Kind Hands

“I bet he’s pissed. He’s been waiting about a minute for everyone to cross.”

“Well, he’ll have to wait a little longer. You see, Mr. Bayard- that’s part of being a teacher; sometimes, you need to stand in front of a car and hope it stops.”

“I hope that works for you.”

“It hasn’t let me down so far.”

I couldn’t remember what had happened after I’d left Luna’s side; in fact, I was unsure if the whole thing had even happened. Maybe it wasn’t for me to understand. Regardless, all my withered subconscious wished to do was sleep and recover for as long as possible.

“Nearly got it, you little…!”

Unfortunately for my psyche, several loud thuds and an exasperated cry signalled the end of my slumber. Wearily, my eyes slowly opened to reveal the noise’s source. Fairfeather was pressed up against the shack’s door, closely inspecting it. The griffon was fixated on the door’s lock, having inserted a piece of metal into the mechanism.

“What time do you call this…?” I groggily asked the griffon, rubbing my eyes and trying to wake up my right arm, which I must’ve rested my weight on throughout the night. I regretted attempting to stand as my back and neck seemed to have suffered greatly from a night on the stone floor. With a click, my back was soon set into place, as I started the process of rotating my neck in a vain attempt to bring some flexibility back into it. “Shit…”.

Fully focused on the task in front of him, Fairfeather gave no indication of even hearing me. With one eye firmly closed, the griffon continued to manipulate the metal in his claws with a level of competency that could only have come from years of experience.

“Yes…! Yes!”

A loud click was followed by a louder cheer as Fairfeather accomplished his task. The griffon wheeled away from the door with a joyous smile on his face. That joy was short-lived, however, as he was met by the glaring faces of his three fellow prisoners.

“I’ll ask you again: what time do you call this?” I questioned angrily, being the first of us to do so. I was certainly not the only one whose sleep had been interrupted by the griffon’s antics, as Blueblood sought to demonstrate.

“I swear you must do the most aggravating thing at every opportunity,” the prince added as he pulled a cigar from his pocket and proceeded to light it with his horn…somehow.

“Do you have to smoke in here?” I asked. It was far too early in the day for this.

“Whyever not?” the prince rebuked, allowing a large puff of smoke to escape from his lips. I made an exaggerated show of waving my hand in front of my face, dispersing the imaginary smoke around me.

“Because I don’t fancy choking on the smoke. I will take that from you.”

“I hope that you have enough common decency not to.”

“Well, ‘common decency’ is the only thing that’s stopping me from breaking this door down with your arse.”

“No need, my friend,” Fairfeather interjected, holding up a single claw. “It is already done.” He pushed lightly on the door, allowing it to open slightly. A small slit of early-morning sunlight forced its way through the empty space to accentuate the delighted griffon’s point.

“I guess it is,” I commented as I reached out to open the door further.

“Woah!” Fairfeather exclaimed, gesturing towards my face. “What happened to your eye?”

“Hmm?”

“You have a rather unsightly gash below your right eye,” Blueblood added, having also gathered around the door. He pulled a small mirror out of one of his pockets and levitated it over for me to grab.

I inspected my face in the mirror, noticing that there was indeed a moderate cut underneath my right eye. I traced two fingers over the mark, feeling the heat that radiated from it. It felt fresh, clearly very recent- and likely caused by little fingernails.

“A nightmare on Dave’s cheek…” I mumbled to myself, unable to take my fingers away from the cut. This was concerning: clearly, the damage done by Eve had followed me as I awoke, confirming that the previous night’s events had happened. It also made me question my physical body’s participation in my dreams. It certainly muddied the waters, at least.

“Did you cut yourself in your sleep?” Fairfeather suggested with far more concern than I deemed necessary. I wasn’t paying particular attention to the griffon, so I disregarded the question entirely.

“So, it’s open?” I enquired, placing my hand on the noticeably-open door.

“Yup!” Fairfeather responded resoundingly. He hoped to have finally earned some praise from the group, although, again, he was to be mistaken.

“Why the hell did you do that?” I asked angrily, slamming the door shut and glaring at the griffon.

“We would have been free to leave in only a few more hours,” Blueblood elaborated. “Could you not have kept your thieving instincts at bay for a little while longer?”

I began to wonder if Blueblood genuinely believed what he said or whether he was fishing for a reaction. If it was the latter, he was sure to be disappointed. In fact, the only member of the group who seemed to care was the only one of us who had yet to speak.

“Maybe you guys woulda been let out soon enough,” Autumn remarked, pushing past our huddle around the door. “But I’m not taking any chances!” She swung the door open with gusto, taking a comically deep gulp of air as she took in the outside world.

I was about to ask her how long she had been kept in this place, only to be left at a loss for words once the griffon lowered herself down and began to roll around in the dirt. The sound of juvenile laughter reminded me of who I was here for, and I was ready to get the hell out of here.

“How are you so good at picking locks, then?” I asked Fairfeather accusingly, crossing my arms and trying to sound serious amidst the laughter in the background.

“Yeah, well, I- I, uh, I used to be a locksmith- that’s all!”

The griffon stood stiffly and stared straight ahead of him, not even making an attempt to look me in the eye. This was, without a doubt, the most unconvincing display that I’d ever seen. Eva lied better than this.

“I’m sure you got up to a lot of fun in the big city. Don’t worry about it.”

I picked the silly bugger up and held him like he was a small child. “I guess you’re the powerhouse of the cell,” I commented, lightly swinging the griffon in my arms. It was nice to see him act so unsure of what to do; maybe he couldn’t remember the last time he was cradled.

“Woah, woah, woah! What are you doing out here?”

A sudden exclamation signalled that Double Diamond had arrived, seemingly to check on his prisoners. His immediate appearance made Fairfeather’s decision to unlock the door even more unnecessary. What’s more, the stallion’s calm demeanour, even after witnessing his prisoners escape, made the situation feel strangely subdued. At the time, I didn’t see it that way, as, like the flick of a switch, my attitude instantly soured as I dropped the griffon to the floor.

“I thought we had an agreement that you-” Double Diamond began before he was wrenched into the air. With my hands now free, I decided that it was now our snow-white stallion’s turn to be raised from the floor. With greater ease than I was expecting, I grabbed the stallion and slammed him against one of the shack’s walls, knocking the wind out of his sails.

“Listen, mate,” I started, my voice lacking in any emotion. “You lost your ‘agreement’ when you locked me in a shed overnight. Celestia’s orders be damned- I just want to get back to the only normality I have left. So, where the fuck is Starlight Glimmer?”

I’m sure that Double Diamond could’ve easily broken free had he attempted to do so, but his worry about being at the relative mercy of a creature that he had never encountered before kept him swinging in my grip.

“And before you say, ‘oh I don’t know’, I should say that I’m always three seconds away from putting an arrow through your thick skull-”

My miniature threat was interrupted by a slap from an unimpressed Fairfeather.

“Put him down- how does that help!?”

Being slapped by one of my friends definitely undermined my aggression, so I placed the stallion back onto the floor and awkwardly waited for someone else to speak.

“Well, you certainly argue a good case, friend,” Double Diamond happily commented, shrugging off what had just transpired. “So, I’ll tell you what- if you get something for our town, we’ll tell you where you need to go.”

“I didn’t come here to do a fetch quest-”

“-And I sure can sense your anger, Mr. Angry. But Our Town ain’t gonna tell you a thing until you help us out first.”

“Let’s just do what he wants. What’s wrong with going to find some little thing?” Fairfeather offered.

“It would be much easier to get this stallion’s worthless possession,” Blueblood added to the conversation, as he frequently did. As much as I would’ve wanted to do anything other than helping these arseholes out, I was outvoted two-to-one.

I responded by sulkily shaking my head in resignation. Knowing what that meant, Fairfeather put on a brave smile as he turned back to Double Diamond.

“Whatcha need, pal?”

“Our Town requires an Everclear Hazel seed so that we can plant something nice before the Sunset Festival. We all think that Starlight would love to see what we’ve done with the place when she comes back!”

I felt the need to interject at this comment.

“But-”

“-You’ll find it just to the east in the Crystal Mountains- not too far. Just watch out for the Ophiotaurus.”

“The what?”

“Stop asking questions, dude. I’ll tell you on the way. Get me my bow.”

“…Yeah, well, you guys are lucky ‘cause you’ve got fur or feathers or whatever- I’m freezing my tits off.”

The Crystal Mountains really weren’t that far away from Our Town, but the drop in temperature more than made up for the short distance. Although the temperature was still too high to trigger a snowfall, it was more than cold enough for me to regret wearing little more than an oversized shirt and lightweight trousers.

And I made sure to remind the others about it. Taking a break from trudging along a narrow, winding dirt road that led up towards a miniature peak, Blueblood, ironically having had enough of my whining, turned towards my frozen form.

“If you must complain at every opportunity, I might be able to help you,” the stallion remarked, lighting up his horn. In an instant, I felt a vaguely familiar warmth creep across my skin, beginning at my arms and legs before converging onto my torso. It was like the warmest of blankets on snow-drenched skin, and the sudden shift in temperature- again- left me feeling a little lightheaded.

“What was that?”

“A spell that should keep you above freezing. I could not stand your whinging any longer.”

Blueblood raised his head and continued to move forward, leaving me and my warm form in his wake. The waves of light-headedness may have made my head a bit foggy, but I was still amazed found with the prince’s intervention. I could never have imagined him doing something altruistic, even if it was for his apparent benefit. Fairfeather looked to be similarly conflicted; maybe we could break this prince after all.

“Thank you,” I quietly muttered, guiding my right hand over the opposing wrist and rubbing it awkwardly. I didn’t really know what to say, although, thankfully, Blueblood didn’t have such an issue.

“Do not mention it. Now, let us get this over with.”

Blueblood never felt the need to look back towards his fellow travellers. He remained focused on the path ahead of him as it snaked further up and out of sight.

“Uh, guys,” called the voice of Autumn, reminding me of her presence. “Thanks for letting me out and everything, but I’m gonna go.” To tell the truth, I’d forgotten that she was still there, as she had been lagging behind ever since we’d left Our Town. Her lack of interest in my group’s journey was clearly apparent, suggesting that she was preoccupied with other matters.

“You sure? You can stay with us if you want,” I offered hopefully. Autumn, however, was not to be persuaded.

“This ain’t my fight- you guys can handle the…whatever-it-is.”

“Where’re you gonna go?”

“Far from here.”

Her voice was barley louder than a whisper as she stretched her wings and took off, heading deeper into the mountains. Even though I expected her to disappear at some point, I was still a little sad to see her go after she started to open up. Maybe she could’ve become a real character.

“Is nopony gonna tell her we were going that way anyways?” Fairfeather wondered aloud as he pointed to where Autumn had disappeared to. I just walked forward in a bid to catch up with Blueblood. I wasn’t forcing anything.

“Probably best if we just leave her alone.”

Soon enough, we found themselves on a wide, flat plain- unsuitably lush and green for somewhere at this altitude. Even though we had no higher to climb, distant mountains stretched far beyond our collective vision, almost as if they were impaling the sky. I stood and stared at the purple formations, slightly hypnotised by the colours.

Somehow, grass and small clusters of purple flowers had managed to grow from the rock we stood on. The entire area appeared to have been purposely created by some greater force; indeed, the place looked as if a mountain had been cut in half, leaving behind an unusually wide surface that stretched out a considerable distance.

“Pastern Peak,” Fairfeather explained, pre-emptively answering any of my questions. “Known for being pretty low down. No idea why.” With this comment, he spread his wings and headed off to the far-side of the peak, just as I finished dragging Blueblood up the slope. The griffon landed near a dark patch of flowers, seemingly looking for something.

-

David seemed to be paying attention to what the griffon was saying- and Blueblood certainly was not a good alternative. With nothing else to do, Fairfeather spread his wings and began to fly to a dark patch on the other side of the peak.

The griffon was confused; from what he could recall, Everclear seeds were not native to this area of Equestria, instead preferring lower altitudes. He struggled to think of any reason for the seeds to be so far north unless they were intentionally grown here- although there was no reason for anypony to do so. He should have known better than to allow himself to be so engrossed by his own thoughts as he was brought back to the present by the sudden roar of a large creature- one far too close to be ignored.

As if on cue, the creature loomed above Fairfeather, far surpassing him in height. In fact, its horns alone seemed to be larger than the griffon, appearing capable of ripping through even the largest of stallions. The ophiotaurus that Double Diamond had mentioned had caught onto the group’s journey to the peak. A heavy beast of burden, it hissed down at Fairfeather, glaring at him with large serpent-like eyes that showed a vague anticipation of its newest victim.

The creature’s resemblance of a serpent did not end with its eyes, as the whole of its body matched that of a snake: sleek and curling behind the creature as it somehow held itself upright. A streak of orange ran along its underbelly, contrasting with the red markings that dotted across its skin. The patches appeared to be a pattern- although, judging by the creatures’ fangs, anyone could have been convinced that the crimson markings were the result of this animal’s last encounter with aspiring adventurers.

-

Well, Fairfeather was probably dead. But I wasn’t. Yet. I mean, this was the moment I’d been waiting for, so I did my best to convince myself that I was having a wonderful time as I readied my bow. I lost a lot of my confidence as it took several attempts to summon it, and even then, it felt as if it was moments away from slipping through my fingers.

A miniscule bolt of magic travelled between Fairfeather and his attempted attacker, briefly stunning it and giving the griffon an opportunity to break away. Reuniting with the prince and I, the griffon was able to unsheathe his weapon and join us in preparing for a fight.

“So that’s…” I began, readying an arrow.

“That’s the whatchamacallit,” Fairfeather answered, mirroring my actions.

“So…should we kill it?”

“…I think we should.”

“…How does something like that sneak up on us?”

“Beats me. You ready to shoot some stuff?”

“I preferred when the target was stationary…”

“Can you two make a decision?!” Blueblood screamed at us in a panic, willing us into action. The prince’s flighty outburst was enough to recapture my attention as I readied an arrow and locked my eyes on the target.

“Wait…a second,” Fairfeather whispered, never taking his eyes off the creature. “It’s too far away to reliably hit.”

“But I really want to shoot it.”

“Shut up.”

Practicing as he preached, Fairfeather began to separate himself from the group by moving over towards the rightmost edge of the peak, creating a new angle of assault on the creature. I attempted to do the same in the opposite direction, occupying the left flank and doing my best to stay adjacent to the griffon.

“C’mon, Waffles…”

I kept my eyes on Fairfeather and waited for him to strike. I would’ve loved to have taken the first shot, but now wasn’t the time for egos. Whatever the griffon did, I would follow- I just needed a signal.

And I didn’t have to wait long as I watched an arrow pierce through the thin, mountain air and lodge itself firmly into the ophiotaurus’ side. I’d anticipated a roar of pain- or at least any indication that the creature had even noticed the attack- but the creature instead raised itself upright and lunged towards the griffon.

Not that Fairfeather seemed to mind, though, as he was prepared for the creature’s retaliation. He dove off the side of the mountain and hovered barely out of reach of his pursuer. Ignoring any opportunities for a one-liner, he silently hovered a few feet above the creature, mocking the futility of its actions. This was sure to have frustrated his attacker- but not quite as much as a second arrow embedding itself into its back, courtesy of my poor thinking.

“I hit him! I actually hit the bastard!”

Any celebrations were brought to an abrupt halt as my vison became filled with the Ophiotaurus’ charging form. I’d never felt terror like it as I frantically called on another arrow to fill my hand, only to have difficulty to do so when faced with imminent danger. I haphazardly fired an arrow in the attacker’s direction before sprinting back to hide behind Blueblood, who cast a bolt of magic in attempt to distract the creature.

A volley of three arrows from Fairfeather momentarily caused the bugger to stagger, the effect of multiple hits at once appearing to finally cause some damage. With a heavy thud, the beast momentarily collapsed, giving me a moment to get myself together. Breathing heavily from the adrenaline, my gaze fell to the floor as I tried to control my elevated heartrate and place another arrow into the target.

I should’ve known better than to give myself too long to focus, as, from the moment my eyes strayed from my attacker, I left myself exposed. I’d readied another shot, but I was completely thrown off by how close the creature had gotten, so I let my arrow go in a blind panic. I watched as the projectile whistled past the approaching threat- instead penetrating a different layer of flesh with a sound that rang loudly in my ears.

Knowing exactly where my shot had landed, I bore witness to the sight of an arrow puncturing the flesh underneath Fairfeather’s right wing. The griffon felt around the area before beginning to fall. He threw his bow onto the peak before losing control of his flight, hurtling down onto the sharp rock formation below. Sucking in a deep breath of air, he kept himself from crying out in agony as he struggled to pick himself up.

As if this was some sort of dark comedy, the ophiotaurus completely ignored me as it took in the sound of the griffon’s fall. It immediately turned around to seek vengeance on the one who had struck it so many times, the arrows leaving thin streams of crimson that flowed from the puncture wounds on its back.

It took a moment for me to process what I’d done, and the damage that I’d inflicted only be apparent to me as I watched the ophiotaurus’ charge on my fallen friend. Seeing the griffon in such a vulnerable position caused me to lose the last of my composure.

I sprinted towards Fairfeather, desperately shooting haphazard arrows to distract the approaching creature. Much like the arrows that I had previously fired, they had no effect on the creature’s movement as it approached Fairfeather’s struggling form.

My lungs burned from the exertion as I tripped and slid on my knees a short distance from the ensuing altercation, watching the create raise its head with the intention to plunge its horns into the griffon. In a desperate attempt to right my wrongs, I pathetically threw my bow at the creature, only for it to reappear in my hands, making the situation seem like some sort of sick joke. I tried to get up, but I felt myself being pulled backwards by a much greater force.

I shrieked out in exertion, pushing against the force that encased me. I was desperate to avoid sentient blood on my hands, but I had no luck. However, I was halted as I felt an incredible surge of energy rush past my head. Looking on, I witnessed some incredible ball of magic collide with one of the ophiotaurus’ horns, shattering it with a crack that echoed throughout the peak.

With a guttural roar, the creature fell onto its side, set off-balance by the sudden loss of one of its most crucial body parts. A dark vapour poured from the opening, covering the area in a thick, blackened haze.

I looked back to see the source of this attack; a winded Blueblood fell hopelessly onto his stomach, his horn fizzing slightly with the erratic after-effects of his actions. Even through the darkness that engulfed us, I could see the effect that the spell had had on the prince as he struggled to raise his head in any indication that he was little more than barely conscious.

It was unfortunate that I hadn’t yet learned my lesson of not taking my eyes off the battlefield. Immediately, what was left of the ophiotaurus surged through the smoke that it had created, directing its anger onto the one who had dealt it the most harm. I cursed my inability to act, feeling hopeless and looking on in despair, struggling to think as the creature continued to close the distance. I had to do something. Making a split-second decision, I also made a dive for the prince, pushing him from harm’s way and inadvertently leaving myself at my attacker’s mercy.

The ophiotaurus was unsettled by its target’s difference in height and attempted to adjust mid-flight. Opening its mouth wider, it managed to scrape its fangs along my left arm, opening up a cavernous gash that began to ooze darkened blood. It was unable to secure a bite and instead carried on straight past me, happy to come around again for another assault.

I lacked Fairfeather’s composure, so I cried out in agony as I watched my skin separate. I stared at my arm in shock and placed my right hand over a part of the wound in a useless attempt to stop the bleeding. The burning is what I remember most- a horrendous sensation that left my mind even more useless than my arm. I could barely see the muscles in my arm twitch as I tore my hand from the wound and forced myself to ready my bow. Although I could feel the weapon in my left hand, I found no strength when attempting to raise it at the creature.

I looked towards my approaching death, knowing that I could’ve done more. The creature’s eyes stuck out to me, narrowed in anticipation of a quick kill, as I fought to keep my own open.

But, just as I’d come to terms with fate, I felt a light pull on my left arm, raising it and the bow that still lay in my left hand. Accustomed to the tugging by now, I allowed the force to keep the weapon steady as I raised a final arrow. With one final push, I felt the air leave my lungs as I shot an arrow right and true into the ophiotaurus’ right eye.

The last thing I was able to process before everything stopped was the roar that engulfed the mountaintop. That roar… it felt like the scream that I could no longer project.

David’s many efforts throughout the fight may have brought his companions a great deal of suffering, but his final act was the one that brought everything to a close. With that final roar, the ophiotaurus fell forward and past the motionless human, collapsing onto its stomach once more. The creature struggled to contain the sensation that pulsed throughout its head, unable to find the strength to rise once more- even as a smug griffon stood over its body.

“…Ain’t it a bitch?”

With the one-liner that David had been longing to hear, Fairfeather gave a smug smile as the ophiotaurus’ other eye was pierced by the final arrow of the fight. The creature gave no reaction to this, having succumbed to its injuries, trembling slightly as it failed to cling onto its life. The griffon smirked at this before grabbing a pouch that hung tightly around the creature’s neck.

“These seeds had better be worth it.”

He felt along the side of his body for where the arrow had embedded itself into his flesh, happy to feel that it was still there. And, with his own body taken care of, his smugness faded away as he turned his attention to the other members of his party.

Fairfeather could see that the prince was still conscious, which was a good sign, so he wordlessly moved to aid the fallen human. Crouching down by his friend’s side, the griffon pulled a role of gauze from his saddlebag and tried his best to dress the human’s wound. He found no luck in covering the gash sufficiently, but he had hopes that the wound could be managed with regular maintenance. “It looks worse than it is…”

Stepping back from his friend, he watched Blueblood stand upright, dusting his tattered tuxedo. “Well…” the prince muttered, barely able to speak between breaths. “The beast is no more…”

“Yeah… he’s dead…” the griffon affirmed, also struggling to speak. “Put one in both his eyes…”

“And the human?”

“I did what I could with his forelimb. We just gotta check on him from time-to-time.”

“He will live?”

“Sure, he will!”

“Good- I think I owe him a drink.”

With this promise, the silence that surrounded Pastern Peak signalled that the group no longer had any business in the area. “We’d better set up camp for the night- no way he’s walking this off,” Fairfeather noted. “Not without a long rest, at least.”

A huff and a heave later, Blueblood was able to lift the human’s body onto his back. The prince had great difficulty keeping his new backpack balanced, but he began to find a way to trot down the mountain without incident. As the adrenaline from the attack began to die down, Fairfeather broke the silence.

“…Thanks, by the way. For saving me.”

“Since when did I save you, griffon?”

“You can’t fool me. I know what magic looks like- even when I’m dead.”

Blueblood stopped abruptly, almost causing David’s body to fall from his back. He looked down at the dirt beneath him, refusing to meet Fairfeather’s smug stare. Even as he continued to look away, he could tell that the griffon had a large grin on his face, having caught the prince unaware. Blueblood disliked the idea of continuing the conversation after being found out. Still, he hated Fairfeather’s smirk far more, so he sighed slightly.

“…It would have been a waste to lose somepony of your… talents.”

Whether this was enough for Fairfeather or not, Blueblood could not be certain; the griffon continued forward regardless, thinking about the prince’s intervention.

“…Since when did you have that much power?”

“As I mentioned before- I would not expect you to understand.”