Warsong: Primordial Conflict

We had just finished passing over Vanhoover as Din finished spreading out her magic. Discord's magic was still pushing us along. I was still unable to open my eyes, but I almost felt like I was going to fall asleep. Din made it clear that I shouldn't pass out now as it will be a pain in the ass to take control to prevent me from actually dying. I wasn't sure how long we were rocketing through Equestria.

'Din? I don't mean to sound like I'm regretting this decision, but where are we right now?' I thought to her. Din smirked.

Making good time is all I can say. She replied.

'What about the Triad? Is it all set up?' I asked. Din scoffed.

Shouldn't you be more concerned with ensuring we live through this? I frowned in my mind. Din grinned. Seems we are about to run out of the draconequues's magic here. One last bit should do it. I felt my body rock a bit as if I had just passed through something. Din sighed pleasantly. Should I do a count down or just drop them now? I shifted my head just slightly in confusion. Nah, I'm doing it now. Din then laughed and she unfurled her wings before bringing them down, bowing low to the ground. Din kept this pose for a little bit. It was when I started feeling myself slow just a little did she stand up and shiver. Well, that was exciting! Hmmm? Din looked off in a direction. I wasn't able to sense what she was seeing but she then shifted her head, the tip of horn glowing and I felt myself jolt. We had begun to slow down more.

I was able to open my eyes now and looked down. We were sailing high above the clouds and over the Luna Ocean. I looked ahead and I could see Zebrica off in the distance, gradually growing closer. I looked over my shoulder. Equestria was long gone. Din hummed.

I have always believed you an idiot, vessel. And I will continue to do so for as long as your small brain allows you to function. Don't get too ahead of yourself for thinking you'll come out of this unscathed. I blinked.

'What? It's because of you I'm able to do idiotic stuff like this and have it pay off.' I replied casually. Din frowned and glared at me.

Do not use me as an excuse for what should have been our death. I'm going to demand more than just crepes this time around. She growled. I tilted my head slightly.

'Isn't that why you suggested taking the element's powers for yourself?' I asked. Din scoffed and lowered her head over her forelegs.

Do you recall what that draconequues mentioned? Rainbow Power? How he wants us to corrupt it? It has me thinking something... but I cannot be sure until I've seen it in this world. She said. I rose a brow. We'll cross the bridge when we get there. For now, we have arrived. I looked down. Din had taken control, speeding me over the Savanna. Using her eyes, I scanned the land. Animals, flora, natives and tribes? Check. Modern and pre-modern communities? Check. I then looked over the horizon. I could make out several temples dotting the jungle below. The further we flew, I eventually spotted a familiarity. A crumpled temple and the corpse of a Stratadon that looked to be in the process of being eaten by the local wildlife. There was also what appeared to be some vehicles and an excavation drill. I narrowed my eyes. I circled around, ensuring I was covering everything. I then noticed several zebra Exiles busily shifting through some rocks. My eyes then fell onto a familiar earth pony in a grey tunic. I sighed in relief, beginning my descent.

I caught the attention of the zebra and the earth pony, touching ground and nearly stumbling a bit forward. The zebra backed away, their eyes watching me in surprised fear. Din's wings vanished from me and I walked forward, looking around. No sign of my friends.

"You're alive." The monotone earth pony, Maud if I recall was her name, spoke. I rubbed the back of my head and nodded.

"Err... yup! Had a... uhh... bit of a strange side thing that happened to me. One that forced me to appear in Equestria, but it was that or get turned into solid gold." I replied. Maud said nothing, making an awkward pause that I was hoping she would break. Seeing as she wasn't, I then cleared my throat and motioned around. "Are... Starlight, Sunburst and Trixie around?" I asked. Maud nodded. I scrunched my muzzle, waiting to see if Maud would take me to them. Or... tell me where they were? What is this pony's deal? I rubbed the back of my head. "So uhh... do you... know where they are?" I asked.

"Yes." Maud spoke. I narrowed my look.

"Can you show me? Or at least point me in the right direction?" I asked. Maud then turned her head and pointed into the jungle.

"The zebra have set up a small headquarters camp just further inside while the excavation is going on." She explained. I blinked.

"Excavation? Through this? Errr... hate to say it, but if everything inside is crumbled to ruins, shouldn't we move past this?" I asked. Maud nodded.

"Yes. But your friend was dedicated to pull you out of it." She said. I sighed in relief.

"Oh, okay. Wait... to pull me out of this?" I rose a brow questioningly. Maud nodded. I waited for her to tell me more but she didn't seem to be either interested or pulling my leg on something. I sighed and rubbed my muzzle. "Right. Well, clearly you are busy right now so I'll not disturb you any further." I replied, giving her my best smile I could before spinning around and trotting towards the jungle. I glanced over my shoulder, seeing Maud dig through her tunic and pull out a small rock. She said something that even my lip reading wasn't able to comprehend. I thought to ignore it and ask somepony who would be willing to answer.

I proceeded into the jungle, following a thin pathway that led me to what appeared to be several tents dotting around the place. Zebra were busily moving about, carrying crates and hauling some wagons into the jungle. My eyes wandered the area before spying a familiar wagon. I trotted over to it, seeing the door to the wagon open. I peeked inside, hearing voices from within.

“…Trixie. I’m getting worried about Equestria. We’ve been gone for too long.” Starlight spoke, her tone rather panicked.

“Trust me, Starlight. I’d rather not be here anymore than you.” She said before wincing and rubbing her head. Starlight put a hoof to Trixie’s forehead.

“Oohh, we still haven’t gotten over our burn out.” Starlight commented. Trixie had a certain gloom over her.

“I’m sorry, Starlight… I should have been more aware of everything. If it wasn’t for me, we wouldn’t be here…” she said sadly. Starlight smiled reassuredly.

“As long as everypony is okay and we’re together, then I’m perfectly fine.” She said. I then knocked on the side of the wagon and cleared my throat. They looked over and their eyes widened.

“I hope I’m no-“ I began but was interrupted by the mare's unison relief.

“Fie!” They both exclaimed. I rubbed the back of my head bashfully. Starlight and Trixie nearly tripped out of the wagon on their way out. Starlight put a hoof on my shoulder, studying me. “You’re real, right? Of course you are! Oh, you have no idea the last week has been. We’ve been looking for you.” She said. I pat her hoof reassuredly.

“Easy, Starlight. Yes, I’m real. And as you can see, more than okay.” I replied.

“What happened??” Trixie asked. “The last thing I remember before the collapse was you pulling me out of that cell with Maud.” She began.

“Sunburst told us how you helped us escaped. We owe you big time.” Starlight chimed in. I smiled.

“You don’t owe me anything. In fact, consider it your repayment for helping Equestria recover Din and I from Princess Platinum’s castle.” I replied. The two mares smiled. I then furrowed my look. “And of course, I’m back specifically for a reason.” Starlight and Trixie exchanged concerned glances before Starlight sighed and nodded.

“Your friends are okay.” She said.

“Not entirely…” Trixie said in annoyance. Starlight nudged her and she rubbed her foreleg. “Ow!” I sighed and nodded.

“So I’ve heard. Do you know where they are?” I asked. Starlight grimaced, causing me to raise my brows in worry. “How many has Thi hit?” I asked, hitting straight to the point. Starlight nervously hummed.

“Err… ahhh… She… stormed off once we found some… documents that uhh…” Starlight began. Trixie sighed.

“She started this excavation to look for you at first, but then Silver Scribble convinced Thi that you are still alive because we all aren’t dead. Then we ended up finding some stuff that the Triad were hiding and Thi, over the week, had been hitting Triad encampments for more info.” Trixie looked a little sickly. “It’s… it wasn’t… pleasant. When we found info on Roam’s heir, she took off in a hurry. Your friends followed after, hoping to stop her from doing anything crazy.” Trixie explained.

“How long ago did they take off?” I asked.

“Two days ago.” A voice said. We looked to see a zebra mare in a lab coat trot over to us. “She was quite the rude one. But, I do not blame her. Not after everything the Exiles did.” I blinked.

“And you are?” I asked. The zebra bowed courteously.

“My kin call me Zanza. But for you, you can call me Dandelion.” She said. I rose a brow.

“You’re an Exile?” I asked.

“She was one.” Starlight quickly interjected. “But, she’s reformed. All the zebra here are. And they were willing to help us after ensuring they were safe.” Dandelion nodded.

“We owe you and your friends a debt despite what both sides think. We heard you were the one that gave us the push needed to fight back.” She then bowed. “For all of us, thank you. It will be hard to reconnect with our kin, but I am certain with R.E.Z.A.’s aid, we’ll show them we are not that way anymore.” I smiled softly.

“Well, I appreciate that. You can return the favor by telling me where my friends ran off to.” I replied. Dandelion nodded and pointed just past me.

“They took off northwest. Your friends are going to strike the Triad at the heart. A fortress off the coast of Knickerbocker.” She said. I smiled and nodded.

“Thanks. How long will that be in pegasus flight?” I asked.

“Two and half days at most.” She replied quickly. I slumped.

“It took me two hours to get here from Equestria… hmmm…” I said out loud to myself. Starlight and Trixie blinked in confusion at this. I then beamed. “Hold on. Trixie. I remember seeing you perform the Moonshot Manticore Mouth Dive via a canon. Do you still have it?” I asked. Trixie balked.

“I-I do, but it’ll take us sometime to set up. It took me four hours to get it all ready.” She said. I grinned.

“And that’s why you have us. We can build it real quick.” I replied.

“You’re not… planning on shooting yourself from here to the coast are you?” Starlight asked. I chuckled.

“I made it here from Equestria via chaos magic and a minotaur’s strength with the combined efforts of the power elements. And I’m not dead!… err… again.” The three mares exchanged worried glances.

It took us twenty minutes to set up the canon and position it northwest. The zebra that were hurrying about had stopped to observe us curiously. Starlight twisted a bolt a few times before stepping back and wiping her brow. We admired the canon. Trixie sighed.

“At least the disassembling is pretty easy.” She said tiredly.

“Are you sure about this, Fie?” Starlight asked. I nodded as I brushed the base of the canon. The fuse would give me five seconds to brace myself.

“It’s perfect. I get to be shot out of a magician's canon. That’s pretty exciting, right?” I winked at Trixie. Trixie nervously rubbed her foreleg but smiled softly. I then hopped onto the canon and was about to walk up it before being stopped by Dandelion.

“Champion. Before you go. We have something for you.” She said, cantering over to me. She held up a parcel. I took it in my magic, surprised by the weight of it. “It’s a fashioned chainmail out of the Stratadon scales. May not be harder than a dragon’s scale, but it will protect you from harm enough. We had planned to give it to that scholar, but he denied it.” I smirked.

“He carries rocks around in his pouch. I’m certain the extra weight would just slow him down.” I said. I unwrapped the parcel and unfolded the mail. The chains glistened in the sun. The scales of the Stratadon forming a breastplate, light pauldrons and hoof sleeves with cuffs if I decided to wear vambraces of any kind. I untied my hoodie cloak and put on the mail, feeling it hug my body comfortably with a bit of weight to it that I’m certain wouldn’t hinder me at all. Tossing my hoodie cloak back on and fastening it, I nodded to Dandelion. “Thank you.”

Trixie cleared her throat.

“A-are you ready for this?” She asked. “Because I’m not going to lie. This hasn’t been in the best kept condition…” She said. I waved a hoof at her.

“I’ll be fine. Remember, I’m durable.” I said. This didn’t reassure everypony. I crawled up the canon and slid inside of the opening. It smelt strange and I was suddenly burning up. My hindhooves felt the bottom and I readied myself.

“Lightning the fuse!” Starlight called out. Din hummed.

I truly hope I don’t get an imprinting of enjoyment being blown out of canons or being an arrow to head into a tornado. She said. I chuckled.

‘It’s fun, isn’t it?’ I smirked. Din rose a brow.

Self harm is not something I would call ‘fun’. She replied.

‘And that’s why I have you to keep me in check from going overboard.’ I replied. Din sighed.

You’ve been hit in the head way too many times… She groaned. The moment she finished her sentence was when I felt something push me upwards and the loud sound of compressed air hissed. Din was quick to react, boosting me out of the canon and I managed to break the sound barrier when I reached just above the jungle head.

‘You know, it really isn’t so bad being launched around like this. I feel a bit more in control of it.’ I commented as I sailed above the clouds and over the Savanna.

I’m tempted to drop you before we even reach the fortress for all of this. Din grumbled. We remained quiet for a time as we soared across the sky. I’m pretty certain we had scared more than the wildlife. I was surprised that it only took thirty minutes to see what appeared to be a modernized city in Zebrica. It was smaller than Vanhoover, however. The only things sticking out were the three skyscrapers and office buildings. I hummed in thought.

‘Now where would they be…?’ I asked myself, using Din’s eyes to scan the area. Aside from some of the citizens noticing me, I couldn’t find any sign of my friends. That was until I fixed my gaze on the black smoke poking out of the top of the clouds. Din dipped me downward and my eyes widened. This must be the fortress mentioned by Dandelion. Yet the fire told me that a certain pony had been letting loose a little too much. I braced myself for when I would confront Thi about all this.

Pay attention! Din spoke suddenly. I realized a little too late. Where did the flagpole come from?! I collided with the flagpole, and it launched me into a tumble over it. I yelled in panic as I flailed my hooves, unable to get control. Din tried to for herself, but the whiplash sent me into a spiral and nearly crashing into the side of a tower. Din managed to regain height, only for me to nick the side of another tower, sending me into a tumble over the mountains and heading towards what looked to be a monument of some kind.

I braced myself as Din quickly flared our protection. I crashed headfirst into the monument and landed face first into the ground, feeling myself get buried within. I wiggled my hind legs to pull myself out. When I managed to pop myself out of the ground, I shook my daze away and rubbed my head.

‘Okay, good. Even more brain damaged than before.’ I commented.

“Fie…?” I heard a voice spoke. I blinked and looked over to see Thi Billet on her stomach, dumbfounded. I smiled and waved.

“I’m back.” I said.

“Wh-what is the meaning of this?!? This is pure star metal!! Impossible!! How?!?” A voice echoed around me. I faced the monument, narrowing my eyes before looking down to see a bulky cockpit. It crackled and sparked at the base, a static image of a rather grotesque face of a Triad general staring back at me. I rubbed my head, already feeling the effects of my landing.

“Fie… Is that… really you…?” Thi began. I smiled and nodded to her. I then felt myself being scooped up into an embrace by two pegasi sisters.

“We knew you’d be back!” Flitter said happily. “Cloudchaser wouldn’t stop worrying!”

“H-hey!” Cloudchaser flushed. I giggled and nuzzled both of their cheeks with mine.

“I missed you too.” I replied.

“W-who are you?!? How are you able to penetrate star metal?!?” The general echoed angrily. I blinked as Cloudchaser and Flitter let me down on the ground.

“Star metal? Never heard of it.” I replied. I then noticed Thi walking past me. I narrowed my look once more as she proceeded to beat away at the cockpit with a hoof.

“It’s over for you! Tell us where the heir is!!” Thi barked angrily. I met Scribbles look as he trotted over to us. Cloudchaser and Flitter made the same look as Thi managed to open the cockpit. We saw a helmeted pony wearing a pink skintight body suite. Thi locked her hoof under the cuff of the suite and began to punch the helmet. “I’m running out of patience! The heir has a responsibility to her kin! She needs to realize that! Not follow the damned words of a cultic asshat!!” The helmet fell off and my eyes widened.

The zebra mare yelped as she was still being punched over and over in the muzzle by Thi. I grit my teeth in anger and bolted up the cockpit. When Thi raised her hoof back, I wrapped my own around her’s and with a quick flick of her foreleg, she let go of the zebra mare and turned to face me. A look of shock on her face for a brief moment before I shoved her away down the mound. She rolled down it and landed hard on her back. I quickly faced the zebra mare and saw her unconscious.

“Flitter, Scribble. Help me with her.” I said quickly. Flitter flew up towards me and we carried the zebra mare downward where Scribble proceeded to tend to the mare. I looked over to Thi, who had caught her second wind and pushed herself off. “I leave for a week and I come back to see a total mess.” I said suddenly towards Thi.

Thi nodded and rubbed the back of her head with a small wince.

“Y-yeah. I… guess I got carried away.” She replied. This only made my anger increase. I walked over to her as she gave me a relieved smile. “Well, you’re back now. And we are close to finding the heir. That general will tell us for sure.” She pointed past me. I rose an unamused brow and frowned.

“What general?” I asked coldly before stepping aside. Thi looked confused and looked towards the zebra mare. The realization dawned on her.

“Oh… shit.” She winced. I glared.

“Oh shit? Is that all you can say about this? ‘Oh shit’? Oh shit indeed, Thi Billet!” I snapped. Thi faced me, her look narrowing.

“Listen, Fie-“ She began but I shook my head.

“Don’t ‘listen Fie’ me! How about you listen!” I retorted. “Do you have any means of self-control?! Or are you too busy trying to keep that ‘badass’ persona you brag about?!” I rubbed my muzzle in frustration. “I spent a week trying to get home, only to find that the Triad had begun their invasion early and hearing that my best friend has been going on a blood rage against Triad! All for what!? To find the heir?! Don’t tell me that was all your excuse to commit mass murder!!” Thi glared at me offended.

“Excuse me?? Mass murder?? Helloooo, the Triad are the ones who have been killing any creature and dooming the sake of our kind to hardships!! They are a threat to Equestria and everycreature in it than you are! You’ve seen it first hoof!! The attempt on the princesses’s lives! The kidnapping of creatures!! Smuggling resources and invading our home!! Isn’t that more reason to kick them in the flank while we search for the heir?!” Thi scoffed. “That’s not even the tip of the iceberg of an excuse to not hold back against them!”

“Killing isn’t the question, answer or solution to this!! Yeah, the Triad might be too strong headed to listen to their enemies, but they are ponies like us!! We shouldn’t be giving them more reason to wage war on us!!” I put a hoof to my chest. “We need to de-escalate the situation!! That’s the whole point of Princess Twilight sending us out this far!!” Thi growled.

“How dumb can you be, Fie?! I spent nearly my whole life up to this point fighting the Triad!! I know what they can do and the lines they’ve crossed!! I thought we were past all this!!” She snapped back. I clashed my horn with her’s and we began to push.

“Yeah, I am dumb!! Dumb enough to get myself killed to save another realm!! Dumb enough to rocket myself from a country over to get back to my friends!! Dumb enough to call you out on your actions!!” I shouted. Thi pushed back.

“My actions?! My actions have been nothing but saving your ungrateful hide from being killed!! To save our home!! Or have you’ve completely damaged your brain in that landing?!” She shouted back.

“And what about everypony else’s actions?! What about the citizens you have so carelessly doomed to the Triad’s ire?! Or did six hundred thousand lives mean nothing to you?!” I snarled. Thi must have had a burst of strength from that, but I stood my ground unmoving.

“Shut up!! You don’t know anything about that!!” She retorted.

“Yes I do, Thi!! Or does Hoofington not matter to you as well?!?” I shot back. “You and I are both to blame for those mishaps!! Lo Mien had every right to confront you about it!!” I exclaimed.

“You’re siding with a Triad hired assassin!?” Thi growled.

“Yeah, I am!! Because she seems to have more of an understanding than you do about the current situation!!” I then shifted my weight, causing Thi to lose her balance and I swished my head, sending her onto her side. “I’ve had just about enough of this, Thi!!” I began, my vision beginning to blur a bit. “Six years!! Six years of nothing from you!! Then you show up out of the blue, not to apologize for ditching me for your call to adventure, but to protect me?! I don’t need protection, Thi!! I needed my best friend!!” I huffed, catching my breath. I then clutched the front of my hoodie cloak, feeling the tears begin to fall. “My best friend wouldn’t make herself out to be a monster when the true monster is far bigger than you or I!! The Thi Billet I knew back in CSGU never considered killing as her first option!! She always went out of her way to resolve the situation before resorting to violence!! You picked me, out of everypony in the school, to be your friend!! Do you regret any of that, Thi?? Is that another reason you left me alone to face my life with nothing to show for it?!” I began to sob. “I missed you!!”

I sniffled and wiped my eyes and muzzle, but the tears wouldn’t stop. “When I was away in the other realm, I met someone who reminded me of how much I truly missed you!! She may have been involved with a bad crowd, but she didn’t want to have things end in blood shed!! She is not aware of how much she made me realize things about you!! How much of a pony you could be if you weren’t alone in the world!!” I fell back onto my haunches, lowering my head. “Is there anyway I can make you see that I matter to you more than this damned vendetta against a nation?? Or am I… we… are nothing more than just ‘working buddies’ to you?? Is there any regret from you picking me as your best friend??”

Everything was quiet, save for mother nature and my sobbing. Through my blurry vision, I noticed Thi rising to her hooves, hunched over a bit.

“Fie… I’m not… no… that’s not what I…” Thi began but faltered. When she couldn’t respond to me, I sniffled and wiped my eyes before standing up and turning around.

“I believe we need to rethink this friendship… I still have to head to Pony Land…” I began to walk towards my friends. “You can come if you want. I’m not heartless enough to leave you stranded. But when we get to the mainland, this is goodbye…” I didn’t look back. What point was there to do so? It broke my heart so much to do this. But it needs to happen. I’m just hoping that maybe… just maybe… there is the pony I remember long ago waiting for me as well. We proceeded back towards the facility, being quiet as we did. Scribble had the unconscious zebra mare on his back as we traversed the destruction Thi had created. It made me sick to my stomach. When we reached a courtyard, Flitter was the one to break the silence.

“Uhh… guys?” She began. We looked and saw she was facing a pile of weaponry, crates and supplies. What was even stranger, a pink building was smack dab off the side of the courtyard. Scribble blinked.

“That wasn’t there before.” He said. I approached the iron gate before flicking my ears at the sound of something, or somecreature, shifting through the supplies. Cloudchaser furrowed her look.

“Whose there?” She called out.

“Yipes!!” A voice cried out. We watched as the supply crates toppled and a strange looking creature tumbled and bowling balled down the pile of supplies. The creature came to a stop upon crashing into another pile of supplies. We exchanged glances before I walked over to the creature. It shifted around inside a red cap, struggling to remove it. I reached with my magic and removed the cap aside and a singular brow rose in curiosity.

The creature was very short and stout. A bush of white seemed to cover its’ face and from the looks of it, pointy ears as well. That wasn’t the only thing. If I hadn’t known the other realm existed, I wasn’t sure I would be able to recognize the limbs this creature had were hands of a human, but wrinkly and dirtied. It wore a green tunic around its’ round body and brown tights that made his socks poke out in stubs at the tip.

“Oi! Ye’ shouldn’ startle me heart loik that!! Don’t ye’ know it’s rude to scare someone?” The creature spoke in a strange gruff accent, struggling to righten itself up. I wasn’t sure how to respond. The only thing I could utter was:

“What are you?” The creature scoffed and rightened himself before yanking his cap from my magic and stuffed it on his head.

“Ponies these days, I swear. Ya’ give ‘em an inch an’ they take a mile! Why, iffin’ I wasn’ so busy, I’d give ‘em a what for! Huh? Ye’ wanna’ go, missy?? C’mon! ‘Ahm aching fer a foight!” The creature put up his fists and began to dance around, jabbing towards me. He suddenly slouched and put a hand on his back. “Ack… oof… Darned ol’ bones gettin’ too rattled!” He sighed. I tilted my head in confusion before I used my magic to levitate a small enough box for him to sit on. He dug out a cloth from his cap and dabbed his wrinkly forehead before stuffing it back in and sitting down. “‘Ah… thank ye’, missy. Haaa, I swears it on me potluck I’d be fixin’ to jus’ visit the breezies an’ never leave!”

“Breezies? You know the Breezies?” Flitter asked. The creature nodded.

“Yessum! They trade every now an’ then. Funny lil’ critters. But enjoyable company.” He snickered. Scribble hummed and rubbed his chin as he walked around the creature curiously.

“Strange… I’ve never seen a creature like you before.” He began.

“Hah! ‘Ah’ve seen plenty o’ yer kind to this day! But humans? Never seen o’ lick o’ ‘em fer centuries.” He replied.

“You know about the human world?” I asked, surprised by this mention. The creature scratched his head.

“Err… ‘ah cannae remember fer the loif o’ me. Jus’ this strange name every now an’ then. A- err… Mee-gan? Mooglin? Ah confound it, what was tha’ lass’s name again?” The creature stuffed his arms in his beard, grumbling to himself.

“Err… may we ask your name?” Cloudchaser asked as she floated over with Flitter towards us. Thi hung back a little.

“‘Ah, some manners on this one! Why, moi name be hard fer ye’ ponies ta’ pronounce. But ye’ can call me Moochik.” He smiled, sticking his hand out. A strange name indeed, but I held out my hoof and he shook it.

“Err… interesting name. My name’s Quiet Fire.” I motioned to my friends. “That’s Silver Scribble. Cloudchaser and Flitter Glider. And that is Thi Billet.” I introduced. Moochik studied us before he guffawed.

“Bwahaha! ‘An oi’m tha’ one with a strange name! Ah’d figure you be Hot Streak, Stormwalker, Misty Breeze, Bookworm an’ ehh…” He looked to Thi and scratched his head. “Oi… what is a Thi Billet?” He asked.

“It’s a spice from where I come from.” Thi replied, her tone sounding uninterested. I remained stoically curious as Moochik clapped his hands and rubbed them together.

“Spice! Then how about… Fillet? I could go fer a snack.” He then reached into his beard and pulled out what looked to be a stale cracker stick, taking a bite out of it. He then held it to me. “‘Ungry?” He asked me. I scrunched my muzzle and shook my head.

“I uhh… had punch and cupcakes earlier…” I replied. Moochik shrugged.

“More fer me!” He then tossed the cracker up and caught it in his mouth, wiping his hand on his beard. He then hopped off the box and waddled over to a fallen Triad. He began to sift through the pockets. “Hehe. These ponies be packin’ hard ta’ find materials! Glad ‘oim gettin’ paid fer it.” He stated as he plucked an emblem and ribbons from the suite. I furrowed my look worriedly.

“Paid? Did… the Triad hire you to recover stuff for them?” I asked. I noticed Thi’s eyes widen in realization. Moochik, however, shut it down.

“Oh, nae! Not tha’ Triad! My client is quite tha’ big shot in all of Flutter Valley! Iffin’ it tweren’t fer her, ‘ah wouldn’ ‘ave me pride an’ joy with me!” He chuckled and pointed at the pink building. “Me ‘an tha’ Paradise Estate been through thick an’ thin! Is loik never leavin’ ‘ome without ‘ome, oi say.” Thi blinked and looked to the building.

“Paradise Estate? Why does that sound familiar?” She hummed to herself. Scribble opened his journal and began to flip through his pages. He then stopped and skimmed it before speaking.

“Moochik… I’ve heard that name before… Did you know a pony by the name of Morning Dew?” He asked. Moochik scratched his head in thought. He then beamed.

“Ahhh, dearest Morning Dew! Nice one that one is, aye! Ye’ know ‘er too?” He asked with a chuckle.

“My great grandmother. She always told me stories about a creature named Moochik. She swears up and down she met him in real life. But I always assumed it was something else. Not a… what are you?” Scribble replied.

“Not yer’ concern, me boi! But ehh… yer Mornin’ Dew’s great grandson? Let me take a closer look at ye.” He said, gesturing for him to lean in. Scribble did so and Moochik squashed his cheeks, turning his head side to side. Moochik beamed as he let go of the stallion (Scribble rubbing his cheeks with an annoyed frown) and chuckled. “Aye, lad. Ye’ certainly have ‘er looks. Though she was a might peppy in yer’ case.” Scribble narrowed his eyes at him.

“I see.” He simply replied. Moochik then looked over Scribble's shoulder.

"Oi. What ye' got there?" He asked curiously. Scribble turned his body a little for Moochik to see.

"The current heir to Roam." He stated. Moochik winced.

"She don' look too good." He commented. We side-eyed Thi and Thi shrunk a little. Moochik looked between us before he sighed. "Wishin' oi' can help, but oi' cannae. Matters ta' attend ta' an' such." He chuckled nervously before clearing his throat. "Err... carry on with ye'." Cloudchaser blinked.

"Why? Do you have something that could help her?" She asked. "Because I think it'll be a bit hard to find some of grandma's secret recipe around here." Moochik looked at her quizzically.

"Granma's secret reci-... oh! Ye mean Honey Drop's Brew? Why, oi' foun' plenty." He said with a grin. We were a bit stunned by this as he then waddled around and dug through the crates. He then pulled out a small crate lined with grandma's secret recipe.

"Honey Drop?" Flitter asked as she tapped the glass. Moochik nodded with a proud smile.

"Aye. Sweet gal. Oi' miss 'er dearly. She used to treat me wounds when oi uhh... took several tumbles into a ditch. Twas a long time o'go." He replied, looking a bit misty eyed. I couldn't help but smile a little. This day was getting a little more interesting. A good break from the drama we had earlier. Yet, my ears flicked and I heard the sounds of hoofsteps. My expression turned serious as I looked over my shoulder. Sure enough, we were surrounded by Triad that were galloping out of the woodworks. They aimed their arc rifles at us as we gathered together and faced them. "Oi! What gives!?" Moochik protested. We saw some of the Triad make way and the very same general I saw on the screen of the cockpit step forward, brushing his slicked back raven mane before putting his cap on. His scarred, grotesque face glared at us.

"Should have packed up and left rather than looking for spoils of war, Billet and co." He snarled. Thi growled and levitated over a fallen Triad's pistol and aimed it at him. Several hundred arc rifles racked to life. The general chuckled menacingly. "I doubt you'd get a second chance this time, even with your dear friends. Now then... give us back our pet." He said, pointing at Scribble. Scribbled shifted to keep the heir out of sight of any trained on her. Thi shook her head.

"Tough break, ugly. Roam needs a ruler and your hold on their kin is no more." Thi retorted. The general chuckled.

"We never had a hold on Roam to begin with. We merely gave the citizens an excuse to... change their outlooks." The general spoke. I narrowed my eyes.

"Didn't she join the Triad on her own free will? So, everything about opening up to new outlooks was a lie then?" I chimed in. I figured this much. But I was curious what caused them to do so. The general looked disgusted.

"As if we'd let an unguided into our ranks. Despite her intelligence and combat efficiency, she made quite the valuable test subject." He then grinned. "Hail to your king." Our eyes widened in shock and we quickly turned to Flitter as she screamed, clutching her head and falling onto the ground.

"Flitter!" Cloudchaser called out. Scribble was about to move over when the heir sprang to life and immediately brought Scribble down and began to strangle. Scribble gasped for breath as the black veins began to snake throughout the mares. Thi quickly rushed over and bucked towards the heir. Yet the zebra mare was quick. She shifted herself up and rolled Scribble over to take the hit instead. Thi's eyes widened as the zebra mare tossed him aside and zipped around Thi, striking her quickly in a familiar manner of my own style. I was about to rush over to help when something exploded at my hooves and I went and crashed into Cloudchaser. Flitter knocked an arrow and aimed it at us, grinning with tears streaming down her cheeks. The general waved a hoof with a smirk as the heir and Flitter withdrew, the heir giving Thi a good buck into the side and having her crumple to the ground, clutching her side. They stood at the general's side, facing us.

"Well, well. You should know better than to have a stray pet that doesn't belong to you. What luck." He grinned, brushing a hoof tenderly under Flitter's chin. Cloudchaser stood up angrily and rushed him.

"Get your hoof off my sister!!" She roared. But the zebra heir quickly zipped in front of the stallion, ducked and spun around to deliver a heavy buck into Cloudchaser's stomach, sending her tumbling away from them and crashing into a stack of supply crates. The zebra mare swayed as she stood, getting into her stance. The general clicked his tongue and the zebra mare stood down, stepping back to his side. I stood up and growled.

"How many times must you throw yourselves away like this...!?" I began. "Why do you refuse to see that all of this isn't the answer to what goal your Triad strives for?" The general snorted.

"An Equestrian like you isn't worthy of understanding the brilliance of our divine Euclidian Queen Moonlight Sonata. All is as predicted and planned. We just need to ensure loose ends are tied up." He narrowed his eyes at Thi Billet. Thi coughed and stood up.

"Bastard..." She rasped. The general clapped his hooves together.

"I must say. That was quite the heartfelt speech there between you two. It warmed this cold heart to see such friends getting along swimmingly." He said non-chalantly. "Though honestly, I cannot tell who is in the right and wrong of this. What should matter is what outcome it would lead to. Champion of Equestria, why not join Queen Moonlight Sonata? You both hold primal stars within you. We should be working together to make this world a better place. Stop fighting a pointless battle and lend your aid with the other primal stars to prevent a fate where no creature will have salvation." He said. I sighed.

"How cliche. I'm also curious as to what would happen if I did. But you and I both know that the outcome is always going to be the same answer. What you should concern yourself with is the entirety of the world at stake. Do what you preach, general. Equestria was never a threat. But since every Triad won't tell me why and how we can resolve it, you're just making Thi's point insanely frustrating." I snorted. "And I am so damn tired of having to hurt other ponies. Where is Queen Moonlight Sonata?" I rose a brow challengingly. "We keep hearing 'the Queen's will' this and 'the Queen is glorious' that. What I don't get is the sudden change of tactics and the sudden appearance of your group. Didn't the Triad have a beneficial understanding of trade with Equestria and Pony Land? Didn't Pony Land prosper with our economies working together? The abundance of resources have to had come from somewhere and it sure as hell feels like you are bleeding your land dry. Is that why Queen Sonata is invading? For more resources? Even though we for certain had a trade agreement between our nations?" I sat on my haunches and crossed my forelegs. "Even you have to admit that these tactics are starting to be questionable. Don't tell me it's all because the queen deems it by the creed. Is it because Queen Sonata has certain spite against the sisters? Isn't Sonata an alicorn? The same as our royal sisters? Is it an ancient feud of alicorn tribes still going on? Or is it jealousy of some kind?" I stared coldly at the general, his gaze remaining stoic as he listened.

"Whatever the case is, something is wrong about all of this. This bloodshed and talk of war. What does Sonata need with kidnapped creatures? Why experiment on innocent creatures? Distribute them under a different name? If she is powerful as you all claim her to be, she wouldn't do any of the things the Triad does for the sake of war or a feud." I then furrowed my look to concern. "Why don't you explain to us why things are happening rather than making up convenient excuses and blindly following the direct orders of a higher power? Please, general. If your nation needs help on something, all Sonata had to do was ask. So many talented lives wasted over... something you cannot properly explain." I stood up and put a hoof to my chest. "What is currently at stake is far greater than this war. You say Sonata has a primal star inside of her. You know what's funny, she hasn't been showing up to any of the out of body meetings. We were told she didn't care for such a thing and it was a waste of time. I agree, but it did make me start questioning somethings in the back of my mind." I sighed. "Even if you still want to believe your queen's way is the right way, then fine. But you do know what happens after. It doesn't need to happen. Let my friend and the heir go. And we can avoid all of the pain and heartache." I kept my determined gaze on the general. He studied me before glancing at the two mares at his side.

"How odd..." He muttered to himself. "Even if the truth is spoken, I cannot disobey the queen's creed. I am afraid I cannot comply with that demand. You are to be arrested and charged for your acts against our nation and the unlawful procurement of Triad property. The charges are most certainly execution." I side-eyed Thi cautiously. She only bowed her head, seemingly in conflict with herself. What happened next was a shock in itself. Moochik bowled past me and sprang up in front of the general.

"Pocket sand!!" He shouted, tossing out a glittering powder that quickly engulfed the Triad ponies. He landed on his feet and began to cartoonishly rush back to us. "Quickly! Into the Estate!" He stated.

"But Flitter-." Cloudchaser began but I quickly pulled her along as Scribble and Thi rushed behind us. Moochik waved his arm and the iron gates opened, letting us in. The gate closed behind us just as the dust was settling. The general shouted:

“Open fire!!” A drone of arc fire began to hit the Estate. We quickly took cover behind garden decor as Moochik began to rummage through his hat. Cloudchaser looked hesitant as she for sure was trying to find a way to get Flitter back. Moochik smiled and pulled out a skeleton key. He stuck it in the lock of the Estate and twisted it.

“Hang onto yer horses!!” He called out. As soon as he said that, we felt ourselves being jerked sharply and held onto the decor. The world spiraled around us, the colors blending into incomprehensible mixtures. As quickly as it happened, the world stopped spinning and we landed hard on the ground, nearly knocking the wind out of us. We slowly pushed ourselves off the ground and shaking our daze away. I looked around, taking a bit to realize we were somewhere in an open field.

Cloudchaser flew past me and rose into the sky, scanning the area. The look of desperation on her face. Scribble dusted his coat off and looked around.

“What… happened?” He asked. Moochik let out a sigh of relief, stuffing the skeleton key back into his cap.

“Why, oi saved yer loives s’ what oi did.” He replied as he examined the fountain. He sighed as he tapped the bullet holes in the design. “Though Concierge s’not goin’ ta’ be happy about this.” The door to the Estate opened and we looked to see a pegasus mare poked her head out. Caramel coat with a chestnut mane tied into a bun and half-moon spectacles hung loosely on her muzzle over tired brown eyes.

“Moochik? What’s all the commotion?” The mare asked. She opened the door more and two more ponies stepped out with her, looking around. A lemon coated earth pony mare with a red curly mane and blue eyes gasped in horror and galloped towards a pair of flower beds. Her eyes began to well up and she sniffled.

“M-my flowers! Wh-what cruel fate hath befallen you?” She sobbed. The other earth pony mare with a punkish pink mane and charcoal coat and violet eyes rose a suspicious brow at us.

“I can think of a few things.” She frowned with a scratchy voice. The pegasus mare glowered at Moochik.

“Moochik?” She began sternly. Moochik removed his cap and wringed it nervously.

“E-ehehe… S-sorry fer tha’ ruckus. Had a bit o’ a tizzy with tha’ erm… locals.” Moochik grinned as best he could under his bushy beard. The mare did not look pleased at all, making Moochik duck behind me. Her eyes then met mine, looking me up and down.

“Seems you’ve invited the locals as well.” She said in annoyance. “This is not a haven for stray ponies anymore. You need to stop being so insensitive to the residents here.” She then floated off the ground with her wings and reached for a broom, tossing it down at Moochik’s side. “You made the mess. So, start cleaning. And make sure you replant all of Posey’s flowers.” Moochik quickly reached for the broom and saluted.

“Yessum, missus! O-oi’ll do me best!” He chuckled nervously as he began to sweep. The sniffling mare, Posey, walked back towards the porch before all three looked at us.

“Who might you be?” The pegasus asked.