Chapter 1

~The Troggürk Steppe~

I want to flee and disappear.

Of what happened days ago has me internally wounded, the attack of the troggles, as fearsome as the tales of my library told once, I recall a paragraph made by the magician Nightshade not so long ago to describe them: 'they make their enemies fear them, no thing on earth can stop them, not even the magic, the troggles art the strongest, most terrible, and honor'd barbarians of the lands'.

The raid happened pretty much like the books said save for one aspect, they didn’t loot the village nor they gave us merciful death, they captured us all and left the town isolated.

To have witnessed them brutally attack my neighborhood makes me feel remorse; it’s my fault that my friends and I didn’t escape the tragedy, all because of my stupid fear to die.

Overall, I am pathetic, the simple town reader with the lamest magic of all types: the golden string, so ironic that it happens to be my name and cutie mark as well, like if I were just a girlish accessory.

At this moment we are traveling in the grasslands of the troggle territory, I don’t remember how the biome they live on was named but the way it works, it doesn’t let them settle in the land, so they are nomads traveling for any food and resources, that’s what said my book I accidently tossed on the snakey river when a wild cobra scared me.

My captured kin is awake now but none of them present any will to fight back, so like me, and the only one who can release us, my greatest friend Flare, every time she tries to do something she is beaten up until she falls unconscious.

Even if they made some stops to eat, my people included, they have been giving her nothing more than water, they want to weaken her to the point she cannot use her magic no more, so they don’t have to struggle with Flare all the way back to their homeland.

I cannot help, I truly want to but I can’t, I fear to get injured the same way my other friend got for helping her sister, she spared some of her food to her sister and only for doing that, they punched her stomach, as if to tell her subtly what she’ll get for if ever tries to commit what for them is a terrible act, I feel pity for the two of them.

The troggle taking me to the land is the same one whom I fought back at the fountain, with a rope tied to my neck, he allowed me to know his name, which is Mag; halfway he asked me many questions, about my name, everybody’s, and the history of the village, little can be learnt from my town, yet he wanted to know, he presents a deep interest in history in a major level than I.

He’s carrying the young Scarlet on his back, the innocent and cute earth pony of my village, who used to play so much on the gardens and even I got to teach her some pony philosophy of our princess Diamond, she’s only 14 years old, she did not have to get through this!

Poor Scarlet, I fear that her best years to live will be wasted with the life of a slave, either from the troggles or the ogres of the jewel desert.

Now that I think about it, what will they do with us the captives? I don’t want to know, but my curiosity wants to, whatever it msy be it cannot be more terrifying than turning us into slaves.

We finally arrived to the troggle tents, but it looks odd, far away there seem to be a big ram of horrible aspect and a donkey wearing jester clothes-

I saw the blue ram rise on his hind legs!

A weird behavior that gave me shivers, it truly is strange to see a four-legged creature act like a bipedal, adding his ugly, terrifying appearance makes it worse; he seems to be giving a speech to the troggles surrounding him, evil scheming for us I deduce.

The barbarian Mag tied me to one of the fences, until further notice of what they’ll do to us, here I will stay like a domestic animal of the barbarians, so I sat down, watching Mag leave the area in direction to the ram; I couldn’t speak, as sadness shut my mouth, thus crying alone.

§

We arrived, I left Golden String tied to one of the fences, while the others were taken to the pens, I have a talk with Grogar to fulfill, I need him to answer me certain doubts.

I thought about the first assault on Ponyland, I committed the flaw of getting burnt by that fire mare but even then, they did not know how to defend themselves, they were easy prey to us, these ponies lived on the borderline of our territory, with the danger of being raided by a solitary gang of my troggles and never readied themselves for it; 'twas such an easy assault, so much that I do not consider it a victory even, will it have any merit to conquer the land of the ponies?

While I walked to the meeting point, I saw Grogar rise up on his hind legs at the moment he was giving a speech to my kind, it still is awkward for me to see him act that way but I will get used to it eventually, I believe so.

After all, he is a supreme being, and has to act like one.

He ceased his talking and asked them and Bray to leave and go back to their duties the moment he saw me getting near, what he told to my people I could get to know any time later.

“Here Mag reporting himself, your first general; I inform thou that we successfully captured the ponies as requested days ago, they were no problem to deal with.”

“Excellent, the little ponies will serve us well.” He said with his characteristic goatish voice.

“If you may excuse me, I would like to know the motive behind the request for bringing you ponies (especially unicorns), while we can perfectly execute our methods of slavering for the winged and earthed equines, we cannot tame the unicorns properly due to their magic, as long as they have a way to rebel or defend against its masters, they are nearly impossible to make them succumb to us or anyone else, I see no good reason to have them here.”

“You are right in every aspect Mag, we cannot use them alive, that is why I order you and some of your troggles to tear off their horns after I choose a few ones for something special.”

I could not believe it, lightly he says such abhorrent atrocity, to finish our victims for worthless trophies! So I yelled back with anger to him.

“I may ignore the shame of serving a stranger like you, but this not, irrationally kill another nation not for resources or expansion but stupid awards is not something I will tolerate!”

I wanted to begin another match against him to recover my reign and expel him from the Troggürk steppe forever, but he interrupted my fury by telling me: “you are wrong in what you are saying, we won’t kill them for fun, I want you to listen to me attentively, because it will make you understand what I am telling you about.”

Madness, Grogar wants to excuse himself for saying the unnecessary gore of ponies, but I had the decency to listen to him, depending on what he said it would make me take a great decision for a second time, or not.

“The reason behind my command is the fabrication of weapons capable to use magic, but unlike those created in the Jewel Kingdom, these will be much easier to produce and use, since we got unicorns and their alicorns which have innate magic, and some useful resources only available on your lands; according to what I researched before coming here the unicorns have a special organ inside of their horns that stores and let them use magic, by tearing it off, tanning and bathing it on juice of native berries to preserve it, and sticking it to a good handle, your people will get magical lances as part of your weaponry.”

“I see but why we have to bring them here only to kill them when we could do that on their homelands and just bring the alicorns? Unless your explanation has something to do with choosing a few ones for something special, I do not see any logical reason for this order.”

“Mag, do you know the tale of the Golden Horseshoes?”

“Yes, a tale that supposedly happened more than a century ago, why do you ask-” I understood what Grogar meant with that question.

The legend of Majesty, the unicorn that fought the mage Wantall who kidnapped the unicorn princesses to convert them into magical weapons and glue, he successfully ripped two of the six horns and unfortunately for him, they lost their magic in a matter of hours, thus he was defeated by the great magic of Majesty and her golden horseshoes, but at the end she lost them on the desert by the last spell of Wantall before dying: the sandstorm.

I thought the detail of the horns losing all magical properties after being ripped off was just a convenience created by the historian to justify the mediocrity of such damned ogre, but if they really do that, then it makes perfect sense Grogar’s request to bring them alive only to kill them here.

Interesting, not only answered my doubt but also it motivated me to capture more unicorns, magical weapons would make us the most powerful army in the world, so much that not even the pennas would dare to defy us, all under the cost of some unicorn lives but that compared to our upcoming greatness, turns into a lesser consequence; though I do not find the reason to leave a few alive, I have to ask him why.

“I see but I still cannot understand why we are leaving some alive, considering the butchering we are going to do, we could finally instruct them to our will, thus making them effective, magical slaves, it is my idea but what are you planning to do to them?”

“I will drain their magic to augment my power.”

So… Impressive, he wants to elevate his power even more, at least with that said, I can deduce the reason why he has magic, Grogar obtained it from a source; yet I need to know why he wants to become more powerful then what he is already.

“Excuse but I would like to know why thou want to increment thy power since you are already powerful enough to defeat me.”

“I need more magic to be able to conjure certain spells that require such amounts of power, simply that; I ordered some of your men to make preparations for the extraction of alicorns, follow me, you will help me choose those who will live to feed my bell.”

And so Grogar started walking off to the yards of our prisoners the ponies, I still had one doubt left so I told him: “once drained of their magic they will become useless, I suppose that they will turn weak after you take all of their power, and won’t be capable to walk a kilometer even, they hardly would do as slaves.”

He stopped at my remark, turned his face to me and said: “do whatever you want, I do not care if you decide to keep them as mascots or if you exile them to the steppe.”

With that answer, he continued walking towards the yard where I locked the unicorns, and I followed him.

Later I will figure out what to do with the unicorns left, perhaps exiling them to the steppe to end their suffering.

§

Wordless, still sitting on the grass and lying on the fence, after all what can I do, my kin speak things but I do not care what they say, I don’t want to hear more laments because I have enough with my own suffering already.

I see him and the ram walking towards the fences, they spoke something earlier but it didn’t take much time, so fearful to see the great ram coming to me, his purely red eyes, his big eyebags, his white and furry eyebrows, his deadly fangs, his pale, dark blue coat, and his horrible face, the ram is like a demon.

“Now here we are to choose them, tell me Lord Grogar, who do you think are appropriate for thee?” Said the troggle.

That caught my attention, to what would he refer to those appropriate for the presumably named Lord Grogar? I am concerned.

“I have to check them with a special spell that will reveal who are worth.” He said at the moment his horns shone purple, and from their ends he shot an odd light that covered us all the unicorns for a few moments, then vanished.

He has magic, but how? Unless he’s truly a demon like I thought before, I cannot guesss how he can use magic like a unicorn does.

“Tell me Mag, which ponies do you think have the most competent magic of all?”

“She, the fire unicorn Flare.” He said pointing out at my fallen friend, Bubble was at her left side, giving a confused glance towards him and the ponies, the latter doing so as well.

“What about the mare at her side?” Said Grogar, I’m still clueless about what they are saying.

“She only has a useless bubble magic, why do you ask?”
“Because she is worth, too, they will serve me well.”

“I understand, I will get them then,” Mag said at the time he was opening the frame.

Everybody was tied to the fences inside unlike me, Mag tied me in the exterior, I am so weak that he doesn’t bother locking me properly, the great troggle knows I can’t escape.

He continued walking to them, every captive watching him with fear and getting out of his way, until he reached my friends.

Mag pulled Flare and set her on his back while he dragged off Bubble with the rope on his hand, she nodded without hesitation.

“Monster!” Said my sister to him, please don’t provoke him dear, I don’t want you to die.

Mag just stared back at my sister for seconds, and resumed his way to the exit, glad that he just ignored her.

So in that way, making the others feel confusion and terror of the situation, he separated my dear friends from everybody for whatever the ram planned to do with them, my body still trembling from anxiety, provoked by uncertainty of our destiny.

“Here, now tell me, where are we going to drain their magic?”

“Bray!”

“Yes Master?!” Said a donkey, seemingly the same of before, who appeared from nowhere.

“I want you to lead Mag to the place where we will extract their magic.”

“Right away Master!” He responded, this donkey has a funny voice, even being one of the servants of the squid, he acts more like a moron, both Mag and Bray walked off of the area with my friends.

Magic extraction, will that be our destiny? I won’t doubt it because why else would they capture us, it is our special attribute, but also I don’t want to know why they are doing so, my curiosity and fear striking back at me once more.

“Gimn, Lamn, come over here!” Shouted Grogar odd names, for the troggles they must be the most normal names of all I suppose; few moments passed until two troggles came to Grogar’s demand, none of them spoke, they just awaited.

“I want you to take all the unicorns to the ger where your men will tear off their horns, while Bray, Mag and I deal with the magic drain.”

“Understood.”

They will tear apart our horns!?

I was left astounded and terrified by what has been ordered, but for which purpose?

My life will end here, me who wanted to move unto Dream Villages to be a teacher, but had to suffer this event like the others, I no longer will be able to fulfill my dream, even if I had the little luck to be purchased by a grundle as a slave.

Minutes passed but I paid no mind to them, even with all the cries from my kin from being dragged away for their end, I really could not give any more attention to my surroundings, because it no longer mattered.

“Come on mule!” Then I was brusquely dragged from the neck and fell to the ground by this one troggle, I stared back for a few seconds, and slowly rose up.

“Follow me unicorn.” I didn’t hesitate and moved on to where they would take my horn off, please Moochick, give mercy on us, at least on Scarlet and my friends, for whom I hope escape of this torment.

Still wordless, my mind’s still filled with sorrow, fear and sadness for everyone, for everypony if that word even exists to refer to my kin; on the way to the tent I saw some unicorns trying to get free only to get punched by the troggles in response, pain to the conquered.

The troggle and I entered the tent, odd that they didn’t start with the procedure yet, sobs of my neighborhood filled the inside, I had no more tears to spare for them, but even then I have the guarantee that the others, earthlings and pegasi are going to live, however I’m not sure if to feel joy for them, as they are going to live the life of a slave.

The troggles untied us, there was no need to keep us like that anymore, we are going to die soon.

“Listen, we know thou are frightened for what we did and for what we were tasked to do, as honorable troggles that we are, thy death will be very well respected since thou have the luck to become our most loyal servants, weapons you will be turned into for us to become the most powerful army to ever exist in history.”

Remembered as troggle weapons? I don’t want to be remembered as the tool of a hog, I supposed that they would save our horns as trophies, but this, it’s immoral!

“Trigg, take the first unicorn for the mutilation.”

“Yes sir.”

So the troggle grabbed a fuchsia unicorn-

It’s my sister, she will be first victim of the massacre, I don’t want to see!

And without knowing, I backed to the other side of the room, my instinct still fights for survival despite the fact I consciously gave up.

“No, no, no no no, ahhh!”

Cried my sister of pain while I turned my sight to the wall, accidently staring at her shadow, from which the silhouette of her horn was separated from her head, dragged by tweezers, so falling to the ground, perhaps dead.

Out of complete instinct, I exited the tent and ran as much as I could, I heard one troggle adverting about my sudden escape but I did not care, I kept running to the great outside, following my pure instinct to survive.

I stared back at the tent and saw some unicorns trying to flee as well, but unlike me, they were being fought and chased by troggles, really did I have to be the lucky one to get away? I don’t want to think about it so I just kept trotting, and dropping some last tears.

Until I stumbled upon a rock on the ground and fell to the inclination of the land, rolling apart and impacting on a rock formation.

What did I do just now? I fled and am here over these rocks, with some aches on my torso and fore legs, possibly with some barbarians looking for me, this sensation in my heart, is weird, it throbs incredibly fast, and I think I’m breathing harshly, as if I ran a few miles.

I slowly got up on and saw the landscape around me, no tents, troggles or a demonic ram, only grasslands and rocks can be seen, I glanced back whence I fell, due to the elevation and the great run I did, I can’t see the place where they were about to kill me, if so I should move on and find a good refuge.

I descended from the rocks and looked it, for the way they are shaped it looks like an entrance to a cave, this will be my place to sleep on, it even has a flower on the entrance, almost as if this was a natural home, or a tomb.

Nightfall is coming, so the last thing I need to do is to create a mantle with my strings, my magic has at least one purpose now, to create a golden mantle that will give me warm during the cold, bitter night.

Woe are the unicorns, woe are the earthlings, woe are the pegasi, and woe is Radiant Shoes my big sister, I will never be capable to save them due to my incompetence.

I’m a coward who deserted her kind only to live alone on the adversity.

§[size]

She does not stop crying for her friends, so annoying to hear her constant laments that it makes me want to dispose her already, but first it has to come the draining of magic that Grogar wants so much to execute before exiling these two to the steppe.

Though I wonder, why are we heading to the other yards?

“I will tell you this Mag,” said Grogar, stopping a few meters before the fences to speak to me, Bray and I stopped too.

“I always admired the techniques used by your people to slave anyone you captured, your father Trogghan Rag is the most recent example of a terrifying leader who no one wanted to mess with, the slavery of grundles and some other penguin, the destruction of grundle and ogre villages, and more calamities made the world remember your greatness in an age where it was thought you remained separated in many tribes, hence my respect for what your father and you did before I took over.”

Curious that even after my defeat, he comes to show some respect to myself, so I responded back: “it is such a compliment for my people and for me what you are saying, but what has to do your admiration speech with draining their magic?”

“You just have to see to comprehend my intentions; drop the red unicorn now.”

I followed his command and tossed Flare to the ground, close to where bubble was standing, the fire unicorn wailed by the landing, seems like she awakened the moment I threw her off.

“So, how are we going to extract their magic, Lord Grogar?”

“Like this!” Then his curved horns shone of purple, from their ends extended a magical lightning in direction of the unicorns’ heads, from which their horns headed the magic towards the silver bell, hanging off of Grogar’s red collar with gilded decorations.

Once deprived of her magic, Bubble fell to the ground weakened as I expected, curiously their coats became more greyish, and the marks of their flanks disappeared.

“W- Why, why do you have to be so terrible to us the innocent?” Said Flare in response of the little suffering she had to deal with, this is just the beginning for her kind.

“Shut up unicorn, you had the luck to live and see the earthlings and pegasi with their magic intact, unlike the other unicorns, and you will be even luckier if the steppe decides to spare your life!” Grogar said angrily to the poor Flare, before turning his gaze to the yard of ponies.

“You all have to pay great attention to what I will say, you are now the slaves of the troggles, in other words, my slaves, if you do not follow our orders, or present any will to fight back, you shall join them!” He yelled at the rest of the ponies while pointing his hoof to the fallen unicorns; trembling, the ponies nodded in silence.

So the other equines also have magic according to what Grogar said, it explains why they have special marks on their butts and their manes’ sparkling when they are brushed, while I deduce that the winged ponies use their magic to fly, I cannot figure out the way earth ponies use their magic, perhaps they use it to grow food from the ground.

I have to admit, this was such a great scene to witness, the way he used our technique to tame the ponies in such fast and effective way, this gained my respect to the ram.

“Bray.”

“Yes Master?”

“I want you to gather the generals to help and supervise the creation of the lances, while I plan our next movements privately.”

“Right on!”

Thus both left the yards, walking to different directions, I would take these unicorns to the great, savage steppe where they would meet their end.

What an conclusion for Bubble and Flare, from what the beautiful Golden String told me, they were great sisters who just lived the life with games and spectacles, one who could summon bubbles as big as a castle, and one who controlled the element of fire with such mastery, however they had no ambition, no purpose, they were pedestrian ponies, but from now on they will be remembered as those who fed Grogar’s Bell to increase his power, before getting devoured by a manticore of the Troggürk steppe.

I pulled the two unicorns, carrying each one with my arms, ready to exile them until a pony yelled at me: “no, please, have mercy on them, do not take them from me!”

“Who said that!?” I yelled back at whoever spoke first, turning back to the fences, and what a surprise!

On the front, behind the fences was the filly Scarlet, while her older kind remained back, frozen by the fear Grogar had put into them, she stood there all brave and determined…

That gave me a brilliant idea.

We could have a pony ally or more if the situation needed it, for spying the enemies, to establish diplomatic agreements or anything else.

“Hear me out, little pony, I offer you the freedom a troggle has to be exempt of the slavery treat if you dare to follow my command.”

“I’m listening!” she nervously said but overall, with guts.

It might be a good idea to order her to take care of these unicorns, to make her a loyal soldier of Troggleland I must assure first the safety of her loved ones, besides, this way I could take her out of the suffering she would have passed through as a slave, as I wanted before on River Hills.

“I order you take care of Bubble and Flare, and serve us as a troggle soldier when a commander, the Trogghan Grogar or I demand you to if needed, understood?”

There were a few moments of silence, behind Scarlet the other ponies just murmured with worried, hateful and saddened gazes to the both of us, until she spoke: “yes, I will follow your order!”

“Very well, despite being a pony we will welcome you like a troggle in spirit to our nation, as you showed the same determination of one of our kind; but if you act deliberately against Grogar’s rule or the great honor code of the troggles, you will be punished as one, and I assure you it is not the same to being punished as a slave, understood?”

“Yes… General.” The little pony said, lowering her face to the ground.

She perfectly understood my statement and yet she does not feel any joy for it, to be a lucky non troggle warrior of Troggleland, it makes it another aspect to correct.

So I went to open the gate to let her out and exited the yard until a troggle came to me with urgent news.

“Sir, there was a commotion on the execution ger, one unicorn fled the area while the others were caught by luck before escaping as well.”

“How did this start even, to result in this turn of events and who is the pony wot escaped?”

“We untied them inside, thinking that they would not try to resist any more to us, since their lifetime was already set, yet one pony was brave still to escape making the others follow, this one unicorn was Golden String.”

To think that the weakest pony managed to flee surprised me, at the same time it angered me, as my men let one unicorn to escape, they let go away what I wished to be my personal weapon.

“If any unicorn escapes again, then I will personally punish you all with the most terrible of the tortures a troggle can get, I will let this one pass away as it was an unexpected outcome, but I will say this no more: do not untie them until the work is finished correctly.”

“So she escaped…” Mumbled the filly with a little hope, I would have to tell her what it means escaping to the wild steppe.

“Do not feel any hope for her, certainly she will fall like prey to the predators of the steppe, so any chance of her remaining alive can be discarded by now.”

Scarlet started sobbing the moment she processed what I spoke, that Golden String seemed to be related with this filly, however it no longer mattered, so I closed the frame and headed back to the fallen unicorns with the filly following me.

“Come on, nightfall is coming so you must go and take them to a ger to rest well,” I commanded to Scarlet, who helped her elders to get up, I turned to the troggle.

“Mrug, lead the way to her for the noble gers, from now on this little pony will be known as an important member of our empire.”

“Understood Troggh- General Mag.” She responded (and corrected) herself, my kind is slowly getting used to the change of ruler.

And so they left, cold of heart and soul, choose to become, and serve us as another knight.

I took a glance at the great twilight to the west, thinking about the next phase of the empire: one where we would ascend to magical warriors, matchless against every adversity, with Ponyland set as our first step to this great mountain of blood, suffering and greatness where we would stand in the top like the superior nation.

Joy and regret is what I feel about this, I should have accepted Grogar’s offer so I would be the one leading the empire to the next phase and not him.