his head, he pointed towards a nearby window.

“Use the rooftops. Head towards the lighthouse with the huge-ass rainbow growing from it. It's at the edge of the bay, you can’t miss it.”

“Um… okay.”

With a nod, he closed his eyes again and melted further into the soft mattress.

“Find my family. Tell them I sent you and where I am. They’ll treat you well, I promise.”

I could only take his word for it. He had only good things to say about them the few times they’d come up during our in-the-road talks. Conflicted whether I should leave him alone or not, I shuffled on my paws before coming to a decision. His family surely would want nothing but to see him again, just as I knew mine would be if they were still alive somewhere.

My mind made, I approached the left side of the bed and squeezed his hand between my claws as he had done for me before departing to the hive, hoping I could transmit some of the same reassurance he’d given to me earlier.

“I’ll be fine, Gaius.” He thanked me with a sleepy smile. “I’m too stubborn to die.”

“Yeah… I guëss you are.”

That’s something I needed to ask him about, that ‘I’ve told them about my death stuff’ he had let slip while talking to Discord.

First things first. Heading for the window he’d pointed out, I flicked the bolt open with a claw and let the seaside breeze caress my feathers once again. We were at a similar height to the nearest building, a house from what I could see, and the rest were all similar heights, so it’d be a fletchling’s game to skip and glide above them without straining my wing too much.

Peering over my shoulder once last time, I convinced myself that Älex was in good claws now with the pony doctors and, pushing with my rear legs, I hopped onto the rooftop of the nearest building and began a nimble run hopping from one rooftop after another, keeping out of sight of the passerby ponies. Without Älex by my side to reassure them of my friendly intentions, I couldn't trust their reactions.

My destination was hard to miss. It was the second thing I’d noticed after finding the pony village stretching in front of us, but didn't think to ask since Älex didn't look alarmed or surprised by it. Some pony thing, I reasoned. I had to admit, it was an impressive view, if a bit ornery. Ponies were all about sunshine and rainbows from what little I had learned about them, or at least they were a long time ago. This mustn't have been too out of place for them.

True to his indications, a lighthouse stood proud at the top of the cliff that marked the edge of the bay, but it wasn't like the one on that port town… I can't remember the name, where the slavers hitched a ride to Equestria from North Essia with me as their precious cargo. This one was far bigger, and for what little I could make out from this distance, made out of crystal or a similar substance.

Weird.

I cleared the town in a jiffy, raising no alarms among the pony folk, and began my path up the slender road leading toward the top of the cliff. On my way up, I found a nice garden tucked to one side of the road, and the smell of whatever was growing there made my stomach churn in a pang of hunger.

‘... I’m sure nogriff will mind.’

Taking a small, culinary detour, I snuck into the garden, finding no pony inside. With a victorious grin, I searched for the famous ‘tomatoes’, which Älex wouldn't shut up about when we were hungry on the road and had little left to eat. I found them easily growing besides some other vegetables. Not bad, I had to admit. Not bad at all.

With my hunger sated for the time being, I resumed my way toward the lighthouse. The rainbow beam emanating from its top stretched high into the sky until fading at the edge of my eyesight. Below it, the central tower had a strange, transparent frame that allowed me to see the rainbow being born from somewhere inside it before reaching the lantern room, an adamant of chiseled crystal crowning it. The main structure jutted from both sides of the central cylinder, and seemed to have been built with livability in mind.

I saw no reason to sneak into the place and give the ponies inside a scare, only a bad first impression could come out of it.

Instead, I simply brought my paws in front of the front door, knocked twice, and waited.

And waited… and waited some more.

No pony answered. Thinking they mustn't have heard me, this time I pounded the door several times, growing impatient.

“Coming, coming!” A faint voice answered from somewhere inside the residence. The clip-clop of hooves approached the door before stopping at the other side of the doors.

A mare answered, opening the doors with a frown, a rectangular device similar to the one Älex was carrying with him on our journey on one hoof, the other one resting on the rim.

“Sheesh, you’d think a pony would’ve learned to use a doorbe-”

The pegasus mare, white fur, and a curious two-toned mane and tail froze in place, her beautiful wings flared at her sides in surprise, eyes two black pinpricks fixed on me as the words were left hanging from her muzzle.

‘Yeah, expected as much.’

Knowing well this was gonna be awkward, I pushed through for the sake of Älex. I was gonna be living with them from now on, after all.

“Um… Hallo.”