Temple of the Stars

by OrphiusOlyandra

Rating: teen
Tags: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Other, Nightmare Moon, Romance, Princess Luna, Trixie, Gilda, Adventure
Length: 225105

Luna drags Gilda and Trixie on an adventure to discover her forgotten past. And start a war... Maybe

Collab with y1

When Luna reappeared on Nightmare Night, she was no longer the small filly from before. Now an adult mare, she commanded the same respect and presence as that of her sister, Celestia. Many assumed that this was the result of her powers coming back to her naturally, but that was a lie happily perpetrated by both Celestia and the Gryphon Kingdom.

This is the story of Luna as she struggles with the remnants of Nightmare Moon and her forgotten past. The only clue she has is The Temple of the Stars where her small group of worshipers used to gather, which now lies in ruins and in the clutches of the gryphons. Some things were forgotten for a reason and the past always has a way of returning.

These two facts are well known by Gilda. Pulled along for the ride against her will, ghosts of a forgotten past have come crawling back, intent on dragging her back down to a fate worse than death. All the while, she seeks to preserve the innocence of those untouched by war and tries to protect Trixie from the harsh truth beyond Equestria's borders.

One wrong step and war shall erupt. One wrong step and the world will be plunged into a darkness that would rival Discord.

Hope is not a plan.

Published 2012-10-17 07:00:01 UTC
Last updated 2013-06-13 09:48:59 UTC

Chapter 2

“I am the Great and Powerful Trixie!” That bloody unicorn is insufferable. Heck, I’d known her an hour at best and I already wanted to snap her goddess damn neck.

Oh, and speaking of goddesses...

“And we... are... her assistant.” I would have faceclawed when I heard her stumble over ‘are’ rather than ‘art’. The problem with faceclawing is that you need an arm free to do it, and both of mine were clinging to the underside of Trixie’s carriage.

Maybe I shouldn’t have let them know I can’t cross the border legally. Then we’d have been caught and turned around... Well, they would have been turned around; I’d have been taken back to the Gryphon Kingdom for a nice hanging... if I was lucky. Yeah, so maybe getting caught at the border wasn’t such a great idea, but hey I can dream, right?

“You dare argue with somepony as great as Trixie? She defeated an ursa major singlehoofedly... while poisoned!”

But if it meant not having to listen to that damn mare any more, it might just be worth it.

“I’m not arguing with you ma’am,” the bored border guard answered. “I’m informing you that if wish to cross the border then you’ll need to sign some paperwork and provide proof of Equestrian citizenship as well evidence that you’ll have work available to you inside the Gryphon Kingdom.”

“Of course Trixie has such!” Shutup-shutup-shutup! “Trixie is not only great and powerful, but forward thinking and well prepared.” Oh goddesses I hope she dies painfully while I’m there to see it.

“If that’s the case then you and your assistant can just step through here and-”

“Yes-yes. Trixie knows what she must do.” Interrupting a gryphon is not a good way to make friends. I had no doubt that whoever it was that was unlucky enough to have to deal with her was getting really ticked off right now. With a bit of luck, she’ll piss off the right gryphons and we can get turned around. No wait, it could better than that: They just get pissed enough to kill her.

I heard the sounds of hoofs in mud as Trixie and Luna both followed the border guard inside. A few seconds later claws and paws entered the carriage above my head and began searching around inside for anything illegal. It wouldn’t be long till they checked under the carriage so I had to move fairly soon.

There were five guards to this particular post. I knew ‘cause I’d scoped it out before we approached. Luna got a bit suspicious about that, but whatever. She can think what she wants. I doubt she’ll figure out the truth.

If the guards had followed regulation there would be three griffons inside for every two sentients they were watching. There was only one griffon above me searching the carriage so that meant there was one guard unaccounted for. Shit.

I glanced around from the underside of the caravan, trying to spot legs, but I couldn’t see him. Freaking damn it. No other options, so I lowered myself to the ground beneath the caravan and rolled onto all fours. Chances were that last gryphon was in the watch tower, which was to the left of the carriage, so I risked poking my head out from under it to the right. I couldn’t see anyone, so I crawled out from under there and put my back to the carriage’s side. In front of me was the tiny cabin that Luna and Trixie had followed the guards into. It had a window and through it I could see the curtains drawn. Good.

Moving slowly to my right, I lowered my head and peeked around the corner through the spokes of the wagon wheel. Yeah, just as I thought, the last guard was in the tower, but I was lucky and he was asleep. I rolled my eyes.

So that just left the guard inside the carriage who was most likely to spot me. I moved back to the front of the carriage, careful to stay under the window. I could still hear him rummaging around inside. I padded around to the front of the caravan, and stiffened when I heard voice sound out from inside the carriage.

“Silreno,” the guard from inside the carriage called out. I heard his claws click on the stairs to the carriage. “Silreno?! Are you asleep again?!” There was a pause. “Oh, elders in the bloody stars! You are, aren’t you!” His claws landed on the ground outside the carriage.

I quickly ducked back around to the right of the carriage, at the front there was too much risk of getting spotted from the left.

“Get up! We’ve got someone crossing the border.”

I heard the sound of snuffling and yawning, followed by, “Alright, alright.”

“Get your lazy ass down here and help me check the carriage!”

After a moment I heard the sound of gryphon wings and Silreno landed on the ground next to the carriage. “What do you want me to do?”

“Just help me check the carriage, alright?”

“Why? There’s nothing in there?” Silreno grumbled back lazily.

“Doesn’t matter. Regulation is we check all the carriages.”

“No one cares,” Silreno answered. “We never get anything illegal coming through here.”

“Come on,” the other answered. “We’re soldiers of the Kingdom, where’s your pride?”

Silreno just grumbled and I heard his steps as he entered the carriage, followed by the other guard.

I breathed a quiet sigh of relief before moving forwards to the front of the carriage. After a second I ran forward, away from them the sound of claws and paws on floorboards. When I was far enough away, I took off with a flap of my wings. A gryphon flying is a bit louder than a pegasus, and the flaps are a bit slower too.

I was the fastest flyer I knew other than Dash and... Fuck... I’d almost forgotten about her. After a second I shook my head to clear my thoughts before flying down and landing behind a hill out of view of the guard post. Heh, I’d just crossed a hundred metres in how many seconds? I don’t know, but I knew it was fast.

I looked around for a bit of cover, and spotted a fairly dense bush. I doubted any of the guards would fly over, but it was better to play it safe while I waited for the goddess and the snob that was even more stuck up than a deity. I crawled under the bush and rolled over with my claws cushioning my head while I waited for the two idiots.

…

…

…

Damn it this was taking a long time. If I could I’d have fallen asleep like Dash-

FUCK!

I put a claw to my head and almost screamed in frustration. I can’t keep shutting down whenever I think of Dash damn it! She used to be a friend, but then she ditched me. That’s it. Forget her and that fucking pink bitch and move on. There, problem solved.

But... Goddesses I missed her. It had only been a few days and I felt like... Damn it. I felt like I did when he‘d left. Part of me felt like crying and the other half felt like hunting down that pink bitch, cutting her from mouth to anus, and wearing her like a cloak. But I knew that was a bad idea. That was just my stupid emotions getting in the way of things.

With too much time to myself, all I could do was lay there and think. And all I could think about was the clutch mate I’d lost. I know that we never shared a clutch but... Goddesses, she was a sister to me. I always thought she felt the same way. But... if she ditched me that easy then I guess she didn’t.

Fuck, when were the two idiots gonna show up already? The truth was I could probably have ditched the princess back in Canterlot, or maybe the unicorn ranges, but I needed this. I needed something to keep my mind busy while I got over this shit with Dash. It was why I’d picked a bar fight in Canterlot. What fucking good was that princess if she left me sitting around anyway?

The guard peered at our papers curiously before looking up at us and squinting. Or rather, looking at me specifically. Surely my illusionary disguise wasn’t that bad. Was it? I resisted the urge to look in the mirror. With a sigh, I resisted the urge to yell at the guard to get on with it. If they knew who I truly was they’d be cowering behind their desks rather than this ridiculous pompous attitude.

“Well, everything seems to be in order.”

Of course everything was in order! I was the Princess of Equestria. I made those papers and approved them! Did they want me to burn them alive or something? I’d do it!

“About time,Trixie was getting tired of all your posturing. Be glad your commander isn’t present or Trixie would have had a word with him about your poor conduct. Come, it is about time we left this cesspool. Bring the cart.”

I ground my teeth and sulked after her. This was just an act; this was all just an act. I need Trixie to keep up our cover and that meant I can’t hurt her. Yet. Just focus on that, once this is all done, I can toss her aside like the doll that she is.

“‘Approved by Princess Luna’?” I heard one of the gryphons mutter under his breath. “What will they think of next?”

Biting my tongue, I trotted after Trixie with a scowl on my face. One more word, just one more word and I-

“Oh! Before I forget, stay away from the Nightmare Plains to the south east. The government has sent out a warning due to an abnormal increase in monster activity and all unauthorized personnel will be arrested on site. If you need to reach the port town, I suggest taking a detour to the capital then heading east.”

“Thank you fo-”

“Less talk! Daylight is precious.” Trixie jerked her head in the direction of her wagon as she lounged on the seat.

“Trixie,” I ground out, “may we speak to thou in private?”

“No.” She smirked down at me as she began fanning herself with her hat.

Why that- She knew I couldn’t touch her as long as we were in public!

“Chop, chop, we have a schedule to keep.”

“Yes, yes we do.” With an evil smirk, I pulled on the wagon with far more force than necessary, sending Trixie toppling backwards. Before she had a chance to regain her balance, I deliberately ran it into a ditch in the ground, throwing her off her seat. And then, just for added insult, I nudged her ever so slightly so that she’d end up in a pile of manure.

“Oh, Miss Great and Powerful Trixie, th- you seem to have had an accident. Please, allow us to wash thee clean.” I conjured a bucket of freezing cold water and dumped it all over her head and before she could register what had happened, I prodded the wind into a miniature cyclone to dry her off. Unfortunately, I put just a bit too much magic into it and she spun around until she could no longer stand, let alone see straight.

Leaning down, I whispered in her ear, “Next time thou order us around, thou may find thyself missing a limb.”

Like a trained professional, she kept her mouth shut and didn’t seem as though she had heard me. Of course, knowing her, she very well might not have - there was something about large egos that impeded listening skills. Oh well, it’s not like she needed all four limbs to perform on stage. Hauling her back onto her hooves, she refused to look the laughing gryphons in the face as she trudged back to her spot on her wagon.

“Well apprentice, start pulling!” This time though, there was no smirk or barbs in her words, despite the sharp delivery.

I permitted myself a small smile as I took up the reins once more and began pulling us along. We trudged along the dirt road, ignoring the curious looks of the gryphon guards as we passed through. Some even had some more... base instincts in their eyes. If one of them even dared approach me with such a lewd offer, I would personally castrate them then force feed them the remains. Being away from females was no excuse to let useless emotions overtake them.

“Do you think she got through safely?” Trixie’s lips didn’t even move.

I gave the barest of nods and smiled politely at the guards. Within minutes they were out of sight as we continued down the ‘road’, if you could even call it that.

“Damn, was hoping for some action.” I was certain I wasn’t supposed to hear that. “Stupid, stuck up gryphon bitch. Dogs, the whole lot of them.”

My ears immediately perked up and I sent my magic out, seeing if any gryphons were near. Just because a normal pony wouldn’t have heard that, it didn’t mean gryphons wouldn’t. After all, they were birds of prey.

“If thou wish to stay alive, thou shalt keep such barbed words to thyself,” I growled. “Gryphons naturally possess superior hearing and if we could hear, then they most likely could as well.”

“She’s right you know.” With a heavy thud, Gilda landed next to Trixie, and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, a claw trailing along the unicorn’s cheek. “Some of us can read lips... Like me.”

“If thou are going to play with thy food, please wait until we have somewhere to hide the evidence.”

“Nah, I don’t eat junk food.” Gilda chuckled and withdrew her arm from Trixie before glaring over at her. “Still, fun times.”

“Then stop flirting with thy food.”

Gilda seemed shocked - did I get it wrong? From the way Celly talked about flirting, I assumed that was what they were doing.

After a second she recovered. “Oh, don’t want me to get in with the mare you plan to ravage? Nah, it’s cool. You called dibs.”

“What!?” Trixie looked back and forth between us two. “Trixie will have you know, she does not-”

“Silence.” With a bit of magic, I sealed her lips shut. “We tire of thy voice.”

“Gagging her?” Gilda smirked. “Fuck, I know you wanted to ravage her, but if I knew you planned on getting out the leather and chains I never would’ve hunted her down for you.”

“Keep speaking and we shall gag you next,” I replied with a sweet smile.

Gilda grimaced. “I just got threatened with rape... By a filly.” She shook her head. “I never thought I’d say something like that.”

“Whatever dost thou speak'stof? We said no such thing.” I pointed at the cabin. “Now inside, or we shall tie thee to the underside of this carriage and hit every bump in the road as far as our eyes can see.”

“Oh goddesses I hate this goddess,” Gilda muttered as she swung around from the front of carriage and hopped inside in a fairly impressive display of agility.

“Ah, much better, wouldst thou agree?”

Trixie just looked at me silently as she huffed.

“Tis a shame we need to head southeast into the Nightmare Plains.” A manic grin was plastered all over my face. “And here we were, hoping to avoid such adventure on this journey.”

“The Nightmare Plains?!” Gilda shouted from inside the carriage. “I thought you just wanted a holiday or some shit, not to get eaten by manticores!”

“Oh yes, we desired a holiday, it just happens our first and only stop is the site of the Temple of the Stars.”

“Never heard of it,” she called forward.

“We are not surprised. It was buried under an avalanche over a thousand years ago. T’was our old temple and we hath grown fond of it over the years.” And Celly just gave it away! Damn her to Tartarus.

A series of muffled squeaks and grunts drew my attention to Trixie who was wildly waving her hoof in the air. Reluctantly, I undid my spell and she immediately began speaking, “The guard back at the border said there was some sort of government setup in the area. And Trixie did not sign up to be shot at, attacked, harassed, gag-”

And just like that, I gagged her once again.

Gilda’s voice rang out. “What was she saying about the government?” She poked her head out the window.

“That they are foalish enough to believe that can stop a goddess from reclaiming what is rightly belongs to her.” I flicked a lock of mane out of my eyes as I dispelled the enchantment I had cast on the chest inside. “There is a chest against the back wall, inside thou shalt find a breastplate, wing guards and clawed gauntlets for thee. Put them on. The swords and black armor are ours.”

Gilda was silent for a second. “Are you fucking kidding me?!” she shouted. “What the fuck dude!?” She shook her head. “You want to start a fucking war with the Gryphon Kingdom for some nostalgia trip? Stop you? How the heck would they even know you were coming?”

“Unimportant details. Gryphons have always been th-” A sharp pain laced through my head and I dropped onto my knees.

I could see... a chamber with vaulted ceiling illuminated by a sickly green light. There was a pony before me, her mouth was moving and yet I heard nothing. Shadows danced upon the wall, monstrous shadows of things that should not exist. There on the table was a vial of blue liquid and next to it, a document.

“Project Thanatos,” Nightmare Moon whispered from beside me. “I remember now. Project Thanatos, but what does it mean?”

“Augmentation,” I whispered, only to frown. Where had that come from?

“And who is this pony? I feel as though I sho-”

“Aether,” I replied. “She was our top scientist and worked... worked on something. Project Thanatos?” My head throbbed.

“And what is that?”

“What is what?” I looked in the direction she was point in, but saw nothing. There was just a black void where she was pointing. “There is nothing there.”

“No! Can you not see it?”

Her eyes widened, but I was the one who voiced what it was we were thinking. “Our memories are not lost, they are split.”

“Then we must work together to-”

“No! It was because of thee that we were banished!” I threw her away from me with a blast of magic. “We shalt not fall for thy tricks so easily. Be gone!”

The dark alicorn drew herself to her full height and glared down at me. “You are a foal. This is no trick. I desire the truth as much as you do.”

“Likely story. Tell us, what else would a monster like thee say? We tire of thy presence.”

“No!” She slammed into me and all I knew was darkness.

I glanced over at Luna again as I ignored what Trixie was saying. Or at least I tried to. She had a voice that made not listening hard.

“Trixie demands that you light a fire this instant!” She shivered and wrapped her hooves around herself.

“No!” I snapped at her. “Fuck, how many times do I have to say it? We’re only half a day at best from that border post, and we have Princess fucking Luna lying unconscious right over there. If the people at the border decide to check out the smoke, then we’ve started a bloody war between Equestria and the Gryphon Kingdom, so quit your bitching.”

“But-”

“No!” I shouted. “You’re cold! Deal with it!” I turned back to the stream that I was watching. “Fuck.” I muttered.

Bloody Princess fucking Luna. Right after she reveals her plan to start a goddess damn war, she falls unconscious and leaves me alone with the world’s most annoying unicorn. So I had to drag her fat godly ass into the carriage and pull it myself to some tree cover. This being the Equestrian-Gryphon Kingdom border, the nearest forest of any kind is hours away, and there is no way I was just gonna camp us along the edge, so that was another few hours of dragging that bloody carriage through wooded terrain.

And all that Trixie could do was bitch and moan the entire time... While I did the work!

It’s a miracle we didn’t get bloody caught! Stupid, prissy, useless unicorn. Should have just ditched them and snuck back to Equestria.

And to think this was just the first day of this week? Maybe I should just run to the nearest settlement and take my chances with the law. ‘Bye Luna, good luck with your plan to kill thousands for a fucking nostalgia trip, make sure you gut Trixie for me!’

Ugh... I rubbed a palm over my eyes. At least the sun had finally set.

The sound of stirring made me glance left. “Ah, the fucking goddess has had enough of her beauty nap?” I asked the princess as she rolled onto her belly, eyes shut.

Without even opening her eyes, her horn glowed and a spectral blade was pressed against my throat. “It is a shame we have need for you, otherwise I would happily slit your throat. Luna may be a nice filly, too afraid to carry out any of her threats, but I most certainly am not. Speak to me like that again and you will find yourself missing a claw. And another, and another, and once I’ve run out of claws, I’ll start moving onto hands and feet. And then up to limbs. It’s a shame you’re not a male, castration is such a nice torture tool.” A pair of reptilian eyes stared at me. “Got that?”

I swallowed. I didn’t even need to ask. Whoever this was, it wasn’t Luna. That voice was... Fuck. No, I was not going to call that a bluff. Even Trixie seemed smart enough to not say anything. First fucking time that day. It wasn’t just her voice that was different, but her eyes as well, and was it just me or was her coat different too?

I nodded my understanding and the blade immediately turned to dust.

“Good, I am glad we have come an understanding. Continue to be useful and I promise not to touch a single hair on your pretty little head.” My mind immediately went to the loophole in that little promise - the fact that I did not have any hair on my head. “So, what are we having for dinner? Grass? Bleah. Oh well, I suppose we couldn’t risk a fire could we?”

There was a pause.

“So none of you are going to be stupid and go, ’Who are you?’ That’s a shame. I had an entire speech planned.”

“Uh... Nightmare, right?” I said after an expectant pause.

“Nightmare!? You mean she was real?”

I gave her my best ‘shut the fuck up look.’ before saying to her, “Trixie, shut the fuck up.”

“Spoilsport, you ruined all my fun,” purred Nightmare as she brushed up against me sensually. “I had such delightful ways of making her scream my name planned.”

Is it wrong my mind went straight to the closet? Oh, goddesses I was regretting all those ravaging jokes. Calm down Gilda, get your mind back on track. You’ve been in worse situations before. Oh wait a second, no I haven’t.

I stepped away from her cautiously. “Well I think screaming might bring some gryphon soldiers down on us and I think that’s a bit more important than just a little fun, right?”

“The more the merrier!” Okay, that grin was a bit too wide for my liking. “But I suppose you are right.”

Oh fuck me, a filly was saying this! A filly wanted to have an orgy with me! Oh goddesses no!

Then I realized it was a goddess that was saying this to me. Fuck. I’m glad I was never very religious. This is the sort of shit that you read about in the comic section of the newspaper.

The sound of cracking bones snapped my attention back to the insane filly murder god. “You have no idea how nice it is to have a body again. I’ve missed this so much.” She took a deep breath and shivered in delight. “Now I suggest you all get some rest, and don’t worry, I won’t tie you down in your sleep or anything like that. I’ll take guard duty tonight.”

There was a flash of light and a pair of short swords appeared before her. From the way she swung them, it was clear she knew exactly what she was doing. Nothing fancy, none of that stupid twirly crap. Every move was designed to kill or hamper an enemy.

“Hm... slightly rusty, but nothing a couple of hours practice won’t fix up.” She turned back us. “Get some sleep.”

I swallowed hard. Yeah, like that wouldn’t be hard. “Uh... Nightmare? Uh... what is it that we’ll be needing our rest for?” I quickly added, “Just askin’.”

“The guard did say the quarantine was because there were monsters around.” A small smile danced on her lips at that. “And we’ve got another day’s travel before we reach the plains so you will need a full night’s sleep to keep up.”

“Alright, so... If you plan on uh... seeing your old temple again then what do you need us for?” I was still looking for a way out of this. Maybe I could still get back to Equestria, find Dash and let her know that Nightmare’s back. Then she’d get the Elements, do whatever the hell it was they did last time, and this time cut the bitch’s throat as well.

“Please, the Elements did not work the first time, so what makes you think they would work now?”

Did she just read my mind!?

“Yes, yes I did. Luna and Celestia are too... urgh, nice to use their magic. They are scared of their magic, as though it will eat them up or something. Silly fillies really. Now stop thinking of ways of escaping, it’s not as though I’m going to start a war or something. Please, Celestia is the face of Equestria, but I am the one that does whatever’s necessary to keep the peace. If I could organize the assassination of Black Eyes chief Virionzo without the gryphons ever finding out, I can do this in my sleep.” She took a bite of her dinner. “Oh, and I promise to not use the whole feather loophole thing. Geez, paranoid much?”

“So... um... Trixie assumes you’re not going to bring about eternal night?”

Does she want to die or something? Fuck, I’d kill her.

“Do I look as though I can bring about eternal night?”

Internally I breathed a sigh of relief. Heck, the Gryphon Kingdom practically formed because the tribes had grouped together to stop eternal night. I knew because of my connections with- Shit! She’s reading my thoughts again. Think of something else, anything else. Uh... My mind went back to the promises of ravaging, and despite the blush on my face I was grateful.

“Right, so we’ll need our rest then!” I clapped my claws together. All the while she was looking at me and trying her hardest not to laugh. “Trixie, it’s time to sleep just like the nice uh... Goddess asked.”

“Trixie is in agreement. We’ll need our rest for...” she paused unsure what to say.

“Tomorrow,” I finished for her with a nervous grin. Oh, I knew she said she hadn’t planned on starting a war, but I really didn’t want, ‘helped Nightmare start a war’ on my tombstone. That was assuming there was enough left of me to bury.

I turned and made my way back towards the carriage. Oh goddesses, what had I gotten into? Nightmare wanted something. Everyone has an angle. I’m not a cynic like some I know, so I don’t think everyone is selfish, but in this case I had no doubt whatever she wanted wasn’t nice and flowery. Fuck, I always hated nice and flowery, but now I’d do anything to be back in Equestria. No-no. Mind back on track. Remember what you were taught. Focus, everyone has an angle. You just need to try and figure out hers. Once you know what they want, you can begin to make a plan; a plan that she’ll read straight from your head, but still, plans are good.

What does she want?

“Gilda,” Trixie spoke. “Trixie has to ask if this sort of thing has happened before. You know Luna, right?” She’s stopped on the first step of the carriage.

“No, I met her today, just like you.” I frowned. “Trixie, just... get some sleep and try not to think of... anything that might piss her off.”

She nodded after a moment and climbed up into the carriage. Knowing her she’d probably think of something that would get us murdered in our sleep.

After a moment I followed her in and lay there on the bench across from her, near the front of the carriage and tried to think of anything that could be useful. I kept coming back to ‘hope Luna comes back, then cut her throat,’ but I knew that was dumb. I lay there with my claws behind my head and stared up at the ceiling. As to what she wanted, the most I could figure out was Luna’s temple. Why’d she want that? I was drawing a blank.

It had to be an hour before I finally started to drift off to sleep. Fuck. This week looked bad before. Now it looked like I’d have trouble surviving it. And that was before Nightmare showed up. After a while I eventually gave up planning, and my thoughts went to Dash. Goddesses, to think she left me. What was the last thing I said to her?

“When you decide not to be lame anymore, give me a call...” I muttered to myself. Fuck, those weren't just bad last words, they were weak ones too. Shit. I hoped I’d see Dash again one day. I mean, even if that pink bitch that fucked everything was there, I’d at least like to see Dash again.

I almost laughed to myself when realized that if I died here then I’d definitely never find Calisto. Huh, like I was making any headway with that anyway. Goddesses, I missed him.

Eventually my mind slowed and I found myself thinking of nothing. Sleep finally crept up on me then.

When I woke up it was still a bit before sunrise. I woke up just because it was the sort of schedule I’m used to, I guess. I hopped out of the carriage and landed on the ground before arching my back for a stretch and flexing my wings. I yawned as I did so and shut my eyes. When I opened them I looked up and noticed Nightmare staring at me with a coy smile on her face.

I immediately straightened and swallowed nervously. Fuck, that filly freaks me out. She didn’t say anything, just turned and went back to... whatever in Tartarus it was she was doing.

I turned around and made my way back to the side of the carriage and knocked on the door. Trixie didn’t answer so I opened it and saw her still lying asleep on her back. She looked comfortable, and I had to admit I got little kick out of grabbing her hoof and dragging her onto the floor.

“Whazat?” she sat bolt upright looking surprised and confused. “Who dares awaken the Great and-”

I clamped her mouth shut with my claw. “Shut the fuck up Trixie.”

At first her eyes were outraged, but then she seemed to remember the situation we were in.

“Say that great and powerful shit with Nightmare out there and she might just cut your tongue out,” I warned.

She nodded slowly.

“Alright, I’ve been thinking and... well we might just be better off with Nightmare here than Luna.”

“In what possible way could we be better off with the Nightmare Moon than Princess Luna?” she asked sounding disbelieving.

“Luna was an idiot,” I answered. “Fuck, she was ready to start a war for no reason at all. At least Nightmare appears to want to keep things quiet, and on top of that, she actually seems like she knows what she’s doing. I mean, Luna signed her own papers to cross the border. Name a single person you know that’s had their citizenship papers approved by a princess? I was actually hoping the border guards would have noticed that and turned her around for forgery or whatever. Nightmare seems less... not arrogant I guess, but she seems to acknowledge that she can’t just do whatever the fuck she wants.”

She nodded slowly. “Trixie sees your point.”

“I say just do what she says for now, not like we had much choice in that anyway, and hope that her plan doesn’t involve us too much.”

“But what about stopping her?” Trixie asked. “Shouldn’t we-”

“You want to go out there and try something?” I interrupted her. “Be my guest, I’ll try not to laugh while she pull’s your guts out your ass.”

She went pale at that. “Trixie see’s your point.”

I nodded and turned to the carriage door. “Oh, and try not to speak in third person again. If it makes me want to kill you, you can bet Nightmare feels the same way.” I didn’t take the time to listen to her answer before I stepped out of the carriage.

“Are you two done planning my death yet?” Nightmare Moon asked as she sheathed her blades. “Does your armor and weapons fit?”

“I didn’t check,” I answered her. “But I’m not really sure I want a breast plate and wing guards anyway.”

“If you lose a wing, it’s your own fault then.”

That’s a good point. Maybe I should take the armor. “Uh, only if we’re going into a fight. I mean, if you want to do this quietly then rattling armor’s not the best choice.” I answered. Well, I hadn’t actually seen the armor Luna got me. If it was one of those big military issue breastplates with the heavy issue wing guards then I’d go without. But maybe if it was one of the smaller sleeker sets like they gave to scouts or Wide Eyes, then I’d use it.

Trixie stepped past me, and I hopped back in the carriage before opening the chest. Inside was the set of black armor that Luna had mentioned. I moved that and found the breastplate.

I took it out and examined it. Huh, guess when a goddess is paying the bills they don’t skimp on quality. It wasn’t a war plate, which was good, but it wasn’t quite a scout plate either. It wasn’t decorated and gaudy like a war plate, but it didn’t have the sleek practical look of the smaller scout plate. There had once been a clan symbol on the front, but that had been scratched off. I’d prefer just a plain old scout set, but in the absence of that, this’d do. The whole thing was extremely well made. Perhaps a bit too shiny, but a little dried mud would fix that.

I put it aside and took out the wing guards. I had no idea what the hell these were. I guess they might have been pegasus royal guard armor, except converted for a gryphon’s wing span. They were oily black and made of one solid piece. As I held it in my hands I felt it bend and flex in my grip like rubber, but it felt cool and metallic in my claws. Hefting it, I realized it was way lighter than any wing guards I’d ever held. Or maybe that was just my memory; I was a fair bit younger the last time I held proper wing guards.

I put those down on top of the breast plate before I took out the clawed gauntlets. They were normal for claw guards, but they were made of a darker metal than most. Some kind of black steel? I don’t know, but I put them on and flexed them in my grip. I was more used to fighting with just my claws, but I knew the technique was the same so I wasn’t worried about that. They were the right size, which was good, but I was a little worried about how Luna got them to fit so perfectly. They didn’t creak or whine as I twitched my fingers.

I reached over and grabbed the weird rubber metal wing guards and tried to scratch them with the claws. Nope, nothing. Not a mark. This was some high quality gear. I put on the wing guards, which also fit better than I was comfortable with. I strapped on the plate and twisted around a bit. Yep, also fit. What the heck? Did she magically adjust these or something?

Shaking my head I stepped out of the carriage, Nightmare and Trixie were waiting for me. “Yeah they fit.” I said to her. “Really fu-” I cut myself off and started again. “Really well too, which is weird.”

Nightmare simply smiled in reply as she watched my actions approvingly. “That is good, the correct fitting equipment is important after all.”

I nodded in agreement, but couldn’t shake the feeling she was saying more with that sentence then I was picking up on. “Uh, it’s all a bit shiny though, so I’m gonna muddy it up later and I’m not marching all day in this shi-” I coughed. “I’m not marching in this all day, so I’ll just leave it back in the chest.” I don’t know if she really cared about whatever I did, but I didn’t want to do anything that’d make her go murdery on me so I decided it’d be best to let her know what I was doing before I did it.

“It would best if you kept it on. That way if we are caught unawares you will already be prepared. Weapons are meant to get dirty, armor on the other hoof? If you’re lucky and good, not so much. Keep them in good condition, and if I catch even a bit of rust on them, you will get the pleasure of being my sparring partner. I will not have you mistreat such equipment.”

I had no reason to believe a sparring session would be any fun for me. “Uh, I don’t think there’s much risk of us getting ambushed. But alright I’ll keep the armor on. Though if we’re gonna do any sneaking, I’m taking it off or tinting it.”

“Your stupidity, your death,” shrugged the alicorn. “Come, we have a long day ahead of us.”

Stupidity? Yeah well fuck you too. I don’t know about your version of stealth, but mine doesn’t involve getting caught because of sun or torch light glinting on steel. This isn’t the first time I’ve jumped the border illegally, I know my gryphon army routines. I’m less worried about me getting us caught and more about you, miss Queen of the Loud Obnoxious Multiple-Personality Filly Sex-Fiend Gods .

That was what I wanted to say, but I had no doubt that if I said that I’d probably end up dead. I wonder if she really can read my mind? Is she gonna punish me for the shit I think?

“Probably not, your thoughts amuse me too much,” she replied over her shoulder. “Now stop staring at my flank and get moving.”

Well that answers that question. And I wasn’t staring at her flank. Please, the bitch shouldn’t flatter herself. I’d never look like that at a filly. I mean fuck. In the Gryphon Kingdom pedophiles get quartered, if they’re lucky. But then I suppose she wasn’t a filly. Whatever, her flanks was too damn scrawny anyway.

“Keep telling yourself that.” She cocked an eyebrow back at me before tilting her head to the side. “Unless you’re saying you prefer fat flanks of course, in which case I believe Celestia is more up your alley.”

Fuck, this mind reading thing sucks. Get out of my head bitch!

Whatever. I knew that wasn’t happening anytime soon, so I tried not to think of anything that’d give the bitch another chance to make fun of me again. As I walked behind her I tried to turn to my thoughts to all the ways I’d murder the ponies I hate if I was a sick fuck. On the list were ponies like Blueblood for passing that tax for non-equines, Trixie for being an annoying fuck, Nightmare was only in third, Luna was more annoying than her, and number one on the list was that pink bitch from Ponyville. I won’t go into details, but her death involved some shit that I’d heard the Wide Eyes used for interrogation.

That amused me for a while, but lost its charm fairly quickly, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that maybe Nightmare was enjoying it. I looked back over my shoulder and checked the position of the sun before glancing back in the direction of Equestria. Fuck. To think I only stuck with Luna because I wanted to get my head off what happened. Well, not only was it not working, I was now neck deep in shit that was only piling higher and higher. I know what I said to Trixie about Nightmare not being as bad as Luna, but that was crap to make her not do anything stupid. I had no idea what Nightmare wanted. All I could do was pray that it didn’t involve us, but honestly prayer isn’t much good when it’s a deity that’s your problem.

Fuck, I hope I’ll get out of this alive. But then there was that thing Calisto used to love to tell me. I said his words aloud and they felt empty without his deep voice behind it. “Hope ain’t a plan.”

From up ahead, Nightmare burst out laughing. “Hope, love, friendship - useless! You would not believe how many have stood before me claiming those virtues only to be burnt to a crisp. I’m glad you have learnt that lesson. Only fools rely on hope. To win a war, one needs not hope. To win a war, one needs a cunning plan and when that is impossible, overwhelming force.”

Chapter 3

The wet grass felt cold against my back paws as I sat there waiting for... whatever the fuck it was Nightmare was waiting for. The sun had set and the cold had brought up dew, making the once dry plain really damn moist. It wasn’t cold enough to frost, which was good because that stuff crunches under your claws and makes stealth harder. Mind you it makes tracking real easy, but that wasn’t my biggest worry right now. My front claws were wet too, but at least my talons were protected a bit.

I breathed out and it frosted over. Fuck Nightmare. Just fuck her.

I was glad Trixie had the good sense to stay quiet, but I wasn’t too happy with my equipment for whatever it was we were meant to be doing. Claw guards are great and all, but when it came to blocking sword strikes you might as well try blocking a baseball bat with the palm of your hand. Not to mention they had less reach than a sword, and made handling anything complicated real tricky. I mean I’d rather have them than not, but still. Not great. I suppose if you get in close and keep attacking you can out maneuver a heavier blade, but that meant you had to get closer to the guy that was trying to kill you. At least if I had a knife I could throw it or something, even if that only worked when the guy wasn’t wearing armor.

Fuck, I’m whining inside my own brain. I hope Nightmare can hear this and it bugs the heck out of her or something.

“Is it just Trixie, or is there too little action. There are so many buildings, but next to no lights on apart from those at the gate.”

“Military curfew maybe,” but that sounded like crap even to me. Even if a curfew was in effect and the soldiers were maintaining light and noise discipline for some reason, there’d be other sounds and sights. At the very least, on a cold night like tonight there should be smoke coming from at least some of the chimneys. I didn’t like this at all.

“Agreed.” With her eyes closed, Nightmare’s horn glowed and the dew drops floated off the ground to form a pool before her. It slowly faded to translucence before shifting and giving us a bird’s eye view of the camp. It looked like it was an excavation site or some shit, carved into the cliff face was a massive hole lined with what seemed like support structures. Despite the dim light and fuzzy picture, I could just see columns carved from stone or something.

“That is amazing, but the Great and Powerful Trixie could do it in her sleep.”

Oh, for fuck’s sake Trixie. You’re not convincing anyone, just shut up and at least try to keep some kind of dignity? I didn’t say that to her because I figured she’d argue with her annoying stage voice, which would be bad because it’d carry over the distance.

All of a sudden, the pool of water collapsed in on itself and fell to the ground with a splash. Nightmare swayed dangerously on her hooves and just managed to catch herself before she face-planted in the grass.

“I am sorry, I did not expect that spell to take so much out of me.” She rubbed her temples. “Did you two manage to get a good look as to what’s going on in there?”

“Yeah,” I answered her. Why, did she not see it herself or something? Or was that for our benefit or what?

“Enough to get us in undetected?” asked Nightmare.

“Trixie can just cast an illusionary disguise.”

“Best to save your magic in case we need it. Relying on magic is a bad idea,” replied Nightmare before turning to me. “So?”

I glanced over at Trixie. She’d be a problem; her bright blue coat would stand out even if she left behind her purple cloak and hat. We’d have to rely on heavy shadows and avoid sentries, because camouflage was out of the question. Nightmare had a dark blue coat which still wasn’t great, but not as bad. Even I wasn’t very good for blending in with my steel plated armor. I looked back towards the mass of buildings and thought about what I’d seen in the mirror. I hadn’t seen any sentries, which was... weird to say the least. In my head I thought about where I’d put the sentries if I was the commander, and constructed a little map in my head of what I’d seen in the... water pool thing.

“Scrying spell, though I assure you, it was far more complex than some basic parlor trick version of the spell.”

Great, just great. Like I needed that little reminder she was in my brain. Get the fuck out of my head bitch! Whatever, I went back to thinking about how to break in.

“Yeah, alright. I think we can do it but...” I didn’t say it. I’d rather do this alone, but really the only reason I had to go in there was Nightmare wanted me to, and I doubted she’d trust me enough to give me free reign like that. Heck, I wouldn’t trust me if I was her.

“You do realize I won’t kill you if you say something.” Trixie actually gulped when she heard this; at least someone was sharing my misery.

“Well Trixie noticed that most of the guards were positioned by the ruin entrance. It seems they are more concerned with keeping guard over that than the entrance to their compound.”

I’m surprised that she spotted that. It didn’t really make much sense though. This was just a dig site right? I didn’t trust the spell enough to really believe that the compound was completely empty of soldiers, but that might just be the little Calisto in the back of my head telling me to be careful. Whatever, whether the town was empty or not, it’d be dumb to just walk through once we get past that gate.

It was really weird that there only seemed to be guards at the gate, but fuck it. If they were gonna make it easy for us I could think of a few ways to slip in without getting spotted. Whether anyone was there or not.

“Very well then, take the lead,” commanded Nightmare. “We are in your hooves.”

Fuck, pony phrases. Hooves this, hooves that, whatever. I idly wondered how far Nightmare really trusted me with this, as I signaled the two of them to follow me. I moved back down the ridge we were atop, and padded around the bottom of the small hill.

It was a fairly dark night with cloud cover, so that meant the guards in the tower would be fire-blinded. I guess I have an audience in my head now, so for the benefit of you Nightmare, fire-blinded means when they’re in the light they have a harder time seeing things outside the light.

“I am not a foal,” she hissed in my ear. “I acted as the commander for Equestria’s army when I was in power. However We hath no practical experience with sneaking.”

I think I was starting to get used to this whole ‘in your head,’ gig. If she was gonna be there I could annoy the fuck out of her while she was. I immediately started singing Ninety Nine Bottles in my head. Maybe she’d get the tune stuck in her head. Fuck, that was a bad plan because now it was stuck in mine.

I shook my head and refocused my attention on the sentries. Gryphons have great vision, so even fire-blinded I didn’t want to risk crossing their sight lines. I led us on a long circular route away from the gate of the compound before taking us in closer to the wall. When we arrived I glanced over my shoulder at Nightmare, and checked her wing span. Fuck, those were way bigger than any pegasus I knew. Whatever, Nightmare if you’re in my head, you’ve got big wings so be careful not to flap them. Alright? Don’t answer with your voice, just nod your head.

She nodded in response.

Alright, good. Also, get the fuck out of my head.

I knew that wasn’t happening so I returned my attention to the wall in front of me. It wasn’t very tall, but it was a bit too high for me to leap, and I didn’t want to fly over because both mine and Luna’s wings were really big, meaning flight would be too loud.

I flexed my claws and began to climb the wooden posts of the makeshift wall. The claw guards helped bite into the wood, and pretty soon I was at the top. I peeked over the wall, and saw no one in sight. Still, I’d rather be safe than sorry. That was another one of those things Calisto used to love to tell me.

Holding on with one hand I looked back down at Nightmare and Trixie, and held my claw down for them. They just stared at it blankly for a second before I realized they didn’t know what I wanted them to do. I rolled my eyes. This is why I wanted to do this alone. Less baggage. Also, the maybe escaping thing.

Nightmare, I need you to toss Trixie up to me. I’m gonna catch her hoof and sling her over the wall. Then you do the same and I’ll toss you over as well.

She smirked evilly and grabbed Trixie. Before the unicorn knew what had happened she was already being tossed into the air like a bag of potatoes. To my surprise, Nightmare backed up before charging forward. Leaping forward, her hooves hit the wall with a dull thud and she kicked off, easily grabbing hold of the top of the wall and pulling herself up and over. She landed with a perfectly executed roll and caught Trixie as she came down.

Damn showoff. Whatever, you’re an idiot. What would have happened if Trixie screamed? I pulled myself on top of the fence and balanced there, taking advantage of my catlike agility. After a second I jumped off and landed with a similar roll. I glared at her but she just smirked and rolled her eyes.

Whatever, follow me.

I padded past the two of them, though Trixie looked like she was freaking out. I paused just long enough to hold a talon to my beak in the universal ‘shut the fuck up Trixie’ pose. And yes I know she hadn’t said anything. She didn’t have to.

I’m just glad she didn’t scream when that happened. I’d expected Nightmare to give her a warning or something, not just toss her while we’re on a stealth mission. Fucking amateurs. Have to say though, props to Trixie for not screaming. I’m not sure I wouldn’t have in her place. And no Nightmare, don’t get any ideas. We’re not testing that.

Fuck, I hate having you in my head. I’ve never had to watch my thoughts before. I hope you know how invasive this is. At least it hasn’t been as embarrassing as it could’ve. She hasn’t caught me thinking about the different times I had sex or whatever. I mean, it’d be really fucking bad if Nightmare learned about my first time with-

No!! No! Bad brain! Fuck you Nightmare. I shut down that thought path with a slam.

I shook my head till it cleared and focused really, really, heavily on the task at hand. Even while my mind had been running its mouth I’d been leading us through town carefully; checking corners, smelling the air and keeping an ear out for any guard that might be near.

I didn’t hear, see, or smell a thing as I led the two ponies. It was freaking weird, where was everyone? I didn’t think there was anyone around to catch us, but I listened to the little Calisto in the back of my head and took no shortcuts.

It took a bit longer than it needed to to get closer to the dig site, but when we did I started to notice patrols and guards.

“How curious,” muttered Nightmare, “why so many guards here and none at the gate?”

“Something precious? In Trixie’s experience, the more guards present the more valuable an item is.”

“Both of you shut up!” I hissed at them. Geez, go through the entire town not saying a thing and when they see the guards they decide to talk. “If I wanted you quiet before, I especially want you quiet now.”

Nightmare Moon simply rolled her eyes, but said nothing. Whether it was fear of being caught or of the alicorn killing her, Trixie also kept her mouth shut. Maybe there was something to this whole intimidation deal after all...

I took a moment to watch all the guards and their movement. Most of them didn’t seem to be patrolling, just standing around and waiting for orders. After about a minute of memorizing their movements I turned back to the two of them. Hey Nightmare, if you’re in my head is there any chance of me doing this on my own?

She paused, and she looked like she was thinking about it. The fuck? Was she actually considering that? Is she really fucking dumb enough to let me, a gryphon with no loyalty to her, go out on my own among other gryphons for her sake? Was she completely retarde- My eyes widened as I realized she was hearing all this. No I mean, it’s a great idea. You should totally let me go in on my own. There’s no way it’s a bad move.

She simply rolled her eyes at my careless thinking before glaring at me. Seriously, I’d never had to worry about the shit I think before. How do you get used to that? I blinked in surprise when Nightmare smacked a hoof over the back of Trixie’s head. I smirked a bit at that. Glad to know I’m not the only one who has to watch their thoughts.

Alright, with my bloody brain having run its mouth again, and my chances of doing this the smart way ruined, I had to come up with a good plan to get the two noisy cubs through undetected. I didn’t like the chances of doing this with proper stealth, for you Nightmare that means a real slow and gradual approach with camouflage playing a big role. Moving forward between patrols and staying out of sight lines is a bad idea with all the off duty soldiers kicking around. I couldn’t predict where they’d look and the chances of one of them glancing at us when we had to cross open ground were just way too high.

“Then we take out the guards,” whispered a voice in my head.

My eyes widened and my back stiffened. Fuck... Nightmare, please don’t do that again. Fuck, it felt like someone was whispering right against my brain and I could feel their breath inside my skull.

She simply rolled her eyes and gestured with her hooves at the guards.

Look Nightmare, there’s a dozen guys out there. I haven’t seen you in a fight, but I promise you that at least one of us will die with those odds. You want me to pick them off one by one? Well I don’t know what you know about stealth, but in my experience that sort of shit is hard to do when you have professionals at your back, not some rookies. Plus, how the heck do you think Trixie’s gonna take it if we start killing them? She’ll freak out that’s how. There’s a way to do this without being a dumbass.

Nightmare replied with an exaggerated sigh then slammed her head against the ground a couple of times to get her point across before flicking her hooves at me.

Alright, alright geez. I tried to think of another way in. If we could get some of those unoccupied guards to clear off, then I could probably get us through. Maybe something like a fire in one of the cabins or...

Nightmare tilted her head to the side, causing Trixie to suddenly jump into the air and the only thing stopping her from making a sound was the hoof over her mouth. A couple seconds later, Trixie’s horn glowed and a hut on the other side of the camp burst into flames. Almost immediately an alarm was raised and guards began rushing off towards the fire.

What the- I was just spitballing! Not every thought I think is a good idea! I didn’t have a chance to weigh up why that’d been a bad idea. I was feeling exasperated to say the bloody least. Fucking Nightmare!

The dark alicorn smirked at that comment and shot a smoldering look, complete with eyelash battering in my direction.

My brain shut down. For a second no thoughts entered my head other than some joke about dropping the soap.

All I got in response was a curious tilt of the head as though she had no clue what I was talking about. Then, she gave me a nudge in the direction of the entrance. Before I could react, there was a loud explosion and all our eyes snapped over to the right.

It took me a second to get over my shock. I damn near screamed with frustration. Damn it Nightmare! Why’d she even ask me to take us in quietly if she was just gonna go blow shit up anyway!

“GET A MOVE ON!”

You know what it’s like having someone scream in your ear? Well have you ever had that inside your head? Neither had I...

I signaled for them to follow me and began to dart forwards, circling us left and staying out of the sight of all the guards. All their attention was focused elsewhere, thanks to Little Miss Silence is Golden, but I knew this situation wasn’t going to last. The moment they put out that fire this whole place would be like a kicked anthill.

There were a few guards still on patrol, and a few guards who hadn’t run off after the fire. They were being extra twitchy now. Checking their blind spots and keeping an eye on the shadows. I paused for a second to consider our options. Maybe we could take them out, but that’d leave us with zero chance of a clean getaway.

After a second I had a route planned-

Three black bolts suddenly slammed into each of the guards, sending them to the ground in a crumpled mess. Calmly walking over to them, Nightmare shoved them into one of the dark corners and looked back at us serenely, all the while staying in the shadows.

My eye twitched. No. Just no. That did not happen. Me thinking did not make three gryphon soldiers die. No, she knocked them unconscious or something right? I wasn’t fooling myself. Fuck, don’t think about it now. Cause my thoughts get innocents killed, apparently.

I grabbed Trixie’s cloak, ‘cause she was too in shock to do anything and drag-dashed us through the shadows over to Nightmare. Without pausing for thought, I moved past her and led us into the ruins entrance. The moment we were inside and out of sight, and without taking the time to think it through, I spun around and slammed my fist into Nightmare’s face. She stumbled back a step before slowly turning her head to look at me. Then, without a single word or any form of acknowledgement, she strolled past as though nothing had happened.

I grit my jaw and fell in behind her. That was not my fault. It’s not my fault that I thought about killing them and they died. It’s on fucking Nightmare’s shoulders. Fuck. I don’t get caught up over guilt or self-doubt, but I was feeling shaken to say the least. She killed them so easily, it was... Fuck. Killing isn’t some shit you should do lightly. My thoughts just killing the three of them like that was...

No. I don’t blame myself for this. I shook my head and cleared my thoughts, before pulling ahead of Nightmare. We were in a big wide hall, and there were no guards insight, but I could hear more up ahead so I slowed us down. Trixie’s hooves were making a lot of sound against stone, because she was too in shock to try and walk quietly. Shit, she was a problem. If she doesn’t snap out of it w-

A loud snap echoed through the room as Nightmare Moon slapped the showmare. There was a stunned silence as we all stared in disbelief before Trixie seemed to puff up in self-importance, turn her nose up and began walking forward a lot more silently than before. Did I just miss a brain to brain chat or something?

And just when it was completely impossible for the situation to get worse, it did. There was a flash of light and a sheathed sword appeared along Nightmare’s back along with a pair of daggers along her forelegs. Oh fuck me. I silently prayed to any goddesses or elders that were listening that Nightmare seriously wasn’t going to kill everyone around. What happened to not starting a fucking war!

Three gryphons were dead, but if she took down anymore, then even if we somehow got away with no witnesses and left no trace that we did it, the Gryphon Kingdom would go to war with whomever the fuck they laid eyes on. The whole army would go apeshit.

She pouted. The crazy, murderous filly actually pouted. Oh, I’m sorry about popping that little fantasy of your about killing everyone here. Fuck, the filly was pouting like a foal because she didn’t get to massacre everything in sight. I’d hate to see what she’d have to miss out on before she has a temper tantrum. Genocide? Giant blood orgy? Nod when I’m getting closer.

Nightmare sighed and kept walking forwards, her sword drawn in a defensive stance. As far as I could tell she knew how to use it. Hey, Nightmare, just checking, but you know to stick the sharp end into the guy you want dead, right?

With a flick of her blade, two feathers drifted down before my eyes.

I decided to take that as a yes. I ran a claw over my head. Ah... fuck. Those were crown feathers too. Those things take ages to grow. Whatever. I’m still surprised she hadn’t killed me after I slogged her in the face. Heh. That’d felt good.

I led us up some stairs and through the ruins as best as I could. I didn’t know the layout of the place, so I was building a map in my head as I went.

“Wait.” I looked over at Nightmare who was gazing at a wall with a frown. “This way.”

Stepping forward, she began walking down a side corridor and after half a dozen twists and turns, we found ourselves in what looked like a study. There were rotted desks and bookshelves and scrolls that had long since faded to dust. For a brief second her head swung left and right before she nodded to herself and walked over to one of the bookshelves. With a mighty shove, it was forced to the side, revealing a gaping hole. It looked like it had blasted apart using brute force. It was Trixie’s gasp that drew my attention to what actually lay beyond the hole - a dozen charred remains.

These corpses were new too. I could still smell burning feathers and feel the heat hanging around in the air. My eyes widened as I noticed their armor and weapons were still glowing hot. The fuck?

“Magical traps,” commented Nightmare before tilting her head to the side. “Created by me or by Luna? How curious. Considering we caught some would-be raiders, I would say the precautions were justified. Best be cautious.”

After a second I got over my shock. “You remember all the traps right?” I asked as I eyed up the crispy roast gryphon.

Actually, the dead soldiers might work in our favor. With luck, they might assume the dead gryphons that were Nightmare’s work got caught in some magic trap... Nah that was dumb. Maybe if we moved them into the temple or... Shit we didn’t have time. No, our best bet was still get out before they find us.

“Perhaps, perhaps not. We shall know once one of us dies.” Well that fills me with fucking confidence. The alicorn’s ear twitched. “Guards coming. Trixie, some invisibility spell would be useful right about now.”

“Finally! Trixie was tired of being the side show. Behold, the majesty of the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

I waited a moment for something. Instead of that, nothing happened. Not a bloody thing happened.

I knew she was useless at stealth, but when she can’t even do the magic we brought her along for... “Trixie, what fu-”

Magic tendrils wrapped around my beak, effectively shutting me up.

“Silence,” hissed Trixie. “The spell will hide us visually, but not audibly.”

What? She needed to cast the fucking spell for it to... Oh! Riiiight... I held a talon up in front of my face. Yep. Couldn’t see it. Yeah, duh. Of course an invisibility spell wouldn’t be any use if it made a flash or a pop when you cast it. Sorry I doubted you Trix. Good thing she can’t hear my thoughts, or she’d be pissed about all the crap I said about her in my head. This way, I don’t have to apologize or something.

Some more gryphon soldiers came into view, moving into the study and fanning out. They noticed the displaced bookshelf, and some of them began to move towards the hole in the wall. I carefully padded backwards away from them as they approached, and as I glanced around I could only hope that Nightmare and Trix were doing the same thing.

One of the guards peeked into the hole and immediately turned away, throwing up on the ground, just inches from my feet. Bloody pussy ass greenie. I looked up at the other guards who all had varying degrees of shock plastered all over their face. Well... apart from one of course. I noticed the clan symbol on his breast plate, a Great Scars and judging from the insignia on his shoulder pads, a sergeant major too. Yeesh, a Great Scars sergeant? Living stereotype much?

He gazed at the hole sadly, but otherwise didn’t seem at all phased by the reveal. I made sure to etch his face into my memory for future reference. Tough veteran, probably served on tours in places like Zebrica or Grazia, used to the kind of magical warfare that gryphons are totally outclassed in.

“Filvario, I want you to locate the lance corporal on rear guard and tell them we have a breach. Tell them to get their asses down here. The rest of you, get back to your posts. Mention this to anyone and I will personally strip you of your name and clan. Got that?”

Fuck. This was some serious shit if he was ready to do that to someone just for talking. Just what in the name of bloody fuck was going on with this place?

Not a single soldier made a comment and did exactly what they were told. I didn’t blame ‘em. A clan strip sucks. Death was better than that. They all filed out of the room and returned to whatever it was they’d been doing before they came in here.

The hardass stayed though, and lowered himself to the ground as he reached behind himself for a little pouch of powder. I recognized the little leather sack as zebra powders. Yep, this guy served in Zebrica alright.

“Move! Through the hole, we need to get out of here!” Seemed like Luna recognised it as well. “Damn it Trixie, faster!”

I moved forwards past him silently, and I didn’t know if Trixie and Nightmare were in front of me or behind. He raised the powder into the air and tossed it up before dipping his claws into a second powder bag as he began chanting. Not good. Really not good!

“If you’re going to walk into some pony I’ll let you know, but stop scurrying along like some scared mouse and fucking move it!”

She just swore! Hah! The fucking goddess cursed... Wow it’s weird where my mind goes while I’m doing shit. Like, now I’m all but running away from the hardass, but I’m still taking the time to go over how fucking hilarious it was that I broke a goddesses composure with just my thoughts. I wasn’t moving fast enough to make a sound though, and I really had to wonder how fast Nightmare and Trixie could possibly be moving given that I hadn’t heard them yet and they had hooves. Whatever, it didn’t matter. They had to be moving fast enough or we were fucked.

We rounded a corner and only just made it away in time for the purple haze to fill the air behind us. I held my breath, watching as it hung there for a second before slowly drifting to the ground. There were no flashy lights, no sudden outline of a pony, no strange mystical, mumbo-jumbo crap. I didn’t know what he was looking for, but considering the way he relaxed, it was obvious he didn’t find anything.

A screamed echoed through the tunnel and my eyes snapped forward. Damn, no sudden appearance of Trixie’s dead body. The scream came again and a shudder crawled up my spine. I’ve heard and seen some pretty gruesome shit in my life, but that noise sounded- Another shudder. Stop thinking about it. I needed to stop thinking about it. I’m glad I couldn’t see whatever the fuck was happening to that unlucky bastard.

Another voice joined in on the screaming and I saw a faint wavering of the air before me. By the time it came again, the invisibility spell dropped completely and I could see Trixie and Nightmare Moon before me. The showmare looked as though she was about to roll over and puke then die or something.

The scream came again. If I was a pony I’d fold my ears back and block out those sounds. I didn’t want to hear them again. I didn’t even want to imagine what was happening to that poor fucker. Just focus on putting one claw before the next.

Yet another voice joined them. Then a third. Then a forth.

And then there was crying. Glancing back over my shoulder, my eyes widened as the bookshelf was moved back into place, cutting off all light. For a second we were left in absolute darkness then glyphs began glowing on the wall, pulsating in a goddess damned freaky blue light show. I turned my attention back to the hallway before me, and there stood Nightmare with her eyes closed, a calm look on her face as her horn glowed. All of a sudden, a wall emerged from the ground, cutting off our way forward and a passage opened to the right. All around us, I could see the walls shifting position and changing. All of a sudden she wavered on her hooves and leaned heavily against the wall, beads of sweat trailing down her neck as her body trembled.

“Nightmare, what the fuck is happening?” I spoke out loud because I knew we wouldn’t be heard by the hardass outside between the grinding and shifting stones.

Nightmare just seemed to ignore my question as she forced herself back onto her hooves. “I do not know how far they’ve managed to penetrate into my sanctuary, but I remember enough to hopefully get us there first.” Begging moans echoed towards us. “We need to hurry. There is something here that should not be here. I...” She pressed a hoof to her temple before her head snapped to the side as though looking at someone. “Monsters? Are you certain?”

“Monsters?” I repeated. “What fucking monsters?” Here I thought that Nightmare was the scariest thing I’d have to deal with.

“Something we remember from a long time ago.” Her frown deepened. “Neigh, not remember, more like a dream of a memory. We remember arriving at a town, ransacked and dead, half eaten ponies littering the street. We remember ponies with crooked horns and bat like wings and so much muscle they no longer looked like creatures of the day. We remember ponies being killed, raped, and eaten - hopefully in that order. We remember their cat-like eyes full of lust and animalistic instinct with no fear or remorse. We remember-”

She swayed on her feet and this time she completely collapsed, as a pained expression came across her face. “We- We remember... We remember...” Her eyes rolled back and her entire body slumped over.

I didn’t rush forward to help her or anything like that, I just padded closer and poked her in the shoulder. “Nightmare?” I asked. I hope that shit she was saying about monsters was just her being crazy but... Yeah, I doubted it. If the goddess was telling me monsters were around, then I bet monsters.

She stirred slightly, but it was only when Trixie dumped cold water over her face that the alicorn’s eyes finally snapped open. I‘d sort of hoped that they might’ve switched over again and we’d be back to good old dumbass Luna, but nope. When those eyes opened it was the reptilian look of the insane evil filly with a pumped up sex drive. Damn it. Why can’t I ever catch a fucking break?

“Nightmare?” I asked again. “You alright?” Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t care about her, it’s just she was our guide at the moment and we were probably gonna need her to get out of here alive. When I say we, I mean me. I wasn’t really worried if Trixie made it out or not.

“I’m fine.” She tried to stand up, only to sway unsteadily on her feet, “Merely used too much magic.”

“If you say so, what was that shit about monsters?” I asked glancing around the poorly lit room.

“Ha! Don’t tell Trixie the gryphon is scared of some scary story. Pathetic.” Horn glowing bright, Trixie took the lead with Nightmare leaning against her. “Come, we have secrets to discover. The Great and Powerful Trixie shall dazzle the world with secret teachings found in this place and she will not have you deny her that power.”

“Spoken like a true idiot,” I spat at her. “Fuck you Trixie. A monster isn’t some bedtime story that scares cubs and foals. A monster’s an idea. Ever seen a sleeping dragon? I’d call that a monster. Hunted a manticore? Monster. A pony with a twitch in their dead eyes as they laugh about every way they’re gonna fuck you. That’s a fucking monster. I mean for Tartarus sake, you have goddesses damn Nightmare Moon leaning on your shoulder, and you’re telling me that monsters don’t exist? If you are then you’re fucking retarded.”

The unicorn looked back at me with a scared little smile. “Trixie knows.”

I paused. “Good,” I said flatly... Fuck, I feel like an idiot. “Sorry, I fucking freaked out back there.” I muttered as I passed by her. But damn it, couldn’t she at least pick a less annoying way to deal with shit? Mine wasn’t so bad. I just swear a lot.

I stayed ahead of them and spoke over my shoulder, “So Nightmare. About these monsters...”

“We do not know. Our memory is fuzzy at best.” Nightmare blinked and cleared her throat. “I mean, my memories are not entirely accurate, after all, it has been over a thousand years. They die as easily as any mortal though.”

“That suits me just fine.” I muttered as I looked around us for anything. “They have a spine brain and heart, right? Veins and arteries, nerve clusters, the whole deal?”

Trixie looked sick.

“That is what I recall. All are pony in shape as well and seem to be modeled after ponies. Crooked horn is unicorn, therefore magic, bat wings are pegasi, therefore flight, the mass of muscle are earth ponies. I suggest staying on the cautious side, I do not remember how they fight, but according to Celestia, I ended up erasing the entire town from existence to stop them.”

“Alright,” I answered her. I swallowed nervously. Fuck, that did not sound good. “I can kill a pony.” Arteries in the neck and upper legs that bleed out real fast when cut. Leg joints that break real easy when hit right. Gap between their skull and spine were you can cut their spinal cord. “I can kill a pony,” I repeated to no one. “Are these the sort of things that’ll find us, or will we see them before they see us?”

“Who knows?” she replied with a shrug. “And you forgot about the artery along the wing. I’m personally more partial to hamstringing them myself. Reduced mobility means less chance of the-”

“You two are sick,” spat Trixie. “Monsters out there? Trixie is standing next to two right now. Trixie hopes you both burn in Tartarus and she can’t be rid of you soon enough.”

Fuck. I’m a monster?

“Heh, if you knew some of the sentients I’ve met.” I shook my head and chuckled. “I’m a bloody pussycat compared to some of the dead-eyed killers this world has.” I glanced at Nightmare.

“I am a monster? I am merely in touch with my primal instincts.” Well that sounded familiar. “The true monsters are those who repress their true selves.”

“Bullshit,” I told her. “You can self-justify it all you like, you can have all the reasoning in the world, but there are lines, and when they’re crossed that’s it.” I was very careful to keep my mind on the present. I was not going to let Nightmare see the shit that was bouncing around in the back of my brain. “And when you start to enjoy it? Then fuck it. You’re the monster.” Though I had to admit that I had a lot of fun that one time in-

Nope. Nopety nope. Nah. Not thinking of that. Nightmare is not seeing that. The stone beneath my claws is grey. My feathers are white, and my fur is brown. Nightmare’s coat is blue. Trixie’s coat is also blue, and when I’m thinking of this I can’t think of anything else.

“Still monsters,” growled Trixie. “And how much longer till we reach what we are looking for?”

“Soon,” Nightmare’s horn glowed and the runes pulsed, “Very soon. Two more corners if I’m remembering how to read this right.”

“Good. I can’t wait to get the fuck out of this place.” I glanced around at the dusty walls. I asked, “What are we here for anyway?”

Nightmare made no reply.

“Do you even know?” I looked at her. “You mentioned that shit about how you have half a memory or something.”

Still no reply.

“Hit the nail on the head didn’t I?” I smirked, “Great, fucking great. Killed three guards, almost got caught thanks to you amateurs and we’re probably gonna see some monsters, and you don’t even know why.”

“I did not kill three guards,” she whispered we reached a wall. Leaning forward, she inserted her horn into a hole in the wall and a wave of dark blue spread out. A second later, the wall dropped down and we walked in the room. The wall immediately closed up and Nightmare touched her hoof against the wall to her right and something looked like stars appeared, illuminating the room.

Both me and Trixie looked around at the light show. Trixie’s eyes were wide with wonder and even I had to feel a little mystified. Still, I can never resist running my beak.

“So, was that what we came for? The pretty light show?”

“No.” The lights brightened, revealing rows and rows of glass cylinders that reached the ceiling. Some were cracked, some were toppled over and some were full of some weird liquid and even had creatures in them. “That is what we came for.” She frowned. “I think.”

Once more, Trixie decided to throw up.

I looked out over the seemingly endless glass tubes and stared open beaked. Even I’d shut the fuck up. The creatures in the tubes were... oh goddesses. They were disgusting. Some were bloated sacks of muscle were their skin had torn open a thousand years ago. Their insides trailing perfectly preserved in whatever the fuck was in those tubes. Others were shriveled skeletons with misshapen legs and eyes that had turned an ivory yellow inside their head. One of them had bloated forelegs, and shrunken hindquarters. A few of the tubes just had skeletons in them, and for that I was glad.

I couldn’t blame Trixie for throwing up.

And one of them just opened its eyes.

“Guys, some of these things aren’t dead,” I said and my voice sounded scared even to me. “What the fuck is this?”

The thing was still staring at us, its eyes moving from one of us to the next. It was like no pony I ever saw. It had bat wings! Freaking bat wings! A unicorn’s horn sat on its head, though it was cracked and oddly discolored. Its coat was patchy and a dark navy blue. There was a ponies cutie mark on its flank. A telescope. Fucking Tartarus, this thing used to be a pony with a cutie mark in astronomy or something. A few wisps of purple mane floated in the liquid around it, the same colour as my crown feather tips or the patches around my eyes. It’s eyes were the same colour as mine too, golden yellow.

As it gazed back at me, I realized that I recognized that look in its eyes. I’d once looked something like that, starving and cold and wet. But here, there wasn’t just hunger and desperation. Here there was no restraint or hesitance, nothing but a primal animal that needed to kill and eat and breed. I was drawn into those eyes, my claws pulling me towards the tube. It bared its teeth as it watched me approach. It’s chewed on lips pulling back in something that almost looked like a sick smile. I took another step, my thoughts completely stopped and-

A silver blur flew past my head followed by shattering glass and the green fluid pouring out in all direction.

Suddenly, everything snapped into perspective and I spun around on my hind legs with my talons up. I saw it was Nightmare and caught myself. “What the fuck was that?” I still sounded shocked and frightened. “Fuck,” I added for no real reason as I glanced over my shoulder at the dagger sticking out of the thing’s forehead.

“That, is a dead creature,” said Nightmare over her shoulder. “Now help me look. There should be some kind of journal here.” An explosion rocked the room, sending dust raining down. “Hurry, they’re getting closer!”

I shook my head and ran over to help Nightmare. I paused just long enough to grab Trixie’s cape and drag her away too. Nightmare was standing at a bunch of desks that were near the wall. I began yanking open wooden doors and drawers that collapsed in my claws. Then I just started punching them open while Trixie still stood there like a fucking idiot. Not that I could blame her.

“Wouldn’t a journal just be dust anyway?” I asked as I flipped a desk over.

“Hardly. Now shut up and help me search.”

As I searched I was running through a series of curses and stringing them together in the most creative ways I could. It was what I did to keep my mind of things while they’re happening. Calisto had his own little mental exercise and he’d taught all of us to come up with our own. Mine was something I was good at.

I punched a hole in a cabinet and my claws closed over something square and hard. I yanked my arm back and pulled the door off. In my hand was a book with a leather cover and glowing runes coating its front. I flipped it open, but couldn’t read any of the language. As I flipped through the page a hoof band fell out. I stopped to pick it up, and held it up to the light. As far as I could tell it was made of gold, and there was a single diamond embedded in it. Surrounding the ring was a line of sapphires, and some old Equestrian was engraved beneath the diamond. it looked pretty expensive, and I thought I could hoc it for quick bits if I had to. I closed my talons around it and turned around.

“Hey Nightmare, is this it?” I said holding it out the journal to her and pulling the door off my arm. “It came with this.” I held up the ring.

She glanced at the ring before delicately taking it with her magic. Nightmare examined it with her brow furrowed before shrugging and tossing it away. Snatching the book it out of my claws, she began pouring through it before chucking it behind her. “It’s a decoy. Now where is it? It should be- Of course!”

I watched her run off to the back of the room before shrugging and picking the ring back up. Like I said, I could easily sell it for quick bits. Another explosion shook the entire place, dislodging some rubble and toppled the desk over. They were getting closer.

“What the fuck are you-”

“Ah ha!” There was a click and a secret door swung open. Dashing into the room, she reappeared a second later with a bound book. “Quickly, I shall teleport us out of here.”

Another explosion and I could see the flash of light coming from the corridor we came from. Without a second thought, we rushed over to Nightmare and pressed ourselves against her. I didn’t even make a joke this time, what’s wrong with me?

Instead of immediately teleporting us out of there though, her horn glowed and all the glass containers exploded. Sure, most of the creatures collapsed onto the ground, dead as can be, but some fell on their hooves and made a noise that sounded like nothing I’d ever heard.

“What the fu-”

There was a flash of light and we were out of there.

“-ck was that for!” I shouted at Nightmare. “Why the fuck did you release those things!”

“Agreed!” I was surprised when the unicorn actually slapped Nightmare across the face with her magic. “You are a monster.”

“Please, we needed something to keep them occupied so I gave it to them.”

“Didn’t you tell me how those things butchered a town or some shit!” I shoved her away from me and advanced towards her. “There were less than fifty soldiers in that temple. Do you really think that they’ll be able to take care of what had to be more than a hundred of those... whatever the fuck they were?”

To my surprise, Trixie was right beside me, backing me up.

“You know nothing,” hissed Nightmare. “If you’re so concerned about the monsters getting free, then fine!” Her horn began glowing, her eyes turned white and the entire ground began shaking uncontrollably.

“What-”

There was a sudden plume of dust from over the ridge and I rushed over to see what exactly had happened. There, where the excavation site once stood, was nothing more than a pile of rubble. She forced an avalanche.

“You... You just...” Tears streaming down her face, Trixie blasted the alicorn. And I mean blasted. Full on, magical explosion that lit up the entire night sky and had enough energy to make my feathers stand on end.

Nightmare was on her side, she didn’t look conscious, but I didn’t care. I leaped over and aimed for her throat, but at the last second, her sword was in the way. If it hadn’t been for the gauntlets she had made me wear, I would have lost a hand.

“Are you not happy? We have stopped the monsters and prevented an all-out war. The Gryphon Kingdom will write it off as an accident and we will go on our merry way.” Every word she spoke resonated with magical might. “Attack me again. I dare you.”

I jumped back and lowered myself for a fight, clenching my claws into a fist. I grit my jaw and sized her up. There was cold sweat all over her body, her wings were drooping, I could see the bags under her eyes, the way she was standing was wrong for a fight, and I remembered her magical fatigue from the temple. But fuck. Everything she said was true. I wanted to kill her. I wanted to cut her throat and her arteries and shove a talon into her cerebral cortex and use her brains to tan her skin into leather and pour her blood into the soil for fertilizer and grind her horn into powder for medicine and use her fats for grease and sell her bones to some collector and reduce her entire body into its usable parts and leave the rest for the scavengers. I wanted there to be no trace of her by the time I was done.

But she was a fucking goddess. And I was a fucking gryphon. Trixie was a stage magician, and what fucking chance did we have of killing her? I don’t know. I really wanted to try. I wanted to try my luck and hope for the best.

“Hope is not a plan,” she said to me. “Plus, would you harm a mare as sexy as me?” She must have seen my look because she burst out laughing. “At any rate, you wouldn’t harm poor ol’ wittle Luna would you?”

I grit my jaw. I couldn’t kill a filly. Fuck me. I couldn’t. For all her posing and threatening, Luna was just a stupid little filly, a child god that was trying to be a big girl.

I slowly raised myself from the ground. If someone else were to try to kill her, I wouldn’t stop them. If she were to swing first, I’d fuck her over. If anything were to set me off then I’d see her dead. But at the moment, I was plotting how to kill a fucking filly. A fucking foal. Goddesses I hoped Trixie would take the first shot so I could join her, or that Nightmare would try her luck or something that’d let me use the excuse that I lost control.

But she didn’t make a move. Trixie simply stared at me out the corner of her eye, waiting for me to give a signal or something. Fuck, she was looking to me make the call. Trusting me to make the right decision. I’d forgotten about her. If we were to fight, she’d get torn apart. I doubted her chances of surviving. Fuck. I couldn’t get her killed like that. She wasn’t like me, she had no idea what a real fight was like. If she was looking to me then I couldn’t get her killed like that.

Goddesses. Fucking goddesses, and this little one in particular.

“I hope you fucking burn,” I snarled at her. “I really fucking hope that I get to watch.” I clenched my claws. “And I want something out of this. I want a promise. Between you and me or me and Luna, either one of you. I want a fucking promise. An open favor that I’ll call on and you’ll swear to under blood.”

Trixie looked at me spluttering. “What? What-”

“SHUT THE FUCK UP TRIXIE!” I screamed at her. If I let her go out on her own, who knew what the fuck Nightmare and Luna would do. I needed a reason to stick around, and it had to be a better one than getting my mind of Dash. I’ve done bad shit for bits before, I had to pretend to myself this was another one of those times. I trembled with anger.

“You need my help,” I told her and knew it was true. “The army will catch you and fuck you up without me. You think they’re just gonna write that temple collapse off? They’re gonna search for anyone nearby, and when they find you, and without me they will, it’ll be war between Equestria and the Gryphon Kingdom and you’ll be killed on sight if you’re lucky. More likely they’ll take you alive and crucify you, hornless and wingless with your stomach popped and a red hot poker in your cunt.”

Both ponies stared at me in a stunned silence, then Nightmare burst out laughing.

I just stared at her in shock

“Leave then.” Her eyes hardened and a sadistic smile danced on her lips. “I may be weakened, but how long do you think it’ll take them before they realize it was not a collapse? A day? Two? My magic will have returned by then and sure, I may not be as powerful as I once was, but I can fly and I can turn invisible. And if I do get caught, I have enough power to blast my way out. What about you my fine feathery friend? It’d be such a shame if you got caught. What with the whole exile thing you’ve got going on. I need you? Ha! I have what I want. You’re the one who needs me now.”

“In what fucking way do I need you?” I snarled, my mind racing. “I can walk. You’re too fucking weak to stop me, and if you take a shot, then I rip you limb from limb. Give me a good reason and I’ll end you right here.” I wasn’t clenching my fist anymore. My talons were open and ready for bloodletting. “Don’t try to play on my fucking responsibility to stop war or some shit. I’m a fucking selfish bitch with a strong survival instinct. Tell me what possible goddess damn reason would I have to stick around? How the fuck could I need you?”

“Oh, I don’t know, what about the gryphons who are rushing towards here as we speak?” Nightmare just sat there smirking as she examined her hoof. “After all, Trixie’s little light show from before will have no doubt attracted some attention. Sure, you can run, but I have little doubt that they will track you down in no time flat, especially if the Wide Eyes are involved.” At my widening eyes, her sadistic grin deepened. “Oh yes, I know all about them, I’ve dealt with them in the past. So be my guest, leave. I don’t mind in the least, I have what I came for after all. Of course, you could always fly away since that’s near impossible to track, but would you leave poor little Trixie all alone to fend for herself? She’d be dead before the night ended and you know it too.”

“Why do I give a fuck about Trixie?” It’s my fault she’s in this mess. “If she dies, it means fuck all to me.” Nightmare was wrong about one thing. If they found her she wouldn’t be dead before nightfall. It’d take weeks before they were done with her. “Wide Eyes? I’ve dodged them in the past, I can do it again.” I think that part was true. Bloody Tartarus, I hope that part was true. “And even if I can’t, what protection could you give me? You’re the one that’s still trying to convince me to stay; I doubt you’re done with me yet.”

“I am not trying to convince you of anything. I am merely stating the most likely outcome of you leaving. Fur-Furthermore, there is the issue of… issue of…” Nightmare pressed a hoof to her forehead. “There is- Get out of my head! No one asked you!”

She dropped onto one knee, her fur and mane constantly flickering between the dark blue and a lighter shade as she clutched her head while muttering some weird language under her breath.

“Nightmare?” I said as I took a step backwards. “What’s the matter, Wittle Wuna not playing nice?”

All of a sudden her fur changed back to its light powder blue coloration and when she opened her eyes, the cat like irises were gone.

“Thou must leave at once, the gryphons will be upon us soon. We do not know how long we can keep Nightmare Moon at bay, but hopefully it will grant thee enough time to escape. Go! We shalt provide a distraction for thee. Move towards the border and get Trixie to safety.” She suddenly shoved her journal into my claws. “Take this with thee, it must not fall into mortal hooves. Hurry!”

I was too shocked to do anything for a second, but after my brain processed what had happened I realized this’d be my best chance to get me and Trixie out of here. I turned and jumped over to the stage magician.

“Trixie, hold this.” I ordered as I shoved the book in her face.

After a moment of hesitation, it was wrapped in her aura. I paused for long enough to unstrap the plate armor and let it fall to the ground. This was now an endurance game. Plus the damn thing had been useless anyway.

I grabbed her shoulders in my armored talons and took to the air. She shrieked in pain as my claws drew blood but I ignored it. I flew in a beeline, low against the plains as I headed straight for the Equestrian border. After a while Trixie stopped screaming and seemed to calm down. You know, she was surprisingly light in my arms. Guess life on the road didn’t make it easier for her to pack on weight.

Once we were far enough away from Luna or Nightmare or whoever the fuck it was that was in charge at the moment, I changed directions and began heading more to the west.

“What are you doing?!” Trixie shouted. “The Equestrian border is that way!”

“I know!” I answered her. “But that’s the direction Luna told us to go, and the direction Nightmare’s going to search for us in!” I’d only flown her so far and I was already starting to get tired. “We need to head to somewhere she won’t come for us, and find another way back into Equestria from there!”

Trixie was silent for a moment. “Alright, so where can we go that she won’t be able to follow us?!”

A couple of answers ran through my head, but they weren’t very good ones. I knew the border between Equestria and the Gryphon Kingdom like the back of my hands. I’d been here enough to navigate the whole place without a map, and using the stars as a compass.

“I think we need to get to a settlement!” I answered her. “Port Town’s in the complete opposite direction from where Nightmare saw us heading! If we circle round the Nightmare Plains, we can make it there in a few days, and lay low until the army calms down a bit! It’s got a population of lots of different sentients too, so you won’t stand out, and I know some guys there that can help us out!”

My wings were feeling really tired but I ignored them. I needed to put as much distance between the place we’d left, and any kind of a useable track as possible. Fuck, I hope they don’t get involved. If they were then they’d find Nightmare, and the tracks me and Trix had left behind, and they’d be after us. If they ever found out who we were, then we’d need to leave the bloody continent to ever be safe again.

“Fuck me. ‘An expedition into the Gryphon Kingdom, a week in a week out, that is all We require.’ Fuck you Luna!” I shouted to no one, though I felt Trixie shift uncomfortably in my grip. “Hey Trix, just letting you know now. You’re probably gonna die.”

Chapter 4

I watched as the others flew off into the night sky.

“You are an idiot. We could have escaped and now you’ve doomed us to a fate worse than death.”

“Thou blame us and yet who was the fool that used so much magic?” I snapped back.

My legs collapsed out from under me and my headache pounded without respite. There was no escape and there would be no fight. What was the point in fleeing when capture was imminent? Lies and trickery? There were potions and spells to act against that, and there was little doubt in my mind that I would be unable to trick a well-trained gryphon. Unlike a certain white alicorn I could name.

So all I did was tap my pegasus magic and wash away the footprints of my companions. No doubt they would notice, but it was not as though I was going to talk. Plus, there must be some reason they were excavating my old temple and I needed to know why. They had not changed so much in the past one thousand years for me to believe it was a purely archaeological inquiry. There was a deeper meaning behind their actions. And if there was no deeper plan then they would pay for defiling my precious temple for no just cause.

I did not have to wait long for the gryphons to appear. Within ten minutes a dozen gryphons had surrounded me, all the while, I examined my hoof, giving myself a hooficure as they pointed spears at me. Truly pathetic. Have they already forgotten why this area was called the Nightmare Plains? It was here that I slaughtered their army to the last gryphon. It was here that I ended their first pathetic excuse for a war. Like playing against a foal in chess, they were crushed in one fell swoop. How dare they raise their spears a-

“You are still disguised. Remember?” The amusement was clear in Nightmare’s voice.

The only thing that betrayed my embarrassment was a slight pause in my filing. Then, with a shrug, I examined my hoof in the moonlight. It was passable. Just.

There was a heavy thud and a gryphon landed in front of me, but still far enough away to be outside the ring of soldiers that circled me. I didn’t recognize the iconography on his chest plate, but it looked like a stylized image of a bird in flight. From the way the others immediately stepped aside to let him in, he had to be a high ranking officer. Grey fur and white feathers - nothing remarkable at all. How boring.

“They fear him,” remarked Nightmare. “Look at that black one, he’s trembling and can barely look the officer in the eye.”

“Your name, unicorn.” His voice was a deep baritone, calm and collected as though it was nothing more than a routine checkup at the border. Look at him, so smug in his position of power, as though he could command me to do anything just because he had minions by his side. Truly a pathetic specimen.

“Ou-”

“Let me speak, your archaic speech will surely give us away.”

Give up a part of my body? Ha! I would rather be dead than to suffer that fate again.

“Considering the look of that gryphon? You will probably die if they find out.”

Kill an alicorn? I was immortal. Blood meant nothing to me. Time meant nothing to me. I was eternal. Neither crucifix nor torture can break my soul. Fools. Each and every one of them were fools. I am the night and the night is eternal.

“Our name is Polaris and it is a pleasure to meet thee. We would rise and shake thy claw, but we are afraid any action on our part will lead to our sudden demise.” The gryphon’s eyes narrowed at my polite introduction. A hardened officer indeed. “Our passport is located in our backpack if thou wouldst prefer to verify our claims.”

“Awwwwww, look at you, trying so hard to be polite and sociable. If only Celestia could see you now! Her wittle baby sister is finally growing up.”

My eye twitched.

With an eye trained on me, he cracked open the passport and skimmed through it before tossing it over to one of his underlings. Soon my backpack followed suit and everything was dumped onto the ground. Finally, he held out a claw and said, “Your weapons.”

Unbuckling each one, I laid them down on the ground by his feet and waited patiently. I etched the officer’s face into my mind’s eye so that if I ever saw him again, I would recognize him and make him pay for going through my private items. They were mine, not his, how dare he place his vile claws on them!

“Of course, because that is the important thing right now. Not the fact that WE’RE GOING TO DIE! Oh, I’m sorry, did I shatter whatever deluded world you’re living in?”

“We do not remember you being so chatty two days ago.”

“Yeah well, I don’t remember fearing for my life either. What was that word Gilda used all the time? Oh, right. That’s a fucking Wide Eyes commander. Are you purposely trying to get us killed you psychopathic, murderous, insane, crazy filly!? Oh, those were Gilda’s words as well, not mine. Paraphrased slightly, but still her words. Maybe you should let me kill her. Pleeeeeeease?”

“Commander Teotore, this passport says it’s signed by a ‘Princess Luna’.”

“It does indeed,” replied the grey gryphon. “That name is classified. This entire area is classified. Once we get back to base you will all be offered a Drought of Forgetfulness. You will all take it and the next day you will wake up with no memory of tonight. If you do not, you will be found in a ditch and be labeled as an unfortunate victim of a mugging. If you write anything or do anything to try and remind yourself of tonight, you will go missing while on active duty and you will not be found again. Understood?”

“Yes sir!” they replied as one with a salute.

They may be fools, but they were well trained fools. Or as I prefer to call them, pawns.

“Now, as for you little filly-” I bit back a growl. “-what are you doing here? Equines do not use cubs as soldiers nor do they give passports to them, especially from Princess Luna herself... For you to be here is odd to say the least.” He reached into a small concealed pouch and drew out a clawful of powder. “Do you know what this is?”

I stared him straight in the eye. “Does it matter if we know or not?”

“You are either an idiot or an experienced spy. And given that we know ponies have no need of spies...” He tossed the power into the air and began chanting in that unfamiliar tongue. As it landed on my body, it began glowing light green, reacting to my magical disguise and outlining my wings for all to see.

“Well now, this is a pleasant surprise.” He gave me a deep bow, one that was sufficient for a mare of my station. “I welcome you to the Gryphon Kingdom, your majesty. If you would follow us, we shall gladly take you to see Abilio- the commanding officer of the Wide Eyes. From there, we can arrange a suitable transport for you to the capital city of Aviana where you can have an audience with the king. He has been most eager to speak with you.”

“And thou said we would die. Ha! To think that Nightmare Moon would be scared like a little filly over such a preposterous concept.”

“If it wasn’t because I need you alive to exist, you would be a mere crater in the ground right now.”

“If we knew how to remove thy vile presence, thou wouldst not exist anymore.”

“To think we wouldst meet such a charming and polite gryphon-”

“Are you flirting with him?” Nightmare’s tone was stuck somewhere between amusement and surprise. “Look at you, got an eye for other species I see.”

“-in the military. It wouldst be our greatest pleasure to meet thy king. Lead the way, kind knight.”

“Commander.” A new gryphon landed in the clearing with a bow. Was- was that a female? Surely not! They would rather die than have a female in the milita-

“It’s a male. That’s a male.”

My eyes bulged out of my head. That was a male? He looked more feminine than Gilda! And had the same coloring.

“You say that as though it would be a hard thing to do.”

Fine, he’s more feminine than the Bearer of Generosity.

“Now that’s just insulting.”

“To whom?”

“We found tracks inside the camp. Two pony mares and a gryphon female.” He placed Gilda’s abandoned breast plate on the ground. “And this.”

The commander picked the armor up and examined it in his claws. “Find the other two,” he said simply before turning to face me. “A female? Why would you be traveling with a female gryphon your highness?” He added quietly, “Or provide armor for her...”

“We are travelling in an unfamiliar land. The gryphoness knows this land and sought to provide her services in exchange for monetary gain,” I replied, pretending to not hear that final comment.

“Not many gryphonesses are well traveled,” the extremely feminine gryphon interjected. “Even fewer know the borderlands.”

“That would certainly explain how she got us lost. She told us that we were travelling towards the capital.”

“And you did not notice as she led you into a military compound? You simply accepted the circuitous route she led you on through our encampment, a route that only happened to be perfect for a stealth entry?”

“The guard took one look at her and told us she was a wanted criminal in your nation and lead us to thy compound. We had little choice in the matter. When the landslide occurred we acted upon pure instinct and teleported out.”

“I did not find any trace of a guard in the tracks I saw.”

“Perhaps thou need retraining then. Art thou calling us a liar?”

He bowed low. “I would never say that. Perhaps you are confused? I’ve only ever known a few that could track as well as I.”

“Perhaps a trap then? A princess wouldst net a handsome ransom after all.”

He merely smiled at that. “Who would be foolish enough to try and capture an alicorn? That would be an exercise in futility.”

“The world is full of fools.”

“It is indeed,” he answered with another bow to me. He turned to face the commander. “Sir I would like to head the search for the mare and the gryphoness.”

“As far as we know, they perished in the avalanche,” I replied with a shrug.

“Well we can’t take the chance that anyone who wished to kidnap the princess would escape, now can we?”

“Thou art a credit to thy nation.” I returned the bow

Commander Teotore watched the exchange impassively. “Very well then Graciano. You shall lead the search for the two missing females.”

“Thank you commander.” He lowered his head before he turned around and began giving orders to the other soldiers. None of them seemed to be happy to be taking orders from him. “You three are with me. Twenty meter spread pattern.” He paused. “No, make that forty meters and you four are to come with me as well.” He pointed a claw at the gryphons mentioned. “It’s still dark so you know regulation.” With that he took off heading towards the Equestrian border, and the gryphons he’d mentioned left with him.

“Lead the way Sir Knight.”

Teotore bowed again. “Forgive Graciano. You may have noticed his... appearance. He tries quite hard to compensate for it, and it’s a shame that so few are willing to give him the respect that is right for one as talented as him. If he was rude to you, your majesty, I’m sure it was unintended.”

“We understand kind sir; when we first saw him, we admit to thinking he was female.”

The commander smiled, though it didn’t touch his eyes. “Yes, I knew him when he was younger. He had a sister that looked more masculine than he did. When I first met him, I thought his sibling was the eldest son.” He chuckled. “Still, those who judge him for his appearance will find themselves at a great disadvantage.”

“Fools will be fools,” I replied though Nightmare Moon snorted in my mind.

“Yes, they will.” He bowed again. When he rose his arms indicated another direction. “This way your majesty, are you feeling well to walk?”

“Well enough.” I looked up at him through my eyelashes, earning me another round of laughter from Nightmare. “Lead the way.”

“Alright,” I said as I cracked my back. “I’m beat. We can rest here today.” It’d been a full night of walk and flight since we’d left Luna.

“Here?” Trixie sounded horrified as she looked around us.

“Yep,” I smiled as I crawled in under the brush.

I fucking love snake plant. The stuff has saved my ass on more than a few occasions. It’s called snake plant because... well, you know, snakes usually hang around in it. But it was nighttime and mid-autumn, so I wasn’t worried. Still, I carefully checked for any scales as I slithered under the thick bush on my belly. The stuff was really common out here in the land near the Equestrian border. It has a thick canopy, so anyone flying over won’t see you and it’s common enough that checking all the patches would be way too much for most. Plus it was a bit prickly, so only woodsy types like me ever used it.

“It’s a bush. You expect Trixie to sleep under a bush?”

“Find me a five star hotel and we can stay there, as long as you pay.” I called back to her.

“Trixie is not stupid, she does not want a luxury place to sleep. But a wet patch of dirt underneath an itchy plant is far beneath her.” she paused. “Can’t you make a campsite or something?”

“A campsite would be visible from the air,” I answered her. “And what would you want me to make it with?”

I couldn’t see it, but I assume Trixie shrugged. “How would Trixie know? Leaves or something.”

I rolled my eyes. Yeah, leaves out here. What leaves are big enough in the Nightmare Plains for me to make a camp with. By Tartarus, how the heck would you make a camp with leaves? Mud and spit or something?

“Just get in the bush Trixie!” I called out to her as I rolled onto my back and tried to get comfy in the damp scrub.

“No. Trixie shall sleep out here, thank you very much.”

I paused for a moment. “You know why this place is called the Nightmare Plains?” I asked her.

“Trixie assumed it had something to do with Nightmare Moon and history,” she answered me.

...Shit, she might be right about that. “Whatever. Look, this place is home to all sorts of nasty predators. You sleep out in the open and that’s asking for trouble. Not to mention the chances of a gryphon army patrol going overhead and spotting you.”

“...” I heard Trixie take breath to argue, but she didn’t say anything.

“Listen Trix this-”

“Don’t call Trixie that.”

I rolled my eyes. “Listen, this isn’t the worst situation I’ve ever been in.” That was a lie. This was easily the deepest shit I’d ever been in. You can always tell when I’m lying because I drop my curses. “And I know the Kingdom-Equestria border like the back of my hand. Just trust me alright? This is the best place for us to sleep until nighttime again.”

We needed to sleep during the day because Trixie’d freeze to death at night and it was safer to travel by dark. Also we’d be easier to spot traveling during the day.

Trixie didn’t answer me, but I heard the sound of rustling bushes and cursing and in a few seconds I felt her touch my leg.

“Trixie blames you for this,” she muttered as she crawled past me.

“How the fuck is this my fault?” I asked her.

“You tracked Trixie down for Luna didn’t you?” she spat back at me.

Shit... that was actually a good point. “Whatever; fuck you too.”

We were silent after that for a while, and I rolled over to try and sleep. Even for someone who’s used to the bush like me, sleeping on the damp ground under a kinda prickly bush isn’t easy. Hell, Dash would have a hard time of it.

Hey! I thought of Dash and didn’t feel like shit! This getting her off my mind thing was finally fucking working!

…

…

Fuck, I miss Dash.

Trixie was rolling around constantly. Her repeated shifting was getting on my nerves.

Rustle, rustle.

I grit my jaw.

Rustle.

I clenched my fist.

Rustle.

“Just lay still!” I shouted at her.

She huffed. “Trixie can’t get comfortable.”

That was another thing. “Speak in the goddesses damned first person...” I growled at her. “Stop saying Trixie all the time.”

She just sniffed at that and didn’t answer.

Whatever, as long as she was quiet. I closed my eyes and tried to get back to sleep.

“Gilda?”

I groaned. “What?”

She paused. “Back there... you said you thought Trixie-I... You said I was going to die.”

...Fuck. “Did I?”

“Yes... Do you really think so?”

“...” I’m used to lying. I’m a good liar, I do it a lot and get away with it too. But...

“Why?” she asked me.

“I... fuck.”

I knew how she was feeling. I mean, fuck. Way to make me feel like shit. I had to try and remember that Trixie wasn’t me. She wasn’t an emotionally stunted half insane cultural reject that could count their real friends on one hand. She was an egotist, she gave a shit about others and what they thought about her.

“Oh...” Trixie said when I didn’t answer.

Fuck, I couldn’t let her think that I thought she was fucking doomed or something. “Okay, no. It’s not like that.”

She didn’t say anything again.

“Look Trix, I... I shouldn’t have said that alright? I didn’t think about it.” I paused, but I knew that wasn’t enough. Fuck... I’m so shit with words. But I can lie.

“Trix, compared to what I had when I first got into shit like this, you’re goddesses damn loaded. Look, you’re not alone, the gryphon army might not know you’re here, and you’ve got me with you. I’m good at this stuff, I’ve been here before. I’m not saying this is a day at the office or whatever, but if I survived when I was just a dumb ass cub, you can survive now. Alright? Cheer the fuck up.”

“Okay,” she answered me, but she didn’t sound convinced.

I sighed. “Trix... I got you into this mess okay? I’ll do what I can do get you out of it. Alright? That’s a promise.”

She didn’t answer me.

We lay there in silence for a while, and I did my best to ignore the sunlight filtering down through the scrub over our heads. I closed my eyes again.

“Gilda?”

I didn’t feel as frustrated this time as I answered. “Yeah?”

“Back in the temple...”

Oh goddesses. She’s like an old mate that remembers everything I say and uses it against me later!

“In the temple, you said you can kill a pony.”

I grimaced. “Trixie... do you really want to ask me that?”

She paused. “So you have?”

I sighed and lied again. “Nope.”

“Oh... really?” she sounded surprised.

“Yep. I was just trying to act badass.” Just tell her what she needs to hear. “What’d you think I was? A hitmare or something?” I laughed at that, though it sounded a bit forced to me.

Thank fuck she joined me with a chuckle. “Okay then. Trixie just thought with you sneaking through the camp like that, that you might be an agent or assassin or something.”

“Nah,” I answered her. “Nothing badass like that, just normal illegal stuff.”

Things were quiet again. Maybe this time I could finally get to fucking sleep.

“So what is it you do?” Trixie asked me. “Luna mentioned she found you in jail.”

“Oh that? That was just a barfight I started.” I paused for a moment. “Nah, I do all sorts of stuff for bits.” That was true. “Just, think of me as like a freelance general criminal or something.”

“Okay then...”

Finally. Maybe-

“So, Nightmare said you were an exile.”

Oh for fucks sake. “No, she was wrong about that.”

“Really? But didn’t she read it from your mind or-”

“No I’m not an exile.” I told her. “Just... more or less a wanted criminal.” That was sort of true. I technically wasn’t an exile, but only because they’d never bothered with a trial. With me, there wouldn’t be a trial or an execution. It would be back alley, strangle chord, dumpster.

“What are you wanted for?”

“A couple of things.” I answered. “How about you then Trix. What’s up with you?”

“What do you mean?” she asked me.

“I mean, you were wanted when I found you. What was it for?”

She huffed haughtily. “That? That was ridiculous. A travesty of justice is what it was.”

Ah fuck. I regretted asking already.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie is a stage magician, and she stopped at a small town not far from Canterlot. She set up her stage, did her show and the entire town began heckling her for no good reason. Being great and powerful, Trixie decided to challenge them. Anything those hicks could do, she could do better. Everything went well and of course Trixie showed them all up, for she is great and powerful.”

Fuck. Why the heck did I have to cheer her up again? Couldn’t I have just left her miserable and quiet?

“Trixie told the story of how she once vanquished an Ursa Major.”

Wait... what the fuck? “What?”

She paused. “Trixie once vanquished an Ursa Major.”

I blinked in disbelief. “You once killed an Ursa Major?” I asked her.

“...Yes.” she answered, though she was a bit slow to answer.

“Bullshit.” I called her out.

“It’s true!” she protested

“Bull. Fucking. Shit.”

She huffed. “Fine then, fine. Trixie didn’t actually kill an Ursa Major, she just vanquished it through her wit and charm.”

I smirked. “I repeat: bullshit.”

“Oh hush you. You sound just like those hicks from Ponyville.”

The name grabbed my attention. “Ponyville?”

“Yes, Ponyville. Why, have you been there?”

“Yeah,” I answered. “Shit town isn’t it?”

“Oh yes,” Trixie answered. “Miserable hole of inbred hicks who wouldn’t know talent if it bit them on the flank.”

“Damn right!” I said. “Pack of mother fuckers and backstabbers the whole goddess damn lot.”

“Oh Trixie knows!” she nodded her head at me. “How can such a place be allowed in Equestria?”

“Yeah,” I snorted as I nodded. “Whole place should be demolished.”

Trixie chuckled. “With luck they’ll do it themselves.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean while Trixie was there, because she’d boasted about defeating an Ursa Major, two youths from the town went into the Everfree to find an Ursa so she could vanquish it again.”

“You’re kidding right?” I asked.

“No!” she laughed as she answered. “The two buck toothed inbred colts, went into the Everfree, found an Ursa, lured it back to town, and expected me to vanquish it!” She laughed and I joined her. “What kind of diseased mind would do such a thing?”

“Oh fuck me! That didn’t happen. No one could be that stupid!”

“No! Trixie swears it’s true!”

We both laughed together.

“Alright, alright, so then what happened?” I asked.

“Then, when Trixie failed... well she didn’t fail because Trixie never fails...”

“Whatever, just tell me what happened.”

“When Trixie did not vanquish the Ursa, it destroyed several houses and wandered around the town for a bit.”

“What stopped it?”

She paused. “Oh... Well another unicorn named Twilight Sparkle arrived, and because Trixie had already weakened the Ursa-”

“Bullshit.”

She ignored me. “-she managed to overcome it. Well, for some reason Trixie got blamed for the property damage, and she didn’t have a bit to her name because of her home being destroyed by the Ursa. So because she could not pay the debts, she faced prison if caught.”

“That sucks. How the fuck did you get pinned with the property damage?”

“The town of hicks banded together, so of course it was their word against mine.”

“Fuck. Tough luck dude.”

We sat in silence for a moment. “Ponyville sucks.”

“Yes it does,” Trixie agreed.

“Douchebags, the lot of them.”

“Mmhm!” She nodded enthusiastically.

“The Pink Bitch in particular.”

“And Twilight too! Especially Twilight.”

“Yeah. Fuck Dash! Who needs her?”

“Yes! Who needs her!” she agreed then paused. “Wait what?”

I blinked realizing what I’d said. “Uh, nothing.”

“Dash?” she asked. “Who’s Dash?”

“No one.” I told her and rolled over so she couldn’t see my face.

“Dash, Dash...” she breathed in. “Rainbow Dash? That mare with the strange mane?”

“No!” I said, but I knew from the way I said it even someone as fucking stupid as Trixie would know it wasn’t true.

Trixie paused. “So you knew this Dash?”

I didn’t answer.

“Was she... a friend?”

“Go to sleep Trixie.”

“...Your marefriend?”

“No!” I rolled over to face her. “Fucking Tartarus no!”

She paused. “Okay then.” She turned away so I couldn’t see her face.

“What?” I asked.

She didn’t answer me.

“Dash was never my marefriend.”

“If you say so.”

“What the fuck does that mean?”

“Nothing.”

“Bullshit it means nothing. Dash wasn’t my marefriend.”

“Of course. I never said she was.”

It took me a moment to realize she was implying unrequited love or some shit. “And no it wasn’t like that either.”

“Mmhmm.”

“Fuck you Trix.” I said as I rolled away.

“I’m sure you’d love to, fillyfooler,” she muttered.

“The fuck was that?” I turned my head to look over at her.

“Trixie didn’t say anything.”

“Damn right she didn’t,” I said. “Get some fucking sleep.”

“Sir?” asked one of the soldiers as Graciano drew to a halt.

Graciano held a talon up in response, silencing him. The soldiers that were with him slowed to a halt, as word was passed between them that their Commanding Officer had called a stop.

Graciano itched his lower beak as he slowed his flapping and lowered to the ground. When he landed, he paused and thought to himself. This female... It was stupid of him to assume she would head straight for the border. He ignored the sound of the seven other soldiers coming to a stop around him.

“Feeling tired sir?” one of them asked with a smirk on his beak.

Graciano spared him a glance, but decided not to reprimand him. He’d learned long ago that any insecurity he had about his appearance was a weakness for others to exploit. He’d get himself nowhere by lashing out any that mocked him.

No this female wasn’t likely to rush for the border in a blind panic. No, she had a mare with her, and was carrying her. That meant she wouldn’t be able to fly that far. Not to mention border patrols and soldiers. No, she’d be a fool to fly that way.

“Is he polishing his claws?” one of the younger soldiers snickered to a friend.

Graciano’s gaze snapped towards him. There was a difference between letting his appearance be a weakness, and letting others treat him weak for it. The very worst thing about gryphon culture is the only thing that is respected is strength. Graciano was put at an immediate disadvantage then, because of his... shapeliness.

Graciano walked towards him, noting the clan mark on his breastplate. The crimson triple slash of the Red Ends, going from top right to lower left.

No it was unlikely that this female would head for the border, unless she was an idiot, and if she was an idiot she’d be caught at the border anyway.

“Soldier, do you have a name?” Graciano asked him.

He snapped a salute. “Yes sir, Al-”

“I did not ask what it was,” Graciano interrupted him. “Just if you had it... Would you like to keep your name?” He hated acting like this, some scary not mentally stable gryphon. It’s a shame it was so necessary so often.

Not to mention the chances of actually finding good tracks with the head start she had. No it would be a waste of time to chase to the border.

The soldier’s eyes widened at the implied threat. “Sir I-”

“That’s a yes then? You like your name?” Graciano grabbed the top of his breastplate and pulled his face closer. “Then why would you go and insult a Wide Eyes behind his back? Well I suppose that’s at least that’s slightly less stupid than insulting one to his face,” and there it was, the fear in his eyes, and the respect with it. It was a shame that he had to rant like a villain in a comic to get either.

No, their quarry was far more likely to flee in another direction than the border. Their time here would be better spent elsewhere. It was a matter of where would they go?

“Sir I-”

“Did not slander me behind my back in any way? No I thought not. That would be extremely stupid.” Graciano let go of the soldier’s breastplate and he fell back into a salute. “You’ve been warned.” He turned to face the rest of the soldiers. “For the rest of the journey this gryphon does not have a name. If I hear anyone talking to him, or call him by name, or refer to him in any way, they will lose their name, and their clan, and they will not be getting either back.”

“Yes sir,” they all cried out.

No, if this gryphon was smart she’d head to a nearby settlement, and find a way south from there. There were only a handful of settlements close enough for them to travel on foot in just a few days, and only one that was a known harbor for criminals.

But still, there was the chance that she was actually stupid. Luna’s story and disguise had certainly been as thin as paper. He would assume that any gryphon working for or with her would be just as foolish. Still, he couldn’t make assumptions; he had too little information to go off of.

“You four,” he selected four at random. “You will continue south and keep up your search until you reach the border. The rest of you with me.”

“Sir?” one of them asked. “Aren’t we supposed to be searching for the two missing sentients?”

Graciano sighed as he turned towards him. “Yes.” Was it so hard to take orders from an officer? Why did they insist on pushing him?

“Then shouldn’t we-”

“Continue south towards the border? Tell me, what tracks have you seen?”

“None sir.”

“That’s because they’re flying. I’m sure you understand the difficulties in tracking something that flies?”

“Yes sir.”

“Then you’ll know we won’t see any trace of them until they land, and even when they do it’s entirely possible that we will miss them. Tracking a flying target requires assumptions and guesswork, yes? The assumptions we’re making are that they are stupid females who would rush to the border in a panic. That is a possibility. The other assumption we could make, is that they are not entirely foolish, and are heading to somewhere else. The best place for them to hide would be Port Town, so we are going to cover both possibilities and have soldiers chase them south, and cut them off at Port Town. Do you understand?” He would have rolled his eyes, but that would have ruined the effect of his little rant. He had no interest in bullying soldiers that couldn’t argue back, but so often he had no choice.

“Yes sir.”

“Good, and if you wish to do well in your military career, I advise you to not directly question a Wide Eyes, yes?”

“Yes sir.”

“Good, now take the soldiers I selected and continue to chase them south. I will lead the others and cut them off at Port Town. Do you understand? Require any further justification and explanation?” Graciano had to admit he envied the commander quite a bit. When Teotore entered a room it was instantaneous. He did not have to fight for his due or put on a show to get it. No, he was just given it, and the ones who gave it were left hoping he did not ask for more.

“No sir.”

“Then you have your orders.”

He gave a crisp salute before barking orders at the soldiers under his command and flying away.

“You three with me,” Graciano told the remainder once he’d left.

With that they took off, making a beeline for Port Town.

Chapter 5

“My dear Princess Luna, allow me the pleasure of introducing you to the capital of the Gryphon Kingdom, Aviana!”

After a couple seconds of me not paying him any attention at all, the captain flushed bright red and stopped posing like an idiot. The city was... passable. Not as great as Canterlot or my temple, but it was alright. There were cracks here and there, the roads were dusty, and there were even beggars in the street! Talk about disgraceful. Why, they even had gryphons holding hands and kissing. I had hoped such bestial public displays would be limited to Canterlot, but sadly, it was not so.

“It is very interesting... architecture,” I offered and that seemed to please him.

“Oh yes, when this city was first built the King of the time felt it was necessary to retain our proud heritage so he ordered the designers to include a tribal feel to the place. The main square is modeled after the large tribal gatherings that would have happened in the past where we have the twelve totems representing each of the gods and a large fire in the center. Of course-”

Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Did this gryphon take me for a foal? Already I could point out the numerous mistakes in his account of his own species’ history. To think it had been twisted so! I would not be surprised if Celestia had a hoof in those changes - she always did enjoy altering history to fit her grand designs. The story of my fall to the Nightmare and her defeat at the hands of The Elements, for example, was woefully inaccurate. There was never a-

“Princess? I hope I am not boring you.”

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Even here, all they cared about was pampering me and making sure everything was to my liking. Where’s the adventure? The excitement? Plans should be left on the battlefield; after all, life is to be enjoyed.

“Well that gryphoness doesn’t pamper us,” remarked Nightmare Moon. “A nice breath of fresh air if you ask me. Look on the brightside, they’re not kissing your flank like the nobles back in Canterlot.”

“Next time they decide to ‘kiss our flank’ as thou hast so eloquently placed it, we shall allow thee to have free rein.”

“Really!? Awwwwww, Lulu, you shouldn’t have.”

“We were attempting the modern form of humor known as sarcasm, you foal.” Nightmare’s dark laughter echoed in my mind.

“Princess?” Teotore asked with a concerned look etched on his face.

“Awwwww, would you look at that, your boyfriend is worried about you.”

“At least we have one,” I snapped back before pausing. “That is an appropriate response when we wish to cause a ‘burn’ correct?”

Somehow, Nightmare managed to convey the sense of her smashing her head against the wall.

“We are sorry, dear Teotore, we are merely occupied with a thought.” To put him at ease, I gave him a small smile. “We were merely pondering how one ‘burns’ or ‘snaps’ with nothing but words.”

He blinked at me, obviously caught off guard as to how he should respond.

“Modern linguistics is such a curious thing and we have been trying to adjust with limited success,” I explained. “So many new phrases and terms used in such curious manners.”

To my surprise, he laid a claw on my foreleg. “Princess Luna, I’m sure you will get a hang of it eventually. Practice makes perfect after all and if you desire, I am generally off during the evenings and would gladly help you in your studies.”

“Is... is he flirting with us? Or is it merely a ploy to gain our confidence? Political gain?” I mused.

“He seems dumb enough to flirt with you. I mean, why would he want you when he could have me? Mrowr, just look at that body.”

“Wilt thou stay focused? This is a delicate situation and we are surrounded by enemies and potential, temporary allies.”

“You’ve always fancied yourself the master strategist. Well? Show me what you’ve got then little Luna.”

“That is a truly generous and kind offer, but we do not wish to be a burden on thee.” For added effect, I placed a hoof over his claw and looked down demurely. “It would pain us greatly if thou were punished on our account.”

“Oh no.” Just like a typical male, he placed a claw under my chin and tilted my head up, but instead of looking him in the eye, I deliberately looked off to the side. “Look at me Princess Luna. Please.”

My eyes flicked up for a brief second before I let them drop down again. A second later, I slowly raised them up and looked him in the eye through my eyelashes. It mattered not what race they were, all males fall for the same tricks. A bit of shyness, a bit of eyelash, a sway of the hips and they would be like diamond dogs after gems.

“Prince-”

“Luna,” I interrupted. At the slight widening of his eyes and the flush that crept along his cheeks, I allowed myself a small smile. Too simple.

“Luna... Listen to me; I will not be punished for my actions. Plus, I freely offer it. It would be a great honor and I will not be harmed. I give you my word.”

“Alright... we believe thee.” I pulled my hoof back slowly, making sure to caress his claw as I went. “We believe that spending time with thee would also greatly enhance our learning experience. Interaction with others has sadly been lacking since my return.”

Ah, to tug at the heart strings of males once more. I had missed being able to make them think and do whatever I wished with a few words and some light touches. How many would I be able to string along this time without them finding out about each other? How long would it take before they realized it was all empty promises? Perhaps I shall collapse five noble houses this time and set a new record.

“That is a terrible thing to hear,” he replied with a twinge of smugness in his voice.

So that was his game. Did this toy really believe it could play on the same playing field as me? I had been playing this game since before his ancestors were born. Ah well, a dumb enemy is a gift and an overconfident one is almost as good. If he decides to so much as lay a claw on me, I will personally make his last days as terrible as possible. The Wide Eyes weren’t the only ones with less than savory knowledge. And the best part was, there was no need to even dirty my hooves. A nudge here, a push there, and another toy would do the deed for me.

The carriage finally came to a halt and the door opened. As I stepped out after Teotore, I accepted his claw and allowed him to help me down. Though I was certain the driver would have heard our conversation, he discreetly kept his head down and eyes away. Fear? Perhaps, and it would certainly be a valid explanation, after all, only idiots fail to fear those in power. Out the corner of my eye, I could see servants obviously trying to look as small and non-threatening as possible. A couple flicked their eyes over every so often, but otherwise, they stayed back and out of the way, trying to look as busy as possible.

Fear it was then. If they feared this individual that meant he had power, real power. He could get things done and few would object. It also meant that there would be many who worked against him, playing the role of the messiah delivering justice to the evil doer when in actuality, they were no better. Perhaps this gryphon would be a worthy piece to own then. We shall see.

“Such a marvelous castle,” I said in breathless wonder.

Ha! Just look at his chest puff out, as though it was a compliment to him. Oh, how I have missed my toys. ‘Tis a shame my old collection is long gone, they were a rather handsome bunch and provided years of amusement. To think I had almost caused two foals from warring houses to fall in love! Oh Celly, why must you always ruin my fun?

“Follow me, your majesty, the servants have provided a room for you and you would no doubt like to get settled in.” With a hoof draped over his elbow, we trotted through the grand entrance. “The King is sadly busy right now negotiating a treaty with the changelings and will be preoccupied for a while longer. If you desire, I would happily act as your guide for the rest of the day and explain-”

Blah, blah, blah. This gryphon liked the sound of his own voice more than Blueblood! Such a shame Celly had to undo my transmorphication spell. That stuck up pony was far better as a... Actually, now that I think about it, that was an insult to pigs wasn’t it? Good thing they had not found out, otherwise we would have had another revolt on our hooves. You win this time, Celly.

He kept rambling on about this portrait or that vase or some random crack in the wall that just happened to have some sort of extremely important historical significance. But really, a kingdom less than a thousand years old (I actually laughed when Celly informed me they had somehow, miraculously, managed to form a kingdom) and they thought they had some sort of history. Pathetic. So, I simply nodded my head when appropriate and pretended to be interested. It was a survival skill Celly and I had picked up within the first ten years of our rule.

“And here is your room, did you know-”

I laid a hoof on his shoulder. “We are sorry, but we are dreadfully tired from all the excitement of being caught in the avalanche and the death of our two companions. Would it be possible for thou to tell us the story at a later date?”

“Of- Of course not Luna. I am terribly sorry for not considering your mental condition. Please, sleep. I shall instruct some servants to bring up some food when dinner rolls around.” With a deep, sweeping bow, he backed out of my room. “It has been a pleasure.”

“Likewise,” I lied through my teeth. Resisting the urge to slam the door shut, I strolled over to the window and began planning my next move.

“Hey Trix,” I asked her as we passed through the town. “You know how I told you this place was a shithole and you were all like ‘I’m sure you’re exaggerating,’ and I told you I wasn’t and you still didn’t believe me?”

“Yeah...” she replied as her eyes darted nervously left and right.

“Do you believe me now?”

She didn’t answer me, eyeing up the line of hookers that were blowing kisses at passersby.

“Did you ever wonder why I only ever called this place Port Town?” I asked as we passed the ladies, giving them a polite smile and a bob of my head. Two gryphons, an earth pony and a minotaur.

“No, Trixie did not.”

“Well it’s because the place is so shit, no one ever bothered to name it.”

“Trixie can believe that.”

There wasn’t really a road, just a muddy track of trampled dirt in between all the shitty wood hovels. Everyone was giving everyone else the shifty eyes, and you could tell who lived here and who didn’t instantly, because like Trixie beside me, everyone who hadn’t been here before was looking around in disgust and shock. The locals though, all had their best ‘fuck you’ scowls on when they caught me looking at them.

The only reason this place existed was because of the river that went through it and down to Equestria. Really, this place wasn’t as much of a town anymore as it was just a place that smugglers stayed when dodging the law.

Trixie wasn’t saying anything and I was getting kind of bored so I started to tell her what I knew about the place. “Before I was born this place had been just another town on the river, and not as dirty as a zaphead’s asscheeks. But the King decided to build another better port closer to the Equestrian border. The story from there is exactly what you’d think, economic downturn, rise in crime, blah blah blah, and ta dah: shit town.”

“Uh huh,” Trixie answered me, though I knew she wasn’t really paying attention and was more interested in the big minotaur giving us the death stare.

“Don’t worry about him,” I told her. “See how the tips of his horns are blunted? He’s a pacifist, just trying to scare away trouble before it starts.”

“If you say so.”

I rolled my eyes. “Relax Trix, I know this shit hole as well as I know the Equestrian border.”

“Trixie wonders why we are here in the first place,” she shivered at a nasty looking goat that was staring at us with bloodshot eyes and a brown toothed smile.

“Keep away from that guy,” I warned her. “He’s a zaphead, cut you open on the off chance that you have a bit in your saddlebag.”

“Trixie can take care of herself. And she’s not even wearing a saddlepack.”

“Do you think he cares? You might have one up your ass or in your teeth or something. And if you like I can step away and leave you to take care of yourself. You know, stop stepping on your toes or whatever.”

“No!” she said a little too suddenly. “Trixie means, no. Trixie does not need to prove anything.”

I smirked but didn’t call her out on it. “We’re here because I know a few different folks that can help us out. I’ve got some favors to call in and then I can catch us a ride back to Equestria.”

“Okay then,” she answered me sounding unsure.

“Relax Trix, I got this.” I told us [CTT1] as I walked us down a back alley and behind a tavern.

As I passed by the kitchen window I knocked on it. A second later it opened up, and a gryphon poked his head out squinting into the low light. “Who is it?”

“It’s me.” I told him, and he glanced towards the sound of my voice.

“Gilda?” he asked.

“Who else would it be dumbass?”

“Why don’t you ever just use the front door?” he muttered as he pulled his head back in and closed the window.

“Why didn’t you use the front door?” Trixie asked, and I heard a splash and a mutter of disgust. She probably stepped in something.

“Because the bouncer here part times as a bounty hunter. This is the cleanest bar in town, so, obviously it’s the best one to get illegal shit done. You just have to know how to get in.”

I’d considered making the two of us enter town separately, but I didn’t want to take the risk that someone would start shit with Trixie. I remember back in the temple how she’d frozen and panicked. Not that I could blame her, but with her attitude and this town, it was too risky to let her go alone. I didn’t tell her that though, because, you know, she’d get all huffy and shit.

“So how do you know this gryphon?” she asked me as we waited.

“I did him a favor a few years back. And since then we’ve just been helping each other out now and then.”

“Alright.” She shut up after that, and we had to wait five minutes before we saw him again.

He came out the back door and I heard his clawsteps as he approached me. “What do you want this time Gilda?” he asked sounding pretty bitter.

“This time? You make it sound like I’m your problem. I remember that nasty ass mess you had in your basement that I cleaned up for you. You’re still in business so I’m guessing the Wide Eyes didn’t find anything?”

He grit his beak. “No they didn’t.”

I smiled. “So that means you owe me, right?”

He didn’t answer me.

“Relax, dude. I just want the usual crap. Brown cloaks, knife belt, knives, you know, the usual.”

He scowled and his eyes narrowed on Trixie. “Who’s she?”

“A friend and not your problem.” I told him firmly, letting him know to back off without getting insulting.

He glanced at me. “So you want the usual, and free of charge?”

I nodded.

“Just ‘cause you took a corpse off my hands, doesn’t mean you can just show up and demand shit from me.” I winced when he said corpse, and I heard Trixie shift at my shoulder.

“Hey, don’t start that self-righteous crap. I’m calling in a favor that you owe me. After this we’re square.”

He looked at me again, deciding how much use I was to him and whether or not he was okay with having me pissed at him.

“You know, a soldier is sitting around in my tavern right now, watching the door and not touching the drink he paid for. Been nursing that drink for about a day now. You wouldn’t have anything to do with that would you?”

“News to me.” I shrugged. I’d thought there might be a chance some soldiers would look for us here, but I couldn’t say for certain whether the one inside was for us or not. Still, Calisto never liked coincidences and always played it cautious. “Though, if you could tell me how many other soldiers have come into town the last few days, that’d help.”

“Three,” he said after a pause. “And they brought some nancy city type with them.”

Yeah, that sounded about right. Didn’t know who the nancy city type was, not a lot of Wide Eyes are what you’d call nancy.

“So, you gonna help me out or what?”

“...Fine, but no more free favors.”

“They’re never free,” I told him. “Leave the stuff off at my usual place would ya? You know, with the butchers.”

He nodded.

“Alright, sweet. Come on Trix.” I tapped her on the shoulder and left back the way we came. She looked as though she was going to get snappy at me, but something must have changed her mind at the last second.

I led her out the alley and down a few more streets away from the riverside of town.

“Corpse?” she said after a while.

“What?” I glanced at her, but most of my attention was on keeping an eye out for soldiers.

“He mentioned that you got rid of a corpse for him.”

“Oh, well you know. When you can hunt and know how to skin a kill, you’ve basically just learned how to get rid of a corpse. He had a big minotaur in his basement that the Wide Eyes wanted for questioning. I just got rid of the body, no biggie.”

I glanced at Trixie and she was green. “Trixie think’s she might throw up.”

“Aw geez Trixie, Not in the middle of the street. Even zapheads are nice enough to go in the alleyway.” I elbowed her playfully, though that didn’t seem to lighten the mood.

Eventually we arrived at the front of a nice little butcher. This time I went through the front door and a little bell rang as I entered.

The gryphon behind the counter brightened up the moment he saw me. “Hey! Gilda!” He was a Free Bird, and that clan was known for its friendliness.

He was a bulky gryphon with a fat belly, and arms thick with muscles from cutting meat all day. He ambled out from behind the counter and came to meet me with a hug. The dude smelled like blood and meat, and I had to admit I hadn’t eaten in a while, so the smell was getting me a little hungry.

“Hey Abel.” I said into his ear as I returned his hug.

“How long’s it been?” he asked me as he returned to all fours and took a step backwards.

“A year?” I guessed. “Something like that?”

“Too long. Why don’t you stop by more?” he asked me.

“Cause I live in Equestria?” I told him with a smile on my beak.

“Then write!” he paused and looked past me. “Who’s this lovely mare?”

“Abel, this is my friend Trixie, Trixie this is Abel.” I said while waving claws.

“A pleasure.” Trixie said with a polite smile, though I could tell from the hesitant way she shook his claw that she wasn’t feeling very pleased.

“How does a nice mare like you get caught up with this crazy bird?” he asked her with a chuckle.

“Blackmail?” I offered with a smile and a laugh.

He started laughing right with me. “So Gilda, what can I do for you? Are you in town long?”

“Nah sorry, this is just a quick stop for a favor. I just wanted to crash in that little storage shed you got on the waterfront, and have some friends drop a few things here.”

“Oh sure,” he waved it off. “If you like you can sleep on my couch; the missus would love to have you over.”

I winced at that. Bruna was nice, but damn was she a horrible cook, and she seemed to think it was her job to act like my mother every time I saw her. Always lecturing me about not taking enough care with my appearance or how I needed to swear less or whatever. The same sort of shit I’d copped from my mother, but coming from a gryphon that knew me half as well.

“Nah, this is going to be one of those quick stops. I’d love to stay, but you know how Bruna can get with goodbyes.” I rolled my eyes.

Bloody Tartarus, I lived with them for a month at best and she bawls her eyes out when I leave. Since then, every time I have business in town she always takes a long ass time to say goodbye, and tries to get me to stay. Goddesses love her, she was a sweet lady, but no, we weren’t that close.

“Alright then.” He looked a bit disappointed. Then he brightened up. “Oh! You know that meat you sold me last time you were in town?”

I felt Trixie stiffen at my shoulder.

“Yeah?”

“Sold really well.” he told me with a smile. “It had a real sweet flavor to it. I had plenty asking me to get more of it. What sort of game was it?”

Thank fuck, we were both distracted by Trixie running out the front door and throwing up all over the front step.

“Aww fuck!” he cursed. “Who’s going to clean that?”

“I’ll get her to do it.” I told him.

“What set her off?” he groaned as I stepped out the front with him.

Trixie only stared at me with utter horror in her eyes as she wiped bile from her chin.

“You know ponies,” I answered with a shrug. “Don’t like the smell of meat.”

“Why’d you bring her in then?”

“I thought she could handle it. Don’t worry, I’ll clean it up.”

“Yeah you better,” he said with another curse. “Look at this! I’ll go get a fucking bucket.”

The moment he was inside Trixie turned to me with her eyes wide. “You sold him-”

A tap on the shoulder and a name whispered in my ear made me turn towards a pathetically scrawny earth pony standing behind me.

“Gilda?” he asked.

“Yeeeah...”

He dumped a sack on the porch next to me before trotting off. I picked it up and looked inside. All the stuff I’d asked for was inside. Brown cloak, knives and belt. Huh, that was quick.

Abel came back out front with a bucket and a mop. “Clean it good, alright?”

“No worries.” I told him with a smile as he headed back inside. The moment the door was shut I turned to Trixie. “You’re cleaning this.”

“But-”

“No, it’s your puke, you clean it. I’m gonna step around the side and put on this stuff.” I didn’t give her time to argue before I walked down the alley beside the shop.

That’s the thing I like about Abel. He was a clean guy. Completely clean. He ran the nicest business in Port Town, and the only legal one that I knew of. As far as I know, I’m the most illegal thing he deals with.

About a minute later I came out of the alley wearing a brown cloak and beneath that a whole bunch of gear. A knife belt, a bag with some handy stuff in it like lockpicks and rope, and a few other things. Really nothing special, just your basic materials. I’d like a good bow to go with it, but a gryphon female loses all ability to blend in with one of those. I’d been hiding the hoof band from the temple beneath my wing since we entered Port Town, so I took that out and slipped it in the pockets of my knife belt.

Trixie had stopped cleaning and was chatting up some female gryphon.

“Trixie, come on!” I said annoyed as I approached the two of them. “I’m not cleaning up your mess, and I’m not leaving it on Abel’s doorstep either.”

“Gilda?” the female gryphon asked in a really oddly masculine voice.

I looked up at her-him! “Holy fuck!” I shouted in surprise. “Graciano?” He smiled at me and I rushed forward and wrapped him in a hug. “Shit, Graciano?! What are you doing here?”

“Gilda, I can’t believe it’s really you,” he[CTT2] said into my ear.

“Fuck me, man,” I said as I pulled back from him. “Fuck, look at you.” I eyed him up and down. “You’re even more girly than the last time I saw you.”

His smile dropped a little at that.

“Ah shit man, I didn’t mean it like that. I’m just really happy to see you.”

“It’s fine.” He waved it off. “How are you? Where have you been?”

“I’m fine, I’m fine. I just can’t fucking believe you’re here.” I pulled him in for a hug again, wrapping his scrawny shoulders in my broad arms.

“Trixie’s sorry, who is this?”

“Oh, right.” I pulled away. “Trix, this is Graciano, my twin brother.”

She blinked in surprise. What? We didn’t look that different. We had the exact same coloring and everything.

“We haven’t seen each other since... Shit, how long has it been?” I turned to him.

“Six years and four months,” he answered me with that small smile still on his face.

The grin fell from my face. “Shit... It’s been a while hasn’t it?”

He nodded. “Yes it has. You ran away.”

I winced. “Yeah, I know.”

“You didn’t write, or try contact me again.” He sounded hurt and I couldn’t blame him.

“Fuck, I know, I know.” I sighed. “I’m really fucking sorry.”

“Why’d you run?” he asked.

“I... Fuck man. It’s... a mess alright.” That was true. “I wish I had another choice, but... Look, I’m just glad you’re here, okay?”

That didn’t seem to satisfy him, but he didn’t ask me anymore questions.

“Shit man, we need to go and get a drink somewhere, talk about all the shit I missed.” I nudged him in the shoulder. “Found yourself a marefriend?” I grinned and winked. “Or maybe a nice stallion?”

He looked confused. “Mare? Stallion?” he asked.

“Oh, shit man.” I face palmed. “I’ve been in Equestria too long. If I say everypony just fucking kill me. No, I mean have you got yourself a mate?”

He smiled and shook his head sadly. “No. None too interested in a male that’s prettier than them.”

“Well it’s their fucking loss.” I said as I put an arm around his shoulder. “Fuck, remember all those times mum tried to set us up on those dates, or like, arrange a marriage or something?”

He grinned and chuckled. “Yes, and the deal breaker was always when they learned I was the son and you were the daughter.”

“I know right!” We both laughed and shook our heads, though Trixie seemed confused. “Oh well, I was always really butch and he was heaps feminine. So when we were first introduced to others they never realized Graciano was the son and I was the daughter until mum or dad said our names.”

I paused. “Aw man, remember that time dad got heaps drunk and tried to put you in a dress and make me wear a suit while his brother was in town?”

He grimaced. “Yes I do.”

I covered my face with my hand. “What a fucking nightmare that was.”

He nodded. “It was only worse when you were eleven.” He sighed.

“Aww fuck.” I groaned and face palmed again. “When girls have that growth spurt they all do at that age?”

He nodded.

“And so I was fucking tall and looked like I could tackle most of the guys a year older than me, and you were just this... You were even smaller for your age and a puny girly looking guy.”

He winced. “Yes, those were embarrassing years.”

“Yeah and I was fucking terrible with it too. I always stood next to you, or put my arm on your head or just whatever I could to feel big and embarrass you. I’m sorry about that man.”

“It’s fine,” he reassured me with a smile. “So what do you do now? Why are you in Port Town?”

I winced. “Well... what does anyone in Port Town do?”

“Ah,” he said after a moment and did not look happy.

“Yeah...” I said with a sigh. “My life has not been very nice since I left home, let me tell you. But hey,” I elbowed him. “What about you? What do you do now? Did you make it into the Wide Eyes?”

“Yes, I did actually.”

Fuck. My mind immediately jumped to the warning I’d been given about the three soldiers and the nancy city type that was with them.

“I’m glad to hear that man.” I told him with a smile. “Was it hard?”

“Like you wouldn’t believe.” Oh he had no idea.

I took a step back towards Trixie. “Well it’s been great catching up with you man. We’ll have to see each other again some time.”

He blinked in surprise. “You’re leaving?” Fuck. He sounded hurt

“Shit man, it’s not like that. I’ve just got not a lot of time and stuff I need to take care of.”

He didn’t look any happier. “Gilda, it’s been six years since I’ve seen or heard from you, and you’re just going to walk away like that?” He sounded pissed. I didn’t blame him.

“Grace...” I tried to say it. I tried to excuse it, and give an empty apology as I walked out of his life again, but when I opened my mouth- “Fuck it. Let’s go get a drink or something.”

He smiled at that. “Yeah?”

“Yeah, fuck it. I can’t stay long, but... Whatever, we have time for a drink or something.”

“Trixie’s not so-”

“Trix, shut up.” I turned to her. “Relax, alright?” I gave her a small smile to calm her down, but she just scowled at me.

“I’m sorry, Trixie was it?” Graciano stepped forward and shook her hoof. “I don’t mean to get in the way of your business with Gilda,” he bowed low. “But try to understand that this is a reunion between brother and sister, we haven’t seen each other in a very long time.”

Trixie grimaced and pulled her hoof out of his grip. She didn’t say anything, but she noticed the death stare I was giving her so she nodded her head after a moment. “Very well then.”

“Excellent.” Graciano smiled and turned back to me. “Is there anywhere in town that serves a good meal?”

“Fuck no. The best is this butcher.” I jerked my thumb at the shop behind us. “But The Flotsam does an alright beer and their food hasn’t got bugs in it. Plus, if you know the cooks like I do they won’t spit in your food.”

He grimaced. “Lovely, though that will have to do.”

I stayed long enough to make sure Trixie cleaned her puke off Abel’s doorstep. Graciano went to help her, and that made me feel guilty so I ended up helping them both. Still it wasn’t long until we were sitting around a table in the Flotsam with some food and alcohol between us.

“-and then, Elder Calisto looks at both of us, coated in blood, and fuck were we a mess. Two five year olds in his backyard, his fence was broken and the kill in his shed destroyed... A prize fucking manticore completely ruined, and there’s the two of us staring at him, pissing ourselves with fear. And he looks at us, and he says ‘I think you two better clean yourselves off,’ and that was it.” I said.

Graciano chuckled. “Yes. It’s remarkable that Calisto didn’t skin us and put us on the wall where that manticore would have been.”

Trixie was looking a little pale from the story, but she made a pretty weak effort at a chuckle.

“Nah man, Calisto wasn’t like that.” I waved a claw and took another sip of my drink. “He was a calm guy, cool. He didn’t flip out ever.”

“Well you wo uld have known him better than I did.” He shrugged. Then he looked up at me. “Did you know he’s wanted by the Wide Eyes?”

Yeah I did. “No, fuck me. Really?”

“Yes, I saw his name in a list of standing Wide Eyes targets.”

So they hadn't found him yet. “Shit... Really?”

“Yes. I thought it was strange that he left so suddenly. Did you know anything about him? You and him and some of the other girls in town were close if I remember.”

I frowned and shook my head. “Nah, can’t say I do.”

“Hmm... Pity. Information like that would be good for my career.” He took a sip of the beer in his hand then grimaced and put it back on the table. I couldn’t blame him, the stuff tasted like shit. I’d lied when I said it was alright. I hadn't had much of my mug either.

“Enough about work. I know what you said back there, but anything in the lady department, eh?” I nudged him playfully.

He smiled. “Not really. A handful of single dates, a few relationships that lasted a week, another a month.”

“Bitches,” I muttered. “Or bastards?” I glanced at him.

“Female.” He assured me with a vaguely disgusted look. “So how about you?” he asked after a moment of silence. “How’s romance for you?”

I coughed on my beer. “Not well. Gryphons in Equestria don’t get a lot of options.” I told him. “Though it sounds like I’ve had a bit more luck than you.”

“Oh really? I didn’t know there were many gryphons in Equestria.”

I blushed and looked away. Not my smoothest move.

He blinked. “Gilda? Ponies? Really?”

“What? It was that or nothing.”

“You should have chosen nothing. At least tell me you didn’t sleep with any of them... you did didn’t you?”

“Hey, it’s-”

I was interrupted. “From what Trixie hears it’s even worse than that.”

“Shut up Trix-”

“How so?” Graciano turned to face her.

“From what Trixie hears, Gilda had a marefriend.”

“Really?!” Graciano looked shocked.

I groaned and covered my face. ‘“Trix-”

“With you?” Graciano said with concern on his face.

“Eww, no. Trixie would never touch her. No, she mentioned somepony named Rainbow Dash.”

“Rainbow Dash?” he repeated and turned to me. “The Element of Loyalty?”

“She wasn’t my marefriend, Trixie’s just an idiot. Nah, I was just friends with her.”

“So she says.” Trixie interjected. “But I’ve seen the way she eyes up the mares. I remember the way you kept talking about ravaging.”

“Trix, shut-”

“And I don’t even know what you were thinking that had Night-”

“Shut the fuck up Trixie!” I slammed my fists on the table. Good thing this was the sort of place where you could do shit like that and no one would notice.

We were silent for a moment, and I went for another sip of beer.

“You know if you’re gay then you should just tell me.” Graciano said and I choked. “You certainly match the stereotype.”

I coughed and beat my chest. “Dude-”

“Sir,” interrupted a gryphon soldier that stepped up to our table.

“What the fuck is it with interrupting me today?” I turned to Trixie who shrugged innocently.

“Yes?” Graciano asked and turned around to face him.

“A courier came for you sir.” The gryphon bowed low, and I noticed he had a wyvern on his shoulder. The things basically looked like a snake with wings, though they had a full set of teeth. The red stripe down its spine and its smaller size made it a pygmy. He handed a scroll to Graciano.

“You got a pygmy wyvern?” I looked at Grace. “That’s pretty exotic. I thought only higher ups got those.”

Graciano didn’t answer as he opened the scroll and began reading it.

While he was busy with that I turned to Trixie. “What the fuck was with that shit about me having a marefriend?”

She just looked at me smugly. She glanced over at my brother before turning to me. “You and him could not be more different.”

“What’s that mean?”

“Well, he’s polite and friendly, has a sense of class and seems to realize that there are more words out there than those with four letters. You on the other hoof, are abrasive, aggressive, sarcastic and in general are completely insufferable.”

“Fuck you Trix.”

“You wish fillyfooler.”

I opened my beak to speak again when Graciano spoke again.

“Trixie?”

“Motherfucker!” I cursed. I was getting real sick of that happening.

“Yes?” she answered him. “How can Trixie help you?”

He sighed. “I was afraid of this.”

That grabbed my attention. “Grace...”

He stood up from the table. He left the letter there. “I’d hoped I was wrong. As an operative of the Wide Eyes and by order of the king, I place you both under arrest.” The soldier behind him drew his sword and pointed it at Trixie. Idiot, he assumed the female gryphon was less than dangerous than the unicorn.

Out of the corner or my eye I noticed the other people in the bar watching us. This was a seedy place, and I doubt they liked having the king’s soldiers in here.

“How’d you figure it out?” I asked as I slipped a talon under my cloak. I slipped my fingers into the claw guard, before I grabbed the hilt of a knife.

“It was Trixie who gave it away,” he nodded at the unicorn. “The guards at the border remember two blue unicorns traveling together, one of them spoke in the third person.”

“Trix, you suck.” I was still sitting there, though Trixie had stood up and backed off.

“Shut up Gilda,” she snapped at me.

“Surrender Gilda.” He looked me in the eye. “I think I can get you red-”

It was my turn to interrupt someone else. I flipped the table over, and he had to jump back. The soldier went for Trixie, but she threw a mug of some random guy’s drink into his face. He staggered as he went to wipe the drink from his face, and that was all the time I needed to put my other claw guard on.

“The pigs are here for us!” Trixie shouted out and everyone in the bar stiffened. “Grab the cargo and let’s get the fuck out of here!”

Both me and Graciano stared at her as we realized what she’d just done.

“Mother f-” It wasn’t actually me that said that.

Damn near everyone in the bar jumped up at the same time and made for the exits. The problem with that was they all got in each other's way, and rather than politely letting the guy in front of them go out first, they tried to push past him. A couple of them reached for weapons, but in general they stuck with their fists or hooves. Some of them dove out windows, but most were content to try and bash their way out front.

Rowdy bar, less than legal patrons, no one was surprised when it turned into a massive free for all.

The guard that had just had a mug thrown in the face, found himself tackled to the ground by an earth pony stallion. I ducked out of the way as two brawling goats rolled past us. In the corner I saw a giant of a minotaur holding two gryphons in a headlock. A goat looked like it was trying to bite off some pegasus’ wings.

Then, I saw Trixie, standing there on a table on her hind legs with her cape billowing and holding her hat on with one hoof. I noticed the glow of magic on her horn, and at first I thought she was just standing there posing in a wind she’d created. Well she was doing that, but she was also making a massive load of firework spells and floating them in the air around her.

Both me and Graciano had apparently noticed this at the same time, because we both said, “Well, fuck me.”

Trixie released her magic, and her load of fireworks scattered all over the room. Explosions rained over the chaos, and the entire room was cast in thick smoke. Bright flashing lights created a strobe effect, and a lot of the brawlers were blinded.

I tried to push my way through the smoke and crowd towards Trixie, but was blindsided by a black and brown gryphon. We both tumbled to the floor, and he tried to swipe at me, but I caught his hand with my guarded fist and jabbed my other hand forward into his eyes. He screamed in pain and covered his bleeding eyes as I stood up and looked around for Trixie again.

In the corner of my eye I noticed one of Grace’s soldiers diving at me arms outstretched for a tackle. I reacted by stepping left and grabbing him. I used his momentum to toss him over the bar and into the shelf of drinks. He came back over the bar top at me, sword drawn and swinging. I ducked under it and blocked his next swipe with a bar stool. His blade got stuck in the wood, and I reached around to clap my hands over his ears. Disoriented he stumbled backwards into the bar again, and I yanked the helmet from his head, and bashed him in the temple with it. He fell to the ground unconscious and I turned away from him.

Trixie was still nowhere to be seen, and I pushed my way between two stallions that were trying to strangle each other. A drink splashed into my face and blinded me and I stumbled forward into something hard.

At first, I thought it was a wall, but then I rubbed my eyes and looked up. My eyes widened and I saw the huge ass minotaur staring down at me with a growl on his face. His fist closed around my throat, and I slashed at his arteries with my claws. He yelped in pain and threw me away like I weighed nothing.

I smashed into someone and was sent rolling before I managed to land on all fours. I looked up and saw the minotaur charging across the room at me, only to trip and stumble as he passed whoever it was I’d knocked over. He collapsed at my feet and I looked up to see Graciano standing there with blood on his claws. Dodging back, I barely managed to avoid the swipe from the minotaur that turned around to roar at Grace, and I moved forward to rake my claws along his throat. He managed to pull away before I could cut his jugular, and he tossed me into Graciano again. We stood up at the same time, and the minotaur charged the two of us.

We both moved at the same time, and ducked around him. We both met on the other side where we turned around to see the minotaur collapse to the ground bleeding heavily from his armpit and inner thigh.

Huh. We both went for different arteries.

Me and Grace both looked at each other for a second, before he dove forward at me. He never made it to me, because a giant earth pony wrapped in Trixie’s magical aura slammed into him. Graciano stood up, and the same earth pony was smashed into him again. The earth pony was dropped unconscious onto him, and Trixie appeared at my shoulder.

“Come on!” she shouted and I followed her towards the door.

There was still a massive crowd blocking the exit, so I put a chair through the window, and dived out that. Trixie followed me out and stopped to adjust her hat before I led the way through town.

“Come on, we need to find a place to hide.”

Chapter 6

“Well that was fun,” I said as I pulled the cellar door shut behind us.

Trixie didn’t answer. I glanced over my shoulder and saw her wander over to a corner and sit there with a puff of dust. She took her time settling in, before she looked back over to me.

“Fun?” she repeated. “In what way was that fun?”

“Aww, come on, admit it. A good brawl’s always an awesome time.” I took the time to look around the room for any spot that wouldn’t be hard stone floor or dusty. Nope. So I settled for the middle of the room. “I saw you on the table, making your cloak all billowy and shit. You were getting into it.”

“Ha! A simpleton like you would not understand the effort that goes into being a mare as great as Trixie,” she replied.

I laughed. “Right... So the fireworks couldn’t have been launched from anywhere else in the room?”

Trixie scoffed and looked at me as though I had just said I ate her pet cat or something. “Of course not! How dare you suggest such a thing. Trixie is a performer of the highest caliber.”

I snorted. “You had fun, admit it.”

“Trixie will admit to being... thrilled at having such an active audience. To think her beauty and skills could provoke such a reaction.” She smirked. “Trixie played those fools like an expert.”

“I don’t know about beauty and skill, but I have to say, good call starting that bar fight.” I noticed that my claw guards were pretty nasty looking with that minotaur’s blood on them so I took them off and slid them into my belt under my cloak.

Trixie watched me with a disgusted look on her face and turned away. “Trixie supposes it would be too much to believe that you have a plan?”

“Not really. We’re pretty much fucked as it is. They know we’re here and who we are. As a Wide Eyes, Grace can call up more soldiers to come after us. No river smuggler would be willing to take us, and if we try to cross the plains then they’ll find us. Maybe if I was on my own I could make it, but with you slowing me down, our best chance is to sit here and wait it out for maybe a day, then try our luck at another way across the border. But that’s a real long shot. Like I said, we’re pretty much fucked.”

“Why must Trixie be surrounded by idiots?” she asked aloud.

“Yeah, well fuck you too Trix.” Really I wasn’t ticked off. You get used to how much of a bitch she is after a while.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Such vulgar language will get you nowhere in life young cub.” A half amused look was sent in my direction. “Something you already know all about from the looks of things. Now watch and learn.”

Trixie closed her eyes and her horn began glowing a light blue. Then, as easy as breathing out, a second Trixie appeared beside her and they both directed that smug grin at me. Fuck. And here I thought things couldn’t get worse.

“What do you think?” they spoke as one. “Trixie can create up a dozen at once; after all, she is called the Great and Powerful for a reason.”

“Illusions...” I tapped a claw against my beak. “You can make one of me, right?”

“Of course,” Trixie scoffed.

“Well this can work...” I stood up and began pacing. “How long can you keep it up? How close do you have to be for it to work?”

“It gets harder the further away it is, but with smoke and mirrors, Trixie is more than capable of getting us out of any sticky situations. And with a bit more magic, she can make them explode.” A small smile danced on her lips as she examined her hooves. “Trixie is not as defenseless as she sounds.”

Still not used to the idea of killing though. Still doesn’t react fast enough when someone wants to kill her. Still, I’d underestimated her. I got up and made my way over to the fake Trixie. I poked it in the face, and my finger passed straight through.

“Trixie, any way you can make these things more... solid? If they’re purely ghosty, then they’re not going to leave any tracks. They’ll only work for so long.”

“Trixie is powerful, not a miracle worker. Doing things to the degree you’re suggesting will limit us to just one pair of illusions for no more than ten minutes.” Trixie almost seemed annoyed at having to say that, as though she was swallowing poison or something. “If that.”

“Heh, bet it burns her to admit the Great and Powerful Trixie has limits?” I put my fist through the Illusions face. Damn, if only this thing had a bit of weight to it, it’d be an awesome punching bag. I turned around and caught the scowl that was set into her muzzle. “Well, I think we should try to sneak out first, and when that doesn’t work we use the illusions to make a break for it.” I shrugged. “Not the best plan, but I’m not a genius... Wait a second. Remember that invisibility spell?”

“Yes,” she replied, still very hostile. Then, to my surprise, the illusion beside me exploded, sending me stumbling sideways as stars dashed in front of my eyes. “What about it?”

“Fuck you, Trix,” I muttered as I rearranged my feathers. “Can you do that solid illusion and the invisibility at the same time? If you can, then we can set some false tracks leading Grace away, and I can fly us far enough to get a good lead out of here.”

“Trixie believes so. Difficult, but doable,” and then she smirked. “What’s this? Is Gilda preening herself in preparation for a date? Got a hot mare lined up for tonight?”

I rolled my eyes. Preening was important for more than just looks. It was necessary for flight. “Whatever, that’s our plan. Let’s just hope they don’t have any zeb powder.”

I coughed out a mouthful of the purple dust as we were both shoved into the iron bar sky carriage. Turns out they do have zeb powders.

“Well that wasn’t fun.” I said as the cage door slammed shut behind us and the carriage took to the air.

“It would have worked if you flew into the forest like Trixie suggested,” snapped the unicorn as she smoothed down her charred mane.

I snorted. “I told you, that would have just made more rustling for them to follow. We would have made a completely clean break if you just kept you fat muzzle shut and didn’t shout out ‘The Great and Powerful Trixie mocks your puny gryphon brains,’ which is bullshit by the way. Don’t go saying that shit while I’m flying you, and next time I won’t let go.”

“Says the gryphon who dropped Trixie into an outhouse. If not for that, we would have escaped!”

“Speaking of which, you can stay on the other side of the cage.” I told her and shoved her towards the other side. “Look, you just said that shit, and the outhouse was right there, and we were fucked anyway. What was I supposed to do?”

“Gone around the thing that was straight in front of you? Watch where you were going? Not be a total idiot!?” With each word she spoke, she advanced. “And if Trixie has to suffer, so do you!”

“I went over it, I just let you fall into it...” I gagged. “Goddesses! What the fuck do they eat around here! You smell like some real nasty shit, let me tell you.” I shoved her away from me again. “Fuck me dead.”

“Ha! So you admit it!” She looked way too pleased with herself. “And please, Trixie wouldn’t ‘fuck’ you normally so she most certainly would not ‘fuck you dead’ no matter how much she was paid.”

“Admit what?” I backed away from her again. “And I would definitely not fuck you coated in shit. I wouldn’t fuck anything coated in shit.”

“Please, Trixie is so magnificent she could walk into a bar as is and have males fall over their hooves for her. Trixie will have you know, she is so hot, even straight mares fall over their hooves for her.”

I coughed and turned away, gasping for air. “Speaking for the mares, I would not tap that.”

There was a loud thump from outside. “Will you two just screw each other already!? It’s been a long night and your bickering is not helping!”

Trixie immediately replied with a buck to the wall. “Shut up you insolent foal! The Great and Powerful Trixie will not be spoken to in such a manner. And to insinuate such a thing! Trixie is not some low down tramp willing to have sex with whatever horror is dragged up from Tartarus. Though to be fair, the creatures from Tartarus probably look more appealing than this female.”

“Go suck a big fat monster cock, Trix.” I turned to face the bars and called out for whoever that was. “And you, spit the one you’ve got out. No one wants to see that shit.”

“At least Trixie could get some if she wanted to.” Then she leaned back with a smug grin plastered all over that annoying face of hers. “You on the other hoof... Even if you did pick one up, you’d be too busy eyeing his sister to do anything.”

“Fuck you Trix.” I muttered.

“You’d love to, wouldn’t you?”

“Please, you have less curves than my brother. You’d be lucky to find anything that’d tap that.”

“Your brother has more curves than the entire female race.”

“Hey! That’s my brother you’re talking about. I’m the only one that’s allowed to give him shit.”

Trixie merely shrugged and turned away from me. “Whatever. This is still all your fault.”

“Bull shit. If you hadn’t-”

“To think for a while there, I actually thought you might be somewhat intelligent.” I glanced around and saw Grace flying behind us smirking.

I smiled back at him. “Yeah fuck you too Grace.” I jerked my thumb at Trixie. “If shit coat here hadn’t been with me I’d have made it.”

“Ha! It was Trixie’s superior wit and intelligence that came up with the plan to begin with. Without a dead weight like you, she would be in Equestria right this moment.”

“Bullshit.” I said and turned back to her. “It was my plan, you were the one that fucked it up, and even if you had gotten away, it’s three days to the Equestrian border in the closest direction. Idiot.” I turned back to Graciano. “Ignore her,” I told him with a roll of my eyes. “You feeling alright? She hit you pretty hard with that earth pony.”

“And the flare,” added Trixie with a smirk. “And don’t forget that outhouse some gryphon dropped Trixie into.”

“I’m fine,” he assured me. “But, was it really necessary for you to blind that soldier? He needs to be medically discharged now.”

I shrugged. “He’s still breathing. So uh... what’s going to happen to us?” I glanced back over at Trixie.

“I’m taking you to Aviana, where it will be someone else's decision. Trixie’s going to get the ‘royal treatment’,” he did finger quotes in the air, and I shuddered. “But given that you’re female and I have some influence, I believe I can help you.”

“The royal treatment? What’s that?” Trixie asked sounding worried.

“Not pretty,” I told her. Yeah, no. As much as Trixie was a complete bitch, there was no way in Tartarus that I was going to let her go through that. Mind you, it’s not like I had much of a choice in the matter. “You’re still gonna try to get me off out of this?”

He nodded. “Of course. Whatever happens I’m still your brother.”

I smirked. “Yeah-yeah-yeah. Big hug.” We were silent for a bit until Trixie spoke up again.

“Please get a room. Trixie is trying to sleep.”

We both glanced at each other as our beaks curled in disgust. “Trixie, he’s my brother.”

“If that stopped everypony, there would not need to be a law about it.”

Grace chuckled. “She raises a strong point. Regardless I assure you we would never do that. Plus, I suspect Gilda’s gay anyway.”

“Hah. You’re prettier than Trixie, Grace. That’s not a good argument.”

“Trixie is not even offended by that comment. He could be a model. For female clothing that is,” Trixie said without even looking up at us.

I laughed, and Grace smirked too. I guess he’d gotten used to stuff like that over the years. I glanced back at him. “Guess some things never change, hey?”

“Yeah,” he answered. “I better go now. I’ll wake you when we arrive in Aviana,” he gave a sniff. “And I’ll make sure Trixie gets a bath too.”

“Thank fuck for that. She smells worse than dragon turd.” I rolled my neck and yawned. “See you tomorrow then.”

He nodded. “Alright. Try to get some sleep, and tomorrow, if you want to get in as little trouble as possible, try to act less like... you.”

I snorted. Not likely. Even with his help I was practically an exile, and this wasn’t the first run in I’d had with the Wide Eyes. My chances of getting out of this clean, were about the same as Trixie’s.

“Yeah, night Grace.”

He didn’t answer, just hopped of the carriage and took to the air.

“Finally,” Trixie muttered. “Now Trixie can get some sleep.”

“Fuck you Trix.”

“Well, th-”

“No. Shut up. That wasn’t funny the first time.”

“Whatever.”

“You have been oddly silent these past few days.”

“There is something far deeper going on here than we first suspected,” I replied as we stared out the window together. “Thou feels it too, dost thou not?

“A tension.A fear.Anticipation.” She turned our head to look up at the moon and the stars. “Change. Something is happening.”

“No doubt Celestia feels it too.” With a snarl, I forced my head back to gazing out over the plains and forests before us. “This body is mine. Thou wouldst do best to remember that.”

Her chuckled echoed through the confines of my head. “And what would little Lulu do? Kill me? I’d love to see you try.”

“Silence.” Even to my ears the command sounded weak. What was the point of it anymore? I was useless and worthless and pathetic. The sooner I admitted that to myself the better. I used to be powerful! My commands would be obeyed, I could do as I pleased and none could say the contrary. Perhaps a certain filly would catch my eye, or a particular plot of land, or maybe even some nice jewelry. It mattered not. I was Princess, and it was my right to claim such items for myself.

Now? Now I would get laughed at, or somepony would quote some obscure historical law that shouldn’t have been created in the first place. In place of fear and awe, I got baby faces and ‘Awwwwww, isn’t she just so cute!’.Stupid Celly and her stupid declaration of pony rights.Stupid laws. We used to have everything!

“Everything except love and admiration.”

Yes! Except love and admiration. The one thing we desired most was stripped away from us at every opportunity. Who fought back the dragons? Who pushed the changelings and prevented the greatest catastrophe from every befalling our fair nation? We did! Who got the credit? Stupid Celly. Oh yes, she was all nice and prim, making orders from the safety of her stupid Canterlot and adhering to the stupid rules of engagement. Ha! Who obeys those? War is war and everything is fair game.

“She vilified the night. She wanted everything to herself. The lands.The power.Their love. Everything is her fault”

Yes, everything is her fault. It was all her fault. We could have had it all. Everything could have been o-

“No!” I slammed my hoof into the glass before me, shattering it into a thousand pieces. Though they dug into my fur and left cuts along my hoof, the pain did not register at all. “Get out of our head!”

The door suddenly burst open, sending splintered wood in all directions as gryphons poured in.

“Your Majesty! Is everything alright?”

“Who dost thou think thou art? Who gave thee permission to burst in so?” I asked with a deathly chill whisper. “Well?”

“We... We heard shattering glass and... um...” The guard backed up, glancing to his companions for support out the corner of his eye, but they offered no words. Try as he might, he could not escape my gaze. He coughed and straightened up before saying, “I apologize, Your Majesty. I made a snap judgment.”

“Leave Us.”

“But your hoof. Surely you will requ-”

“We said, leave Us.” Glass crunched underhoof as I walked towards the guard. “Does thou lack basic hearing? Leave. Us.”

“Your Majesty, I must protest. Those are seriou-”

“Thou dares question Us!?” With the full force of the Royal Canterlot Voice unleashed, the rest of the windows shattered and the guards were thrown across the room. One unfortunate guard slammed into a dresser with enough force to break it and leave a piece of wood embedded in his arm.

“We are the Mistress of the Night! We hold enough power to level this entire city! Thou dare question Us!?” Wings flared open, sending gale force winds out in all directions. What furniture wasn’t destroyed now lay in tatters and the three guards were pinned up against the wall, slowly being crushed to death.

Just as suddenly as the outburst had occurred, the winds died down and everything fell to the ground. My head throbbed and I was panting to catch my breath as sweat dripped down my brow, but I covered that up with the most simplistic illusion spell.

“Be glad thou art not under Our direct rule.” In the deathly silent room, my whisper was like a guillotine. “Now be gone.”

A slow clap filled the air.

“Who dares mock Us?”

There, reflected in the shards of broken glass was Nightmare Moon, slowly clapping her hooves as she grinned at me. “Bravo! Encore I say, encore! I have not seen a performance like that in quite some time. I doubt I could have done much better. Encore!” Then to add insult to injury, she threw in one of those whistles modern ponies use when they see an attractive member of the opposite gender.

All I needed was a bit of magic and then all the glass in the room was turned to dust. It was only then that I noticed the destruction I had caused. Stones were cracked, the roof had collapsed in, water was leaking out of the bathroom, and there was not a single usable piece of furniture left in the room.

“We... We are sorry...” I took a step towards the three guards, but they immediately shrunk back. Or, at least they tried to. Cuts, bruises, broken bones, impaled limbs. It would take forever for them to return to active duty. With a sigh, I returned to my spot by the window.

For the second time that night, gryphons invaded my private room.

“Princess Luna?” I glanced over and saw Teotore standing in the doorway. His eyes were calm as he took in the damage, and settled on the gryphon soldiers. “Did these soldiers cause you offense?”

Silence.

“You three, out.” I heard the groaning and shuffling as the soldiers left the room. “My lady, are you well?” he asked with what I could have mistaken for genuine concern.

Once more, all he got in reply was silence. As it stretched on and the nervous shuffling of claws and wings filled the air, I finally turned around and looked Teotore straight in the eye. “We wish to speak to thy King.”

“Of course my lady.” He bowed. “Would you like to freshen up before hand, or perhaps have that hoof tended to?”

“There is no need. We are fine as is.” I brushed past him and his guards as I made my way out.

“Yes Princess,” he said as he fell in behind me. His voice brightened up. “I have some good news though, the mare and the gryphoness who were your companions have been found, and are in good health. They will face justice for crimes against the Equestrian royalty.”

“That is good news indeed. Thou hast Our thanks for bringing it to our attention,” I replied lazily.

Those idiots! I told them to make a break for the border. How stupid has Equestria become in these past one thousand years? No doubt it is thanks to Celly coddling them all this time. Stupid! Now the gryphons had my journal and who knows what secrets are contained within it.

“They’re in the dungeon currently, if you wish to speak with them.” I could not hear a trace of implication in his voice. Could it be my flirtations had indeed succeeded?

“We care not for those miscreants. We are certain thy judicial system will be adequate.”

“As you wish princess. No interest in what they intended for you? Perhaps you wish to know what will likely become of them?”

“Perhaps. Speaking with thy King is of the utmost importance right now,” I replied with a toss of my mane before gazing up at him through my eyelashes. “We would appreciate it if thou accompanied Us to meet our former companions though. They were a brutish pair and thy presence will help keep me calm. We fear they may say something and We may react in a... regretful manner.”

“Yes, the guards have informed me that they are quite... uncouth. Rest assured I will accompany you when you see them. At the moment, it looks like the unicorn will face execution, but the gryphoness seems to have some pull here. She might be let off lightly.”

How interesting.

Before I could reply, we turned the corner and the large double doors of the throne room came into view. With a simple nod to the gryphons posted outside, they opened up the door and Teotore and I stepped in. No one else followed and the doors immediately closed once we were through.

“Your majesty,” bowed Teotore.

He was a large gryphon, broad in the shoulders and masculine in his presence. He appeared healthy and vibrant, though the greying tips of his crown feathers betrayed his age, as did the wrinkles around his eyes. His feathers were a golden brown, and his fur was a deeper chocolate. From the way Celly gushes about him, I was expecting something a bit more, but I had to admit, there was something to this mortal. Once I return to Canterlot, I will definitely have to keep a close eye on this one.

“Teotore,” he said with a nod of his head before he turned to me. “Princess Luna.” he rose from his throne and bowed. “It’s an honor.” His voice was deep and powerful.

“The honor is all ours King Joaquim,” I replied with a slight inclination of my head. “Teotore, leave us.”

I noticed him glance at the king, and the slight look that passed between them before he bowed again. “As you wish Your Highness.” The doors opened as he left, and closed behind him.

“It is fortunate you came, Princess Luna, I was just about to send someone to collect you. Please, sit, and tell me why it is you sought me out.”

I glanced over at the feminine gryphon standing beside him. That Wide Eyes was the one who went after Gilda and Trixie. Had he been giving a report? Either way, his presence was certainly not welcome.

“Do not mind Graciano, Princess Luna. He has my full confidence.”

“We shall defer to thy judgment.” I ignored the chair and simply stared up at him. “Why were thou at my temple?”

“Routine archaeology.” he chuckled. “Despite my kind’s disinterest in history, I agree with Celestia when she says it is quite important.”

“Is that so? Then thou wouldst not mind if we were allowed in on thy findings? The temple holds a special part in Our past and We would like to collect some of the more... emotionally important artifacts from Our past. We are sure some kind of compensation can be worked out.”

“I would love to, but sadly the ruin was buried in an avalanche, if you recall. We have no findings to share.” His smile seemed genuine, and he was treating me as though I were an equal. Foalish upstart.

“Nightmare?”

“I thought you would never ask.”

Grace watched Luna with his arms crossed as he leaned against the wall. His was still worried about his sister’s wellbeing, but even so. Professionalism was a trait to be admired, and he reminded himself of that as he stood there.

“But, Graciano here was overseeing most of the excavation with Teotore. Perhaps he would care to share his finding with you.”

Luna glanced back at Grace, and he smiled as he gave a low bow to her. “Your Majesty, I would be honored.”

And by that he meant he’d be happy to tell her exactly nothing of value. He’d memorized much on its historical significance and architecture that he could successfully talk about for hours without saying anything remotely worthwhile. One thing he’d learned long before his Wide Eyes training was a good lie took work.

Just as he was about to open his mouth to speak, the alicorn began changing. Her fur darkened, her eyes became that of a reptile and she held herself differently. Graciano’s mind jumped to what his sister had told him, about the difference between Nightmare and Luna.

Grace shifted slightly, and the king’s gaze turned to him. He shook his head slightly and shifted his head in Nightmare’s direction. A scratch behind his ear, and swallowing of the throat let his sire know the risk she presented. Mind magic is at play. Watch your thoughts.

A faint twitch of the king’s eye, and Grace lowered his head in deference.

“Ah, it is so refreshing when others know mind magic is at play,” chuckled Nightmare Moon. “What’s that? Your sister told you? Oh dear, she really shouldn’t be spreading state secrets around like that. So, tell me Kingy, will we engage in a battle of wills or shall you just tell me the answer? I doubt Celly uses such tactics at all, so I can promise you that I will win.”

Grace barely caught his beak before it hit the floor. The warning against mind magic was not a warning about having every thought in your head read; just that there might be risk of a thought press or similar spell that could be overcome with the right mental barriers. To have his mind read so cleanly was quite concerning for someone whose life was secrets.

The king, however, showed no reaction for a second, before he gave a throaty chuckle. “Then you better be careful, Grace. I’m sure she could learn many an unpleasant thing from your thoughts alone.” He smiled at Nightmare. “No, Celestia has no need to bully or frighten me. Her tactics are far more subtle than fear and her result are cleaner too.”

“Ah, but I get results faster and with far more accuracy,” smirked the dark alicorn. “And please, I doubt Graciano’s thoughts could be any worse than his sister’s.”

“His sister’s?” The king asked, and Grace’s jaw tightened. “What about your sister, Grace?”

That was one little part of his life he’d hoped would stay buried, even if she was in Aviana at this moment. There were ways he could help her without anyone ever knowing he’d had anything to do with it.

“My sister is something I’d like to treat as a private matter your highness. It’s unrelated to state affairs. Of course though, I will tell you if it’s your command.”

“Can we just skip past all this idle chatter and you all just tell me what is going on? I would rather skip the whole ‘breaking your mind’ to get the information I want bit.” She paused and looked over her shoulder before turning back. “Oh, and Luna wants you to know that it is exceptionally difficult to put the mind back together again once it has been cracked open like an egg.”

Again the king showed no fear. “I’m sure you’ve noticed trouble reading my thoughts?” He tapped his crown. “I have little interest in idle trinkets or decoration.” He shifted on his throne. “Though I doubt it would take much effort for you to break through a unicorn’s magic. I will gladly tell you everything, in fact I was considering asking you for aid anyway.”

Grace shifted uncomfortably. He did not like seeing his king so willing to share information. It went against his instincts.

Nightmare cocked an eyebrow. “I see, very interesting indeed. But can you say the same for the rest of your staff? Take Graciano for example, all I need is a bit of magic and all his secrets will be mine. Even your charm could be easily overcome if I decided to. Speak then, but know that if I suspect you are lying, I will not hesitate to use my magic.”

The king smiled. “For some reason I doubt even mind magic could fully separate a Wide Eyes from his lies. Even I do not know the depth of some of their deceptions. Still, his sanity is not a gamble I’ll make. No need for threats or brute force, we can do this with the civility that you ponies value so highly.”

The king was right. There were some truths that would never leave the Wide Eyes. His loyalty was to the king, but it was best that his hands remain clean of some of the less... savory things the Wide Eyes had locked away. Grace barely managed to catch his thoughts before they went to his last stint in Zebrica. That was one thought Nightmare would not catch.

“My King, I would gladly sacrifice myself or my sanity should you see it as necessary.”

“Worry not Graciano. I value you as a servant and friend, I would not see you destroyed so young.” He turned back to Nightmare and paused for thought. “Tell me... Nightmare, I assume?”

She merely inclined her head in acknowledgement.

“Tell me, does the story Celestia tells of your origin have any reflection on the truth at all?”

“Does it matter? Quit stalling.”

“Calm. There is time, and this is all relevant I assure you. For some reason, I find myself doubting that the power of jealousy alone is enough to possess the mind and soul of an alicorn so completely. The story feels... thin, don’t you think? I believe your origin lies elsewhere. I believe you were conceived in the wake of something called Thanatos.” He turned to Grace. “Is that the correct pronunciation?”

“Yes sire.”

He turned back to Nightmare. “Am I wrong?”

“Perhaps. Perhaps not,” she replied with a shrug. Grace had to admire her poker face. It was much better than Luna’s. In fact, it seemed to him that Gilda was right when she said Nightmare was altogether smarter and more dangerous than Luna in every conceivable way.

The king rolled his eyes. “Please, there’s no need for obscurity here. I’m being open with you, perhaps you can return the favor?” He stepped away from his throne. “Regardless, I find myself believing that you, Nightmare, were created as something of an accident. A byproduct, of research into immortality, or perhaps alicorn power.”

All of a sudden, Nightmare collapsed onto her knees, her head pressed against the cool marble floor. Grace and the king exchanged a look, unsure of how to react and unsure if approaching would get them killed. Then, just as suddenly as the attack had begun, Nightmare was back on her hooves as though nothing had happened though her fur constantly flickered between her lighter and darker coloration. Eventually though, it settled back on her darker hue.

“Something like that. Yes,” she said into the silence, as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

The King paused. “Are you feeling well?”

“Yes. Please continue.”

“...Very well. Simply put, I would like your help in discovering the truth of your origins. Any information or aid you provide would speed the process up by months. Better yet, there would be no need for all the cloak and dagger. I much prefer to do things honestly, though I admit I am no apple farmer.”

“You think we would help you gain immortality or the powers of an alicorn? You must be a foal then.”

He smiled. “Cub. The gryphon terminology is cub.”

“Luna would like you to know that modern linguistics is an affront to civilization. Though I’m personally rather partial to ‘fuck’.” Grace bit back a chuckle. Oh Elders, to think Gilda was influencing a goddess. “It has such emotion behind such simple four letters.”

The king simply cocked his head, noting Grace’s reaction. “Is there a joke I’m not a party to here?”

“Probably,” smirked Nightmare before rolling her eyes. “Though somepony is getting annoyed at all the useless chatter. I assume there’s a laboratory where you’re conducting your experiments?”

Grace tried very hard not to think of that location, the moment it was mentioned. Instead, he decided to work his thoughts through a series of mental exercises he’d learned over the years. It was frustrating having so many state secrets in your head, and no way to be certain they stayed there.

“From the look on Grace’s face, I’m guessing you already know there is,” the king answered dryly. “The point is, we have been doing research on immortality and alicorn powers. We’ve yet to move to testing on sentients. The idea is that we find a way to separate the powers from the immortality as well as removing any horrible side effects such as mutation or... divergent personalities forming.”

“We will require our old research notes as well as our companions.”

Grace grit his jaw. He supposed that was better than Gilda being hung, but he’d much prefer she simply return to Equestria.

“If you’ve decided to help us, you can have both. Though I’m not sure how much help your companions will provide in a scientific endeavor.”

“Regardless, those are my conditions for helping you. Do you accept?”

Grace couldn’t help but note that the king had yet to explain why he even wanted the research conducted in the first place. He knew for a fact the king did not envy the role of a god.

“That’s all?” The king replied. “Easily done. I’ll gladly provide both, and I’ll even offer to talk with Celestia about bringing more ponies for your retainers from Equestria.”

“Thou shalt do no such thing!” Nightmare cleared her throat as her coat turned dark again. “There is no need to involve Celestia in this endeavor. What I am truly curious about is why you are pursuing this line of research to begin with. Hostile takeover perhaps?”

The king laughed. “No of course not. I have nothing but respect for Celestia and Equestria. They have been our strongest allies for years now. No, our military interests are focused elsewhere. Why do I want this research?” He paused. “Gryphons have no natural magic, yet we find ourselves sharing a border with the Changeling Wastes and the Dragon Lands. In recent years changeling numbers have been swelling, and the dragons have been breeding. We’re engaged in peacekeeping operations in zebrica purely to supply ourselves with the magical substances and fetishes necessary to outfit our army.

“If however, there was a way to introduce a simpler form of magical control to those who do not have it, then the resources we could save would be staggering. We could cut into the Changeling Wastes itself, and burn their hives to ashes. I’d never tempt the dragons to war, but a little extra security on the front is always a good idea. It’s simple really. If my kingdom’s borders are more secure, Equestria’s are too.”

“Understandable and a lofty goal. It would be a pleasure for me to help you in your endeavor.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” He answered. “Though, I have to ask why you don’t wish to involve Celestia in this.”

“Your actions can be declared an act of war. You are pursuing illegal research in the hopes of attaining a weapon that could easily be turned against us. I fear Equestria has grown severely lacking in the warring front since my departure, so now we provide you magical support and in return, you provide us security. If you no longer need our magical support, you are free to turn on us on a whim.”

The king laughed openly. “War with Equestria is a ridiculous concept. We import more Equestrian goods than any other nation. You outstrip us in agriculture and industry so heavily, that any attempt we make at competition would be laughable. The only part of our industry we don’t rely on you for is meat and fishing. If you were to cut trade ties with us, our entire economy would collapse virtually overnight. It’d be a week at best before famine sets in. In a month we’d have innocents starving. I’m more than happy for Equestria to provide our needs, and us to supply Equestria’s in return. We coexist, and all benefit. I’d be a fool to change that.”

“Why buy when you can rule? Why eat when you’re immortal?” Nightmare began advancing in slow, deliberate steps. “How long will Equestria last? One quick strike is all it would take and is more than within your capabilities.”

Graciano had to admit he was fascinated by this exchange of words. The king was only noble, and had the Kingdoms best interest at heart, but even so his gift for the worded duel matched, and exceeded, Grace’s own easily.

The King stopped, and took off his crown. Grace blinked in surprise, and watched as the King met Nightmares eyes. “I would rather die, than face immortality. The idea of life without death terrifies me, and I would see any gryphon who wanted such a thing dead.” He returned the crown to his head. “Satisfied my intentions are noble?” he asked with a smile. “I can’t say I’m so convinced of yours.”

“I’m Nightmare Moon.” A sadistic grin spread across her face. “That should be enough reason for you.”

“But I’m not just speaking with you am I? What of Luna? I’d rather hear her reasons from the Princess herself.”

“I am afraid the Princess cannot join us this evening. Please try again at a later date.”

The King hmphd. “Uneager to relinquish control again? I doubt Celestia would be happy to hear that you're still controlling her sister from time to time. Or is that a state secret? It might explain why you’ve been so reclusive since your return. In any case, very well then. If you agree, then I see no reason to ask you to reconsider.” He approached Nightmare and held his claw out for a shake. “Do you agree then? You aid us in this matter, in exchange for what we know and your companions?”

“Are you threatening me?” What started out as a small chuckle soon grew into a full-blown maniacal laughter. “As far as Celestia knows, I do not exist. So what do you think will happen once she finds out I am still around and that you’re conducting research into Luna’s old experiments that you think might have caused me to appear in the first place? Foals, the lot of you. I accept your offer, but make no mistake, we have been playing this game longer than thee and we have not lost yet.”

“Oh, of that I am well aware.” The king answered, and lowered his claw. “Celestia trounces me thoroughly in ‘the game’ as you call it. I don’t even try to play it anymore.”

“A pity. From what I have seen, you could be a masterful player.” Without a second word, she turned around and began walking towards the door. “I require a new room and send up my companions, I wish to speak to them in private.”

Chapter 7

“Will you stop already? You’ve been at that thing for hours, and Trixie is trying to sleep.”

I rolled my eyes, as I jiggled Trixie’s hair pin around inside the cage lock. “I’m so freaking sorry if me trying to save you from horrible torture and death is keeping you up. How damn selfish of me. It’s not my life on the line here you know.”

She was right though, even if I didn’t want to admit it. There was no way I was picking this lock with just my claws and a bobby pin. This was a good lock, and I’d need proper tools to open it. Stupid bloody Trixie, it’s not like I was doing this to save my own pelt. I jerked my claws back into the cage when I heard the sound of a key turning in a lock. A second later and the jailer came in.

He eyed me suspiciously for a second before he grunted and stepped aside. As much as I hated being a chick in a male dominated society, every so often the whole ‘females are stupid and only good for cooking and fucking’ thing really comes in handy. I mean, I am just a poor defenseless female.

“Oh, thank Celestia,” whispered Trixie as she stood up and dusted off her cape and hat. She only had them ‘cause she whined like a bitch at them for hours. “No doubt these simpletons finally realized how foalish it was for them keep such a dignified and important pony in prison.”

“Wrong Princess.” Grace’s voice carried down the stairs as he stepped into the room. “Luna has negotiated your release.”

I face palmed. “You’re kidding me right? Luna’s can’t be that stupid?” Yeesh. I know it sounds retarded, but the unprofessionalism here was killing me. If your agents get captured across the border, you don’t negotiate their release, you just cut ties and say, ‘what agents?’

“No, that would be the other half of the princess.” He jerked his head at the jailer, letting me know he couldn’t say Nightmare with the guard there.

“Oh, fuck. Really?” I looked around. “Any chance I can stay in the cell?”

“What’s this? Gilda is afraid of a little filly?” Trixie shoved past me, smirking. “You can stay in there if you’re so scared, but nothing scares the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

“Fuck yeah, I’m scared of her.” I flicked her hat forward, covering her eyes. “You would be too if you had any brains.”

“Why?” She straightened her hat with a scowl. “You’re the one she wants in bed.”

Grace glanced back at us in surprise.

“Oh, did you not tell your dear brother?” Now that her smugness was back, I had to wonder why I even tried breaking her out in the first place. “Oh yes, your dear Gilda has caught the eye of a certain little darling of a filly. To think, in a month’s time you could be a prince!”

Grace wasn’t joking about this, he turned to me. “Is what she says true?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know if she’s for real or not, but last time she was out she had eyes on me, and said a couple things that had me tucking my tail.”

“Oh trust me, she’s for real. Trixie has an eye for reading ponies, and she can assure you wholeheartedly that soon this... fine... specimen of a gryphon will become a princess and you, a prince.” She gave off one of those fake, dreamy sighs. “Their children will be the singular, most... unique... looking foals you’ll have ever laid eyes on. And, being the fine friend that Trixie is, she shall spread the word to all corners of the world so all can bask in this lovely tale of interspecies romance.”

The jailer looked over his shoulder at us. “What the fuck is wrong with you females?” he asked.

“Eyes forward solider.” Grace said to him sternly.

He gulped and turned back ahead.

“Look Grace, Trixie’s full of shit. There’s no way that little filly has eyes for me. I mean,” I waved a claw in front myself. “Look at me. I ain’t exactly reeling hearts in. here.”

“Ponies have very different standards,” quipped Trixie. “Look at Spitfire. She’s not the most feminine or curvy of females, but she’s one of the most lusted after females by both genders. In fact, Spitfire is rather muscular and lean, much like you. Not surprising considering you’re both such avid fliers.”

Oh yeah, I’d forgotten about that. “Even then, ponies don’t chase gryphons dude. I know, I lived there for years.”

“She’s a princess who has been alive since the dawn of time. Trixie would not be surprised if ponies have become... dull and stale to her. Perhaps she wishes to spice up her life and explore some of the more...” She twirled her hoof in the air as she thought of the right word, while a sadistic smirk danced on her lips. “Exotic specimens.”

Okay, next time we get caught, I’m leaving Trixie to rot.

“Dude, no. You’re just trying to mess with me, and she was too. You’re not going to make me freak out.”

Oh fuck-oh fuck-oh fuck. I pray that she’s wrong. Elders, I’m asking you 'cause the goddesses scare the shit out of me right now, but please pleaseplease, make it so Nightmare’s just messing with me.

“In any case Gilda.” Grace spoke up. “I would advise caution, and suggest you return to Equestria at the nearest opportunity.”

“Fuck Equestria, if you didn’t hear, its insane filly ruler has a thing for me!” I was not yelling, I was totally not yelling. “Fuck Equestria, I’m moving to live with the dragons!”

He just gave me a wry look. “If you feel that’s wise, though I question how being burned alive would be better for your wellbeing.”

“Shut the fuck up, Grace.” I spat at him. “It doesn’t matter anyway, ‘cause she’s not interested.”

“Tell yourself that.” Trixie smirked at me. “But don’t say Trixie didn’t try to warn you.”

I grit my jaw and ignored her. We were out of the dungeons and now walking along the corridors of the palace. The jailer had stayed behind when we left the underground levels. I didn’t know the palace myself, but from what I could tell, we were in the guest wing or something.

“Where are you taking us anyway?” I asked Grace.

“Her room,” he replied. “She asked to see you straight away.”

I tried not to react, but from the way Trixie was smirking at me, she might have noticed the little shiver that crawled up my spine.

We walked in silence for a little bit, until we arrived at a room with five guards stationed outside it. One of them opened the door, and Grace led us inside.

I glanced around, and saw the little child sex-fiend, mass murderer goddess who totally didn’t want me, pouring over a book while another pile lay on the ground beside her. The only sound that filled the silence was the scratching of quill on paper as she worked away at whatever it was she was doing.

Huh. Well that seemed like a whole lot of worrying for nothing.

“Princess?” Grace spoke after he got sick of the awkward silence.

“Hm?” She looked over her shoulder and adjusted the red glasses she was wearing. “Oh! You’re here, please make yourself at home. The shower is through the door on the right there, the bedroom is through the left door, and t-”

My mind immediately went to the potential use of both bedrooms and bathrooms as places of... Damnit Trixie! You don’t need to put that shit in my head. I was scared enough already! Though I had to admit Nightmare didn’t look very scary with those cute little glasses.

“-uards must accompany you whenever you leave the room. I wish to speak to both of you in ten minutes so until then, do as you wish.”

Leave? Go home? No? In that case, I guess doing as I wished was out of the picture. “Uh... alright.” I turned to Grace. “See you later then?”

He nodded. “If my duties allow it. We still have a lot to catch up on.” With that, he gave another bow to Nightmare, who didn’t even notice, and stepped out of the room.

“Well Trixie is taking the first shower. Those dungeons were horribly filthy, and sharing them with you only made that matter worse.”

I smirked at her. “Might want to brush your teeth too. I think you still got some shit on your breath.”

She shot me a death glare as she stepped through the right side door.

I glanced back at Nightmare who still in her books and shrugged. Whatever then. If nothing horrible was about to happen then fine by me. Hey Nightmare, still reading my thoughts?

Complete silence.

Either she was too busy with other things to worry about me right now, or she was trying to weird me out. I shrugged again and walked into the room. I was glad to see more than enough beds for all of us, and I noticed my tools of the trade sitting in a sack at the foot of a bed.

I smiled to myself as I opened it up, and gave a disappointed moan when I saw it was missing the knives, the claw guards, and the lock picks. All that was left was the belt, the cloak, and some of the stuff like ropes or a few other bits and bobs. As I rifled through it further, I found the little gold hoof band from the temple in there too. That was something I guess. Maybe if I sell it I can get the bits to buy myself some new equipment. I put all the stuff back in the sack, and with a sigh I kicked it under the bed.

I noticed a few books on one of the shelves, so I browsed the titles before I decided I couldn’t see anything that I wanted to read. I wasn’t really big into novels anyway. That was something me and Dash had in common.

I lay down on the bed and waited for Trixie to get out of the bathroom so I could take a shower myself. She entered the room looking pleased with herself, but I didn’t give her the chance to speak before I took my turn in the hot water. I stepped out from under the water and noticed that wet towel Trixie had left. I rolled my eyes but dried myself as best I could before stepping out of the bathroom; I was still damp. Nightmare was still doing her thing with the books, so I went into the room and lay on the bed. I guess the only thing left to do was wait for whatever Nightmare wanted to talk about.

Before I had a chance to really unwind though, the book slammed shut and Nightmare trotted into the room. She gave us a once over before throwing herself onto the bed with a sigh.

“We need to discuss what happens next,” she said. “For now, we are working with the gryphons.”

Well I guess that meant I got to spend a bit of time with Grace then. I remembered that Luna didn’t want that journal in Nightmare’s hands, but whatever. Fuck that bitch, she got me into this mess.

“Why? What have they got that you want? We buried the temple, and that’s the journal right there,” said Trixie and I resisted the urge to bash my, or her, head against a wall. Did she not realize they could be listening in right now?

“Trixie, just cause they’r-”

Nightmare Moon shook her head. Whatever then, I don’t even care anymore. If that dumbass wants to get herself killed by playing with the big girls, she can go for her life.

“All you need to know, is that you’re both alive right now because I need you with me. That means I’m still not done with either of you, and if you disobey me or act against my orders, I will throw you back to the wolves. And Gilda, I will make sure not even your brother will be able to save you. If you two want out, you two will work with me. Got that?” A smile suddenly appeared on her face and she jerked her head in the direction of the door. “Good. Gilda, I’d like to speak to you in private please.”

Yep. Now I was remembering why she scared me so damn much. She didn’t have those cute glasses on, and the sadistic smile was back in all its ‘I jerk off as you bleed’ glory. Still, I’m not convinced that the only way out is working with her. I could run, and it wouldn’t be too hard to sneak out of the palace.

Trixie shot me a smirk as she left the room, and it may have been my imagination, but I think I saw a little sympathy in her eyes. Didn’t stop the pit in my stomach or the shiver up my spine, but it was nice to know that there was only one pony getting off on my pain. The door shut behind her, and I found myself alone with Nightmare. I realized that this was the first time that had really happened. Mind you, I doubt Trixie’s eyes would stop Nightmare from doing whatever the fuck she wanted to me. When I looked back at Nightmare Moon, she had her glasses back on and was smiling at me.

I immediately jumped off the bed I was on. Know what I said about her looking less scary with glasses? I take that back. Goddesses it was creepy to see her using something I had a thing for like that. No clue why, but it was always the geeky types that had my interests. Turtleneck sweaters? Don’t even get me started.

To my surprise, Nightmare actually facehoofed and made the glasses disappear in a puff in a smoke. And so we sat there in silence, staring at each other with unblinking gazes, waiting for the other to say something first. As the time stretched on, she gave me an almost playful smile.

Keep it cool Gilda. She’s just messing with you. Play it cool.

“Uh... sup?”

I would have faceclawed. Great job me.

She giggled. She actually fucking giggled. It was a full blown, filly in love, style giggle. Oh fuck me, I’m so dead.

“Alright, you may leave now. Please send Trixie in,” she said with a wink.

What. The. Fuck? Are you fucking kidding me! After all that she really was just messing with my head? I didn’t know whether to scream in frustration or sigh in relief. Thank fuck she doesn’t want to screw me five ways stupid, but talk about getting worked up for nothing. I was going to fucking end Trixie. Knows pony body language? My ass could read ponies better than that!

I stepped out of the room, and Trixie glanced over at me.

“She wants to speak with you now.”

Her ears perked up. “Really? What did she want with you?”

I glared at her. “Just get in there shithead.” Bitch had me panicking about nothing.

She blinked in surprise at the hostility in my voice but after a moment she sniffed. “Very well then, if she wishes so, then Trixie will grace her with Trixie’s presence.”

As soon as she was through the door, it slammed shut and seconds later, I could hear Nightmare speaking. Sure, most ponies wouldn’t be able to hear anything, but I wasn’t a pony. I swear, that filly is going to get us all killed. At first I tried to keep my mind occupied by looking at the books Nightmare had been reading, but they were all magically sealed, had the Wide Eye’s mark over it, or were boring, useless, scientific crap. With nothing better to do, I slumped down against the wall and gazed out the window. Perhaps I should go out and visit my old favorite bar. There was nothing better to do aft- Wait, were they talking about me?

“-lda and we both know how inadequate she is.” Though Nightmare’s voice was muted, there just enough for me to make out what she was saying.

“Trixie agrees with you. When we were trying to escape, she dropped Trixie into an outhouse. Gilda is most certainly not adequately equipped in subtly or intelligence.”

“Exactly. That is why we shall keep her in the dark about our actions. It is important for you to make sure she doesn’t learn too much about our plans. This is crucial to our mission. Got it?”

“Yes, your majesty.”

Seriously? I slammed my head against the wall a couple of times. There were a couple of ways I could interpret that, and I didn’t like any of them. The obvious one was they thought I was a freaking idiot, and couldn’t manage whatever plan they’d cooked up. Actually, that was fine by me. If Trixie wanted to keep me out of it, then I could appreciate that.

On the other hand, and this was probably me just overthinking things, but that was a slightly suspicious part of the conversation for me to just accidently hear. If Nightmare didn’t want me to hear what she was saying, there were a few unicorn spells that she could cast easily enough. But the Wide Eyes must have known she might plan something and would have acted accordingly, so what she said was probably genuine. But then again, would it be that hard for a goddess to get past stolen zebra magic? So even though she probably thought I was an idiot, there was a chance that I was deliberately being manipulated. Or maybe, it wasn’t me being manipulated, but the other potential listeners? Then there’s the chance she was just manipulating Trixie by inflating her ego or whatever.

And why call me in if she wasn’t going to say anything? That was just a-

Oh. That bitch. That sly, fucking bitch. We were scapegoats. Either she actually thought I was an idiot, or she was trying to get them to think I was an idiot, or they wanted them to think Trixie was actually smart and knew something, or by not speaking to me, she wants them to think she used some fancy magic to talk to me without speaking. Oh goddesses, I sound paranoid. But I’m pretty sure she was just trying to use this to manipulate the Wide Eyes that could be listening in.

I shook my head. It was so much easier to just believe she thought I was an idiot.

The door opened once more and they both trotted out. Before Nightmare returned to her books though, she gave me a small inclination of her head and wink.

So I was right, she was just trying to get at the listeners-in. Unless she just wanted me to believe that... No fuck! This is getting so convoluted. She wouldn’t manipulate me, because she has no reason to do so. She gets nothing out of it beyond maybe some hired muscle that can pick a lock. She’s just messing with the gryphons that are listening in.

I sighed and sat down on the couch. Goddesses, I’m so glad that I never got into this spy shit. It is way too fucking complicated for a dumbass like me. Nightmare Moon suddenly burst out laughing and I glared at her from my spot. So she was still listening in on my thoughts, it was nice to have some confirmation.

“Gilda, please let the guards know we wish to inspect their laboratory,” she commanded. “Trixie, you shall stay here and make sure no one comes in.”

I opened my beak to tell her to tell the bitch she could talk to the guards herself, but then I remembered she was well... terrifying, so I decided to just do it anyway. Still a bitch though. Why the fuck can’t she just talk to the guards herself?

I opened the door from our apartment and poked my head out. One of the guards turned to me.

“Yes?” he asked.

“Luna wants to inspect the labs or something.” I shrugged. “I’m guessing you’re supposed to know what that means.”

“And please arrange for Teotore to be our guide,” called Nightmare from inside.

“And she wants an escort or something. Whoever that Teotore guy is, let him know that Luna wants him too.” I knew who Teotore was, the guy had a mean ass reputation, but I was supposed to be a dumb female.

One of the guards snickered at me.

“You got a fucking problem buddy?” I asked him stepping out of the doorway only to be dragged back in by Nightmare’s magic. “Hey! What was that for?”

“Stop antagonizing our allies,” she sighed. “Having you and Trixie in the same room is enough to give me a headache. I do not need you adding to the noise by annoying the guards outside.”

I wasn’t antagonizing him, just getting ready to pound his ass into the ground. “Whatever. You want me coming on your inspection thing then?”

“Yes.”

And will I be there as a servant, or are you going to ask me to slip away quietly at some point?

She simply shook her head and put on her glasses once more. “Actually, I could use your help. I’m afraid I’m not as familiar with gryphon anatomy as I should be.”

I froze. My feathers stood on end, and I found myself caught between fight or flight. Actually, fuck that, I was ready for flight. After a second though, I managed to respond.

“I’m not a doctor... Uh... Unless you want to know how to cut one up, I can’t help you. And if I’m right about my history, you know plenty about killing gryphons. The arteries haven’t changed place in the past thousand years.”

She actually burst out laughing at that. “Ah yes, those were the good old days.”

Was she serious!?

“Very well then, just another request I must make. Be sure to remind me at a later date, will you?”

“You know, if you wanted a more practical lesson in gryphon reproduction, I’m sure Gilda will be more than willing to help out,” Trixie cut in without looking up from her book.

I’m gonna kill her. “Actually, I grew up in Equestria, so what I know about gryphon reproduction is about the same as you would.” I glared at her, and for a split second, sadness or regret was evident on her face, but soon it was gone and I looked back over to Nightmare. “Sure thing, I’ll be sure to remind you to ask me later though.” Not a fucking chance.

There was a polite knock on the door and Nightmare immediately opened it with her magic. In stepped none other than Teotore, the sadistic motherfucker himself. He ran an eye over me and Trixie, and it left as though I was a piece of meat. No doubt he was wondering if he should add me to his harem or to be used as a dummy for torture practice. I don’t know how many of the rumors about him were true, but if even one of them was, then I’d love to see this prick burn.

“Your Highness?” he asked.

“Ah! Sir Teotore,” Nightmare trotted up to him with a shy little smile on her face. “I hope we did not distract you from your duties.”

“Not at all.” He did a bow that would have made the king jealous. “But your looks and your speech patterns have changed so dramatically. Are you alright? We heard about the incident in your old rooms and made sure the guards were punished accordingly.”

“Oh Teotore, you shouldn’t have.” Did she just bat her eyelashes at him? Oh, right... I got what was going on now. Two players playing the same game. “I thought I’d try out a new look. Do you like it? And please, call me N- Luna. There is no need for formalities or the Royal Plural between friends, is there?”

Teotore smiled and bowed. “Of course not. I often find myself tiring of such trivialities. What are you reading?” he waved at the glasses and the books on her table.

“The scientific reports as well as my old documents,” she replied with a shrug. “You are looking at the newest addition to the research team, as well as the most experienced. I am officially acting in an advisory and leadership role in your endeavor.”

“Sounds... interesting.” He ran an eye over the papers, and I could see his fingers twitch eagerly to get his claws on them. Though he smiled politely to Luna. “You asked for me?”

“Yes, we require a guide and we believe you have access to the laboratory.”

He smiled again. Fuck, I hated that smile; everything about it set me on edge. “Of course your majesty, I’d be happy give you the tour... but unfortunately I’ve not actually been assigned this particular branch of historical inquiry. I was at your temple because I like to keep an eye on the young up and comers like Graciano. This matter is being handled personally by the king, and a few select individuals.” He bowed low. “Though I’m sure with your say so, the king will be happy to include me in this affair.”

“It would please me greatly to include you in this affair, but I am afraid my role is merely limited to advising and providing my expert knowledge on this matter. All other aspects are still controlled by Giomar, and I fear he distrusts me and is loathe to listen to my suggestions around the experiment, let alone the inclusion of an extra member.” Once again she did that eyelash batting and meek look. “Perhaps we could exchange notes at a later date? Your own research may provide some sort of information that I am lacking.”

That greasy fucking smile again. Another bow.Yeesh, didn’t this guy have any moves a little more smooth than that? Even Trixie was rolling her eyes.

“That would be acceptable, though I would obviously prefer more direct involvement. Still, what’s the saying you ponies use? ‘Make lemonade with lemons?’ Something like that?”

I rolled my eyes. He got the saying wrong, it’s actually ‘make hay with grass, and flour with grain’ he just butchered something anyone who’d spent a minute across the border had heard.

“I am sorry, but I am unfamiliar with that saying, spending a thousand years on the moon tends to be a... lonely...experience.” Was... was she rubbing herself against him? Oh good, I was worried she just did that to me.

Seriously though Nightmare, you want to tap that? He’s a real piece of work, let me tell you.

She flicked her tail at me in annoyance, but other than that, she didn’t show her irritation. In fact, she leaned up and whispered something in Teotore’s ear before looking down at the ground shyly. I had to admit, she was playing this guy like a pro. Shy, submissive, hot for business, young, empowering the guy like some knight in shining armor. Gryphon guys all go for that like a manticore in heat.

Teotore whispered something back, causing Nightmare to blush bright red, but from the way her rear right hoof dug into the ground, it was a blush for all the wrong reasons. Nonetheless, she still giggled like a good girl before flicking her eyes up then away, before slowly bringing them back to his face, but not looking at his eyes. Forget what I said about her being a pro, she could beat the best hooker in any city at getting guys.

I grinned. Probably could handle getting that many guys too.

Nightmare’s tail went rigid for a second before going back to its swishing motion. I’d probably pay for that later, but damn, poking fun at her when she can’t fight back is fun. And it’s her own fault for listening in anyways, so you know what that means Nightmare? All you have to do is stop listening in and the annoying shit will stop...

“Well, I’m afraid I have duties to attend to.” Teotore straightened up, and smirked at Nightmare. If any guy looked at me like that, I’d deck him. The sheer arrogance and ‘I own you’-ness of that look would be way too much for me to take calmly. “I’m afraid if I can’t assist you, then I should return to my... affairs...” he let that hang. He bowed once more. “May I have your leave?”

“Of course,” replied Nightmare Moon with a small bow. “And I shall see you again later tonight?”

His eyes light up as did that snake-smile of his. Please tell me Nightmare was joking, there was no way she was that stupid. Or that desperate.Luna maybe... but Nightmare? I mean, seriously? Him? Fuck, I could do a better job th- No. Bad brain. Shut the fuck up before she gets ideas.

“Of course.” He smirked.

Whatever else he was going to say was lost as Trixie whispered in my ear, “Looks like your fillyfriend is being unfaithful. Looks like your... performance is lacking...”

I snorted. “She can fuck who she likes,” I whispered back. “As long as it’s not me.”

I looked up and Teotore was bowing out the door. The moment he was gone I said the first thing that came to mind.

“You know that guy’s a pedophile right?”

“Please, I was alive since the birth of the universe. If anypony can be considered a pedophile, it is I,” replied Nightmare in a whisper.

“No, I mean that guy’s an honest to goodness, wants to fuck girls under twelve, pedophile. Probably why he’s so after you, with that filly body and all.” Like I said, dude had some nasty rumors about him.

“Really? I did not get that impression from him.”

“Yeah well, about a year back some father tried to get him charged on screwing his daughter, and there were some others parents from across the city wanting to back him up. But, good luck getting anything to stick on a Wide Eyes. In the end, the father wound up getting charged for dealing zapstract and was hung after his wings were broken. Make of that what you will, but there’s no way a zapstract dealer would be dumb enough to try and charge a high ranking guy like Teotore.” I shrugged. “Maybe it was political, but from what I know, the father wasn’t involved in anything dodgy or over his head.” Trixie was looking a little green. “My take, is Teotore’s a pedophile, and the father was trying to get justice for his daughter. There’d been rumors about him for a while before that too.”

“Interesting...” she hummed to herself. “Your concern has been noted and discarded.”

I rolled my eyes. “Whatever then. It’s not like I’m actually worried... it’s just really freaking creepy.”

It honestly didn’t surprise me the king didn’t want to involve him in this... whatever the heck this is. Joaquim was a good guy as far as I knew. And I know for a fact that he’s not happy about some of the shit that Teotore had a claw in in Zebrica and other places. I’d even heard a rumor the Celestia wanted Teotore gone, but I doubted it. If Celestia wants someone out, then they’re out.

Nightmare inclined her head ever so slightly before stepping out, and gestured for me to follow. Screw you bitch, I’m not your dog. If you want to give me an order,then say it. I’m not going to hop for your hoof gestures.

“Come with me, pet,” she snarled and for added effect, she grabbed me by the tuffs on the top of my head and dragged me out the door.

“Let go you fucking whore!” I jerked around in her magic, but I knew it was useless. “Go suck your pedophile’s hairy cock, goddess damn slut! Hope you choke on his spunk!” I dug my claws into the tiles but couldn’t find a good grip. I noticed some of the guards at the door gaping at this open mouthed. “What the fuck are you shitheads staring at?!”

Next thing I knew, she had punched me across the face and followed it up with a buck so hard I was slammed up against the wall. Dizzy and unable to stand up properly, I felt my beak being tied shut. Maybe it was cause I still had my eyes rolling from the bash to the head, and maybe it’s cause I just had instincts, but whatever the reason; I gave Nightmare the finger the second I could see straight. I might have also tried to break her muzzle with my fist or cut her throat with my claw, but I was still feeling concussed so I’m not really sure.

“Sorry about that, I’ve been trying to break her out of that habit.” And then she decided to make a magical collar and leash for me and tugged me along as though I was a dog. Worst part was, my claws and paws were chained to each other in a similar manner so I couldn’t claw her fucking face off.

I wasn’t really saying anything,‘cause my beak was tied shut, but I’m pretty sure she got the message with the whole mind reading thing.

“I Monnamutheruckingmur’er ‘ou, ‘ou ‘iece oh shi’. Ah onnama’eou ‘leed! I’m onna se ou on ‘uckin ire!”

I couldn’t make good on my threats, because with my claws tied together I was having a hard time keeping up and not falling on my face. In the end, I had to use my wings to stop myself toppling forward face first, because she was tugging me so fast. I’m so fucking glad Trixie wasn’t here to see this.

“This will teach you, won’t it?” whispered Nightmare in my ear and just when I thought things couldn’t get any bloody worse, she decided to wrap her wing around my body and snuggle into me as we walked. One second I was a pet, the next I was being snuggled by a fucking monster.

I tried to reach up and cut her throat, but her magic kept my claws to the ground. Normally I’d be creeped out, but at the moment I was too fucking pissed.

“‘ou bet ‘ur ass ‘at I’m not’ ‘onna learn. I’m ‘onnaull your gu’s out ‘ur ass’!” I spat at her, or tried to. Oh the bitch was gonna pay for this. I don’t give a shit if Luna was in there or not, the bitch was gonna die.

With a giggle, she nuzzled me and pulled me even tighter against her body. “Oh darling, you say the loveliest things.”

“Ah’ end you! I ‘ill ucking end you!”

“Love you too dear,” she gave me a sloppy kiss on the cheek. “Maybe you should show me the sights later today.”

“‘ou are ‘onnasream! Sream!”

“Your name? Of course I will, you do know how to please a lady after all,” giggled Nightmare as she gave a smoky look at the guards escorting us. “You should see what she can do with those claws of hers.”

“‘ey can rip ‘lesh, ‘at’s what ‘ey can do!” I threw my weight to the side and put my shoulder into the soft spot where her wings meet her side. I’d had that done to me once, and let me tell you, it hurts. Badly.

A strained grin appeared on her face as she leaned in and nipped my neck. Harshly. Enough to get me to yelp and draw some blood at least.

“Oh, don’t mind us; she just loves a bit of rough housing. A real masochist.”

I yanked back on the chain connecting me to her horn. Making her stagger towards me for a second as she over balanced. I jumped forwards to put my beak through her neck, but she jerked back in time and only got a little scratch.

She glared out the corner of her eye, but otherwise made no move at retaliation and instead smiled at the guards. “What can I say, I like them feisty. How much further till we reach the laboratory?”

“Just around the corner Ma’am.” He paused and looked at me. “But if she’s going to be like this, she might have to stay outside.”

“Pardon?” Nightmare’s eyes hardened and that see-through sword of hers appeared. “Would you care to repeat that?”

He paused and carefully composed his answer. “There’s some delicate equipment in here, not to mention open flame and certain mutagenic chemicals. Having someone thrashing about inside there is a bad idea. If you could calm her down, then I’d be willing to allow her in, but as it stands, she presents a risk to herself and others.”

Hah! Acid! Let’s see how much Nightmare likes it when I smash a vial of that over her eyes! Set her mane on fire with one of those laboratory burny things! Hell, I’d settle for a bottle to glass her with, or just having my claws untied. I didn’t say any of that though and tried to settle down, though I was still feeling about ready to kill any mother fucker that looked at me cross ways.

“‘ust untie me aleady.” I muttered as best I could.

“Do you promise to behave?”

What was I, a pet!? No. Fucking no! I can wait outside chained up, but I’m not taking that pet master shit from you! No matter what the fuck you do, I am not going to be some demure female again. Never. I don’t give a fuck if you have me whipped or murdered, but I am not going back to being some passive bloody cattle that sits in the corner looking good for someone else,waiting to get fucked! I stared her straight in the eyes as I thought all this.

“oo your ‘ucking worst!” I shouted through the gag.

With a sigh and roll of her eyes, she dispelled the chains and gags and brushed past me. “You are seriously stubborn, aren’t you?”

“Blame your own damn kingdom.” I spat at her back. Though to be fair I was stubborn well before Equestria or Calisto got to me. I looked left and saw the guard staring at me. “You want something?!” I rubbed my wrists where the chains had been.

He just glanced confused between me and Nightmare before shrugging and stepping in the room after her. It wasn’t his problem. A second later I followed, muttering death threats the entire time as we descended down a long flight of stairs.

“It’s been over a thousand years, and yet they still insist on being overly dramatic with their hidden lairs, and descents into darkness, and...” She sighed. “Can’t they ever have normal laboratories?”

I didn’t have a comment on that. I wasn’t exactly experienced in secret laboratories.

The guard who was with us answered her though. “Making an impression is important Your Highness. The king has always valued shock and awe.”

“Sums up our battle tactics too,” I muttered.

He glanced back, and gave me an odd look. “In any case.” He returned his eyes to the front. “The laboratory carries the same architectural features as the rest of the palace. Tribal themed decorations and dark hallways, where the more practical areas are brightly lit.”

“Oh good, it’s brightly lit. That’s a bonus since the last time I was in a place like this.”

“Well back in the days of the tribes we’d yet to master basic masonry Your Highness,” he replied smoothly. “Making a window was a fair bit harder back then, so a lot of our structures were brightened by candles rather than sunlight. Plus gryphons have greater eyesight than ponies, so to your eyes I imagine it would have seemed quite dark.”

Who was this guard anyway? Was he just a history buff, or did they all have to learn this crap?

Nightmare chuckled. “I am the Mistress of the Night you know, darkness poses no threat to me. Now, please take me to the main experimental room.”

“Just through here,” he said as he stopped at a door. “And please, make sure your...” I glared at him. Say pet, I fucking dare you. After a moment he settled on, “...mate, doesn’t break anything.”

“How ‘bout I break your neck?” I asked him.

“Gilda,” warned Nightmare. “Please play nice. It took quite a bit of string pulling to get you out of the dungeon.”

I grit my jaw. Any chance I can go back there?

“Fine.” I muttered after a second. Though I swear I’m gonna murder the next prick that looks down at me.

The rest of the journey continued in silence, which was fine by me. Sure, gryphons looked my way, no doubt wondering what a dumb female was doing in a place like this, but at the sight of Nightmare Moon beside me, they wisely went back to whatever it was they were doing. Vials of random colored liquids, weird half constructed machines and piles of-

Wait, those machines reminded me of the ones we found in the temple. Don’t tell me they’re trying to make those monster things. What the fuck were they rebuilding those things for? What were those machines even supposed to do anyway? I doubt even Nightmare was fucked up enough to make those retarded monster things without a decent reason. I glanced over at her, wondering if she’d answer my thoughts. I didn’t want to ask and give these douchebags more reason to think I’m an idiot.

Instead of answering like she usually does, she just kept walking. Every so often her ears would twitch or her eyes would flick to the right like she was looking at something, but other than that, no response. Was she chatting with Luna? It’d certainly explain the way she was acting, but that’d mean they were pals, and I’m pretty sure they’re not exactly on speaking terms. Huh. Haven’t seen Luna in a while. I wonder how she feels about all this?

Whatever, I didn’t care. Luna was the reason I was in this mess. Fucking Tartarus. Thinking back to the dungeon in Canterlot, I doubt she’d really have killed that pony just to get me a jail sentence. I should’ve just told her to fuck off and faced trial. What’s the worst that’d have happened? A year of community service or a month’s jail time?

I can’t wait to get back to Equestria. Screw Nightmare and Luna and Trixie and every prick that had any association with nighttime.

We wandered around aimlessly, peeking into each room, watching gryphons go about their work. After a while Nightmare simply nodded and headed back towards the entrance.

“Everything seems to be in order. I shall return to my rooms and continue my studies into the matter,” she said over her shoulder.

The guard nodded and bowed. “I’ll happily escort you back Your Highness.”

We walked out of the lab and back into the darkened halls of the central complex. I took note of a few things on the way out that I was too pissed to notice on the way in. For one thing, a lot of guards seemed to be positioned to stop shit getting out, rather than in.

“What’s with these guard positions?” I asked the guy we were following. “They’re not setup right to stop anything from getting in.”

He glanced back at me, but didn’t answer the dumb female. Oh goddesses, I wanted to find me a nice bar, start some shit with whoever seemed like the biggest asshole in the room, break a few bones and beaks. Good clean fun. That was the great thing about Aviana. No male gryphon would ever admit to having his ass handed to him by a female.

Hey, Nightmare mentioned she wanted to see the sights earlier. Maybe that was an option.

We left the laboratories and were back in the corridors of the palace. A short, silent walk later, and we were back at the apartment. The guard bowed and returned to his position by the door as we entered. It shut behind us, and it only took a second for Trixie to speak.

“Oh, the lovebirds are back. Had a good date? Trixie sees some love bites on your neck,” she smirked.

I snarled and dove at her. She gasped and panicked as I pinned her to the ground. My talons closed around her neck and I put my eye right over hers in the ‘bird of prey’ pose.

“Make another fucking joke, I dare you,” I growled. My claw tightened and I felt a little blood.

“Please, as annoying as she can be, we still need her,” sighed Nightmare. “And I’d very much appreciate it if she didn’t have any broken bones or injuries.”

I glared at Trixie for another second before I let go and stood up. I wasn’t going to kill her anyway, and Trixie probably knew that, but I had to let her know she just crossed a line.

She didn’t say anything, just massaged her throat and glared back at me looking hurt.

I turned towards the fridge they had prepared for us. “I need a bloody drink.”

I was relieved to find there was no booze in there other than quality wines, so I had the excuse I needed to go out into the city.

“I’m going out.” I said to no one as I headed to the apartment door.

“Very well, try not to get arrested please,” called Nightmare from her desk. “It is getting late, don’t stay out too long.”

I shut the door behind me, and one of the guards immediately started to follow as I walked away. I ignored him. As long as he didn’t try to stop me I didn’t give a crap. I remembered this ugly as piss bar in the east quarter. Full of sailors and other hard hitting, hard drinking types. I couldn’t wait to get there.

Chapter 9

1035 years ago

“Princess, stop!”

I paused and looked over at the blue unicorn before me, the flask of purple liquid mere inches from my lips. If it had been anyone else, I’d have them tossed out for interrupting me in front of so many of my subjects, but she had always been my most loyal and devout.

At my lack of response, she continued hesitantly, “Is this wise? Thou art the Princess of Equestria, and though thy experiments on lower beings proved thy concoction is non-lethal and hast achieved thy goals, would caution not dictate another pony take the first drought?”

My eyes narrowed, causing Aurora to flinch back. The others held their breath as the light in the cavern dimmed till the only source was my starry mane. The silence stretched on, but despite that, she maintained eye contact. While her body was shrunk back in a posture of submission, I could see the fiery glint in her eye as she dared me to punish her.

“We are the Princess, as thou so eloquently put it, and with that position comes responsibility. We shall not put our loyal subjects in the way of harm in our pursuit, and We are immortal. A blessing none of you hold. Thy concern is warming, but fear not, for We cannot be killed or injured. We are immortal!” With that proclamation, I unfurled my wings, sending wind in all directions and illuminating the room once more. Before any other pony could say a word, I tilted my head back and downed the liquid with a single gulp.

Coughing and spluttering, I stumbled back and pawed at my throat - it was as though I had drunk liquid fire. Each breath I took brought with it an acidic tinge that burnt my lungs. Within seconds though, it had passed, leaving me a panting mess on the ground as sweat saturated my fur.

“Princess?” I looked up into the golden eyes of Aurora. “Dost thou require medical services?”

“Nay.” I struggled back onto my feet, but with Aurora next to me, I could subtly lean on her without appearing weak. In a loud clear voice, I punched my hoof into the air and announced, “Bring Us the equipment!”

The dozen or so ponies before me parted, and a large boulder five times my size was pushed in by another dozen earth ponies. With slow deliberate steps, I made my way down the stairs and approached the slab of rock before me. I took a deep breath to calm my nerves, and I could feel Aurora passing some of her energy over to me so that I could stay on my hooves. My eyes flicked down and for the briefest of moments we shared a small smile then she stepped back out of reach, leaving a void at my side.

Another deep breath.

Step forward, spin, buck. The rock splintered into a thousand shards, embedding themselves in the earthen wall behind it. A stunned silence descended as all eyes turned towards the large metallic dish to the right and the seisomorphic energy converter attached to it. Did any pony breathe? It was hard to tell, but there was little doubt it was the tensest moment that had existed since our scientific enquiry had begun.

And then, there was a beep followed by Sunshine sticking her head out from behind the machine with a grin on her face. She had no need to announce our discovery for it was etched on her face, but none dared cheer until she spoke, “Princess, thou hast achieved a fivefold increase in earth pony magicks. Congratu-”

The rest of her words were drowned out as the entire cavern erupted with cries of jubilation. Ponies hugged ponies, pegasi looped through the air, performing tricks that were far too complex to be safely conducted in such a small space, let alone with such dangerous chemicals lying about. There were even some ponies engaged in all too public displays of affection, but for once, I did not care. I spared a look over my shoulder at Aurora who had the widest smile of all, but before we could exchange any words, well-wishers swept me up with their words. With one final look back, our eyes made a promise to seek privacy later that night so we could privately celebrate our success. Perhaps I would even punish her for challenging me so openly before everyone.

1033 years ago

“Now focus,” I whispered in Aurora’s ear, deliberately nipping it as I did so. “Thou hast never wielded earth pony magick before, nor hast thou ever had enough to use it so deliberately.”

She flicked her ear, smacking me across the muzzle with it. “Thou hast forgotten, I graduated at the top of my class, and rumors speak of me as being one of the few considered for the position of Archmage. Magick is my special talent.”

“Earth pony magick is far different from what thou is used to. Unicorn magick is like a sea, thou submerges thyself in it and allows it to course through thy veins. Pegasus magick burns like fire, demanding release - much like their personality.” Another smack on my muzzle for that comment. “Earth pony magick is subtle and slow, taking time to build up. Thou can’t force it like pegasusmagick and thou can’t channel it like unicorn magick. Thou must let it flow through thy body and let it come to thee. Thou must have patience.”

She snorted in frustration and stomped her hoof, but otherwise did nothing. After a couple more seconds of staring intently at the pile of rubble, a single lightning bolt jumped out of the sky and turned it into a pile of smaller rubble. I rolled my eyes and gave her a hard nip on the ear for punishment, but all the reaction I got was a shiver that ran through her body. That little piece of knowledge was tucked away as I nudged her towards another pile of rubble just to the right of it.

“Thou needs patience,” I admonished. “We thought thou wished to be the greatest magician that ever lived.”

“I do!” she whined before giving me that pout of hers.

“Then thou needs patience. Thou cannot force this magick.”

“Again?” she sighed.

I looked up at the night sky and shook my head. “Nay, it is too late. Thou still requires sleep.”

Aurora blinked in surprise and looked up. “It has already been over two years and still I have not adjusted to being able to see in the dark. I could have sworn t’were still day.”

“Thou will adjust in time.” A quick look around revealed no pony and I leaned down, nuzzling her tenderly. “Thou hast made the greatest strides thus far, both in our enquiry and in thy own adjustments.”

“Tis a shame I took an earlier version of the potion though,” she muttered. “The bat wings Appletini received would hath looked so perfect upon mine body.”

“We did ask thou not to take the potion if thou remembers.”

“Only because thou were concerned for my safety.” She leaned against me and planted a series of kisses along my neck. “Let us never fight like that again.”

“Agreed.” A sudden nip on my neck caused a small moan to escape. “And thou know we art working on ways of integrating the flight option with the magick enhancing one and increased healing one. Unfortunately, it has been slow progress.”

“But progress nonetheless.” She nuzzled me lightly and I gladly returned the gesture. “I just wish I could fly through the night with thee. Thou describe the sensation in such explicit detail that I cannot help, but yearn for it.”

“Come, we need our sleep. Perhaps tomorrow we shall finally achieve that breakthrough.”

“We can hope,” she replied with a smile. Side by side, with her head resting against my shoulder, we made our way towards our bedroom. Tomorrow was a new day and perhaps tomorrow we shall find the answers we seek.

1027 years ago

Aurora and I sat on our balcony, overlooking the Valley of Dreams as the night air blew through our manes. With my wing wrapped tightly around her torso, her shivering soon stopped and we were left in the peaceful silence of our home. All that could be heard was the lazy chirping of birds, and our heavy panting from our strenuous activity mere moments ago. In our grasp was a glass of champagne that we lightly sipped.

“We did it,” said Aurora in a breathless whisper. “We figured it out and it worked.”

“Indeed it did, my love,” I replied just as softly as I kissed her tenderly. A small giggled escaped her lips as she returned my advance just as passionately, her new brand new wings twitching in barely contained glee.

“It was everything I dreamed it would be. And more,” she snuggled into me. “This is the best night ever.”

“Not yet, it is not.” There was a small pop of blue before us revealing a small red box.

“Is this-”

“Open it and see, Love.”

With trembling hooves she caught the box and when her horn lit up; it constantly flickered into and out of existence as her emotions interfered with her magick. Slowly it cracked open. Inside lay an unblemished golden band that matched her eyes so perfectly and set in it was a sparkling diamond. Around it were small sapphires to compliment her coat and etched on the band was Old Equestrian. All it took was one look and she knew what it meant. What I had done.

She turned to face me, tears streaming down her cheek, and with a voiceless cry of pure ecstasy, she threw hooves around me, sobbing into my neck. I held her close, tears leaking over my cheek as she saturated my fur with her joy. I do not know how long we stayed in that spot as we basked in each other’s presence. In each other’s joy. Eventually though, she ran out of tears to cry and she could only look up at me with bleary eyes.

In the end, it was I who broke the silence.

“Is that a yes?”

Laughing, she punched my shoulder before tackling me to the ground, kissing me fervently on the lips. After eternal seconds of bliss, she drew back and licked my nose. “Of course it is. To think otherwise would label thee a silly pony.”

“Only when We are around you,” I replied and to my surprise, she blushed deep red.

“To think the mare I fell in love with had such a smooth tongue.”

I simply replied with a small smile. “A tongue thou hast experienced many times.”

Once more she dissolved into blushing. To think, such simple romantic gestures could have such an effect! Why, normally she was the one whispering such lewd comments in my ear at the most inopportune moments in hopes of getting a reaction. To turn the tables so easily was such an exquisite experience. It was no wonder she partook in such comments as often as she did.

“Luna... my love...” With both hooves on my chest, she leaned in close until our lips were touching. “I hath never said this, but... I love th-”

A scream was suddenly torn from her throat as she stumbled back, clutching her head between her hooves. Eyes wide, I rushed forward, only for a bolt of lightning to slam into my chest, tossing me into our bed, shattering it completely. More bolts rained down as the floor cracked beneath her hooves. She kept yelling, screaming, pleading with something.

“Aurora!”

Ignoring the pain, I scrambled onto my hooves and rushed forward, throwing up a shield as I did so. Each blow caused me to stagger back, but I pressed on, desperate to save the mare I loved. Closing the final few feet between us with a teleport, I grabbed hold of her only for a burst of primal magick to toss me back once more. Though I tasted blood, and the scent of charred fur hung heavy in the air, I was back on my hooves.

I was dimly aware of the door to our sacred room opening as ponies rushed in to see what was going on, but I didn’t care. All I cared about was Aurora. I forced my legs to move and though they tried to disobey, I pushed on. Before I could even take a step, she collapsed onto the ground.

“Princess! Art thou hurt?” asked Sunshine as she knelt by my side.

“We are unhurt. Please, We beg of you, check on Aurora.”

“At once your majesty!”

1023 years ago

“Forgive Us, Love.” My voice echoed through the empty room. “We had thought We had come to the solution to all our ills. We thought what we had produced had no more side effects, but We were wrong and in the end, the one who paid the price for Our hubris was thee.”

There was no reply except the dull hum of the machines.

“Since thou fell to the malady, many followed in thy hoofsteps. Of all the original scientists, only Sunshine is still alive, and even then, We fear she shall be driven to insanity soon. Already We see the signs of hearing and seeing things that are not there.”

I sighed softly and pressed my forehead against the cool glass tube.

“When We first started this endeavor, We believed any sacrifice would be worth it in the end. The dragons were getting restless, and our spies there informed us there was an increase in military drills, as well as cries for an increase in territory. Our own forces were split too far between keeping the Changelings at bay and keeping a strong defense along our border with the gryphons. We believed that if We could increase the strength of our army, of each individual pony, then we could handle any threat. So We experimented. We created grotesque monstrosities all in the pursuit of our lofty goal, and all the while We told ourselves that it was for the greater good and that any sacrifice was worth it. We... We even performed on ponies. Thou didst not know that, for it was a sin We kept to ourselves, but we needed to make sure. To understand. No creature could ever match a pony in biology after all. But now...”

Tears leaked down my cheek as I stared at the engagement ring I clutched in against my chest. In the silence of my sins, the only sound was the pitter-patter of my tears staining the floor.

“Every day We wake up with a hole in our chest. Every day We yearn for thy touch, thy voice. All We hath left of thee is a faded picture of us beneath the old oak tree in the main temple entrance, and that was a picture of all the researchers together after our greatest breakthrough. It is not the best picture ever, but it is the only thing We have left to remind Us of what thou looked like. Thy navy blue fur, purple mane, and telescope cutie mark. How We miss thy soft snoring, though We always complained... We never... We never even got a painting of the two of us together. We art afraid. Nay,We are terrified that We shall forget thy appearance. The sound of thy voice. Thy touch... Aurora... We- We... We never even said We loved thee.

“They tell Us to kill thee like We hath done with the rest of our friends, but We cannot. Thou art too precious to us. As long as thee exists, We can remember thee in crystal clarity. If thou art gone...” I sighed and shook my head. “We fear. We art terrified. We hath... We hath found ourselves brooding, thinking dark thoughts as we sought to place the blame upon the heads of others. We sought revenge. We find ourselves lashing out at those around us, in anger. Was it thy soothing presence that kept us in check for so long, or mayhaps this is the work of something much darker...? We know not, thus We fear for Equestria.

“There is still hope though. We hath begun research into a cure to reverse the insanity that hath gripped thee so fiendishly, but a solution seems like a dream. And if a cure is not possible, perhaps We shall have to create a world that accepts you as what you have become. Sadly, We fear our research is too dangerous to continue much further. Just last night Freefall went insane, killed two ponies, raped another, and ate a fourth before those on duty realized what had happened. But what is the point of living in a word where thou dost not exist? Our only joy in this world was ripped from us on the eve of our eternal happiness. What sort of twisted, sick individual wouldst will such an act to occur? If We cannot have happiness, if the sovereign of this land cannot have joy when We hath given so selfishly to the world, what being should!?”

With each word I spoke, my voice increased and I stomped the ground, splitting the earth open like an egg.

“They dare scorn our night! Scorn our embrace and tender caresses! And the one mare who truly saw the night as We did was untimely ripped from this world! They wish to be afraid us? Then We shalt give them something to be afraid of.”

“No!” The ring fell to the ground as I clutched my head between my hooves. “We art Luna, Mistress of the Night, Protector of Equestria. A- Aurora would not wish for this. But... she is no longer here is she? She is gone. The only pony that truly cared... That truly understood and appreciated our night... All the other ponies scorn and fear us. Do not fear, my Love, when thou returns, thou shalt find a glorious world awaiting for thee.”

The first thing that came to me was the scent of damp wood and mildew. Though my head throbbed with overuse of magic, it was not so bad that I could not think. Eyes flickering open, the world came into focus for me, not that it helped much. All I could see was a blurry shape that could have been a gryphon or a pegasus, but considering the blue blob in the other corner of the room, it was probably Gilda and Trixie. So we were either in a dungeon or Nightmare’s insane plan actually worked.

With a groan, I forced myself onto my hooves, and with a shake of my head, my vision slowly came back to focus. They both looked haggard and Trixie was very pointedly looking at neither Gilda nor I. Though both her cape and hat were still somehow miraculously intact. Gilda on the other hoof was beak deep in a bottle of some sort of alcohol - how typical of a gryphon like her.

“Thy drinking habits better not cost us our escape,” I commented as I eyed the dagger in her claw. It was flipping back and forth, twirling over her knuckles, getting caught by blade and handle before it spun around and returned to a sheath under her cloak.

She turned towards me, her eyes focusing on mine. “I’m sorry I saw your memories Nightmare.” With that she turned around and moved away from me.

I blinked in surprise, though whether that was me feeling the surprise or Nightmare Moon, I could not tell. However, there was no doubt in my mind that Nightmare felt something akin to confusion, hope, and something else I could not put my hoof on. I knew she wanted to take control and say something, but I kept her firmly chained up in my mind. I was not about to let her have free reign anytime soon since she failed to return it last time.

“She leaves a supply cache here in case she needs it.” Trixie said glaring at Gilda’s back. “What’s in it? A knife, some powder, and disgustingly cheap corn whiskey.”

“What else did thou expect?” I commented. “So what is our situation?”

Gilda glanced over her shoulder but didn’t answer.

Trixie sighed at her with what sounded like annoyance, but replied to me. “Did you see what Nightmare did to the castle?”

“Yes,” I replied, though I bit my tongue on the fact that I helped her do it. Somethings were lost for a reason.

“Well, you and Gilda have been asleep since last night, leaving Trixie with the first and only watch,” she huffed. “When Gilda woke up, she started drinking and toying with that knife. She hasn’t said a word to Trixie, and now you’ve woken up.” She tossed the mane out of her eyes. “You are now up to speed.”

I resisted the urge to smack her over the head. Nightmare gave Trixie far too much room to run that tongue of hers. And she was an idiot; a gryphon trained to kill was currently holding a dagger and drunk. Death was a highly plausible outcome, especially since she had made her dislike of us so obvious.

“Do you know why she’s being so... mopey?” Trixie asked me, and I might have heard concern in her voice.

“Nightmare?” I asked, but all I got was silence. How mature, she was now moping because I wouldn’t let her talk to her pet. Typical.

“No idea,” I replied.

Gilda turned around and sat against a wall, but otherwise gave no indication she had heard us.

“Dost thou know, We always figured she was not into Nightmare, but from the way she is moping, We would have thought she was in love with that fiend.” I kept my eyes trained on that dagger, my magic ready in case she decided to attack. In fact, I hoped she would, a small brawl would help relieve the tension.

Gilda snorted. “Nightmare’s not... she’s not a fiend... Well she is, but...” She sighed and took another drink. “Fuck. Whatever. Luna, you can go burn.”

I have seen things in my life, but from what I could remember, nothing compared to this. If I didn’t know better, I would have said she was actually in love with that monster. She must have issues or something. The way Trixie rolled her eyes told me she wasn’t convinced either.

“Sides. Who says Nightmare has anything to do with me drinking? My life doesn’t revolve around you, you know. I might just like the taste.”

“And the moping?” Dear stars, now that I had poked Gilda, Trixie was going to take advantage of it. Stupid mare.

“You’d be moping too if...” she trailed off and put a palm to her face. “Fuck it. I’m moping because I want to. What that has to do with anything is neither of your goddess damn business. So fuck off.” She took another swig of alcohol. “And until I get drunk, the drink isn’t your problem either.”

There was a pause before Trixie held out a hoof. “Pass over a bottle. This week has been an absolute nightmare. Being drunk would probably improve Trixie’s situation.”

“Now that’s the spirit.” Gilda grinned as she reached into a pouch and took out another bottle. “Stuff tastes like shit though.”

She held it towards Trixie only for me to take it away from Trixie before she could even put it to her lips. “No. Gilda can drink, but thou cannot.”

Gilda turned and glared at me. “Why the fuck can I drink and she can’t?”

“Exactly! Trixie demands an explanation for such an outrageous action.”

“Dost thou even need to ask that question?” I shook my head sadly. “And We thought thou hated this loud-mouthed mare.”

Gilda exchanged a glance with Trixie before she turned back at me. “Answer the fucking question dibshit.”

“Never trust a unicorn with alcohol,” I replied. “Magic and drinking do not mix. We trust Trixie even less than usual.”

Trixie huffed. “It is not your decision to make whether Trixie drinks or not.”

“Damn right, it isn’t.” Gilda raised her bottle to Trixie. “I’ll share this one with you.”

I slammed my head against the wall multiple times. “If she burns down the building, We are not saving either of you.”

Trixie backed away from the bottle Gilda offered. “No thanks, Trixie would rather not touch her lips to something you have.”

Gilda snorted and took another drink for herself. “Fucking racist.”

“Trixie is not racist!” she protested. “You’re just foul.”

“‘Fowl?’” Gilda repeated and glared at her.

“You know what Trixie meant!”

“Uh huh.” Gilda shook her head. “You freak out at the idea that I might kill a pony, but in the bar, when you watch me kill a minotaur, you don’t even comment. How am I supposed to look at that?”

“You did what!?” Trixie was on her hooves and looking a bit green.

Gilda blinked. “You saw me take that bull down, right?”

“It appears not,” I remarked with a smirk on my face as I uncorked the bottle I had taken off Trixie. This was going to be a good show.

“Oh.” Gilda stated. “Well yeah, I killed him. And it’s not the first time I’ve killed someone either. And yeah I lied to you about that. I’ve killed ponies, gryphons, goats, minotaurs... Even a zebra one time.” She chuckled. “That was a wild night.”

I spat out the alcohol, not because it tasted horrible though. She had done what!? I had expected something like that, but to actually hear it... And why was Nightmare so aroused by the thought? Get out of my head and keep those thoughts to thyself!

Trixie stared at her in horror. “H-how?” she sputtered after a moment.

Gilda shrugged. “It varies, but in general I try to cut arteries and vital points where-

“No! No!” Trixie looked remarkably green. “Trixie means how can you do that!”

Gilda shrugged. “Sometimes you have to do things. Not like I ever wanted to. Circumstance, bad luck... them. That’s what made me do it.”

Trixie just stared at her before suddenly growling, “Trixie was tossed out of her family as a teenager with nothing but the hat and cape you see. Do you see Trixie resorting to killing? If you haven’t noticed, Trixie does not have the most endearing personality, and she has gotten into bar brawls over it, and yet Trixie has not killed a single being! There are other ways of doing things you realize.”

Gilda’s gaze hardened. “Don’t get all high and mighty. Your parents threw you out? Sad to hear that, but try having a fucking w-” she clamped her beak shut. Before she growled and continued. “My life, has been so much shitier than you can goddess damn imagine. So shut your fucking mouth, and don’t act like you're a hero.”

I took a deep swig of alcohol and forced it down despite its disgusting taste. “If we art comparing sob stories, do We get to contribute?”

Gilda turned and glared at me. “I wasn’t gonna tell a story.” She jerked her thumb at Trixie, “If she wants to let us know why she’s a bitch, then that’s her call, but I do not give a flying fuck about you.” She took another drink and muttered. “I know too much of that already.”

“Well We hath sent an entire brigade to their death as a distraction,” I replied with a shrug. If we were going to exchange stories, I was going to make sure I had the best one.

Trixie looked at both of us with horror. “This not something to brag about! You should not be bragging!”

Gilda ignored her and turned her glare on me. “Big fucking deal Little Miss Immortal Goddess. Did you know the name of a single one of them? Remember their cutie marks? You think of all of us as nothing but sacks of meat that bitch and make demands and are fun to fuck with now and again. What the fuck do you know about seeing someone that means something to you die, or suffer, or leave you, or you having to leave them?” She demanded. “You’re so fucking unattached, that short of Nightmare and Celestia, no one means any fucking thing to you do they? What’s the name of your personal servant? What’s their gender? Do they have a family, or a pet?” Gilda’s claw closed over her knife. “Celestia save Equestria from you ever getting power. It’d be like giving colt a magnifying glass and an anthill.”

“Freefall: earth pony, adopted, one brother, dreamed of flying, cutie mark was a vector diagram. Sunshine: earth pony, mother of two colts-”

She interrupted me. “So you remember a few names? Did any of them mean anything to you? Did you feel even the tiniest bit of regret?”

”Aurora,” whispered Nightmare in my ear.

“Who?”

But there was no reply.

“A-Aurora,” I whispered as tears leaked down my cheek. Who was she? Her name was so familiar and rolled off my tongue so easily. And why did her name affect me so much? Why was my heart beating so quickly and where did this ache come from?

Gilda blinked in surprise, and frowned as she mouthed that name to herself. After a moment she sighed and turned away. “Whatever. I’m not wrong though, we all mean as much to you as the fly on the wall. Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me that if half of Equestria were to drop over dead, it’d mean a damn thing to you.”

“...Whatever.” I took a deep drink of the liquid.

Gilda snorted. “You’re just as bad as Nightmare. Difference is she cares about us enough to piss on us when we burn.” She took another drink of the liquor.

“Nightmare is loyal, We cannot argue with that.” I sighed, “And sadistic.”

“And you’re not?” Gilda eyed me up and down. “Tell me you don’t get that little thrill when you push us around, or you don’t enjoy messing with our lives. I saw that glint in your eye when you were threatening me in the cell. You love that power, don’t you? When someone is scared shitless of you?”

“Shut. Up,” I snarled.

She smirked at me. “And you wonder why Celestia doesn’t give you more to do.” Then she paused and blinked. “How the fuck did I know that?”

“By reading our mind,” I snapped. “We hath half a mind to bring Nightmare out so she can re-decorate this room.”

Gilda just gave me a flat look. “And lose control of your body again?” she paused and frowned. “Huh, I know that too...” she shook her head. “Anyway, you’re not half as good at death threats as her.”

“Shut up!” I stomped the ground. “Thou know nothing. Thou art a foal, an idiot, a fowl.”

“Ooh! Racism.” Gilda smirked. “You’re fucking Grade A goddess material. Chucking a tantrum and throwing your weight around? Oh yeah, I’m the bloody foal.”

Without a second thought I slammed Gilda against the wall and conjured my sword. I crushed her flat with my magic, while the tip of my sword was pressed against her throat. Out the corner of my eye, I saw Trixie’s horn light up and a firework crashed into my side. The spell that was holding Gilda to the wall faltered as I reared back in pain. The gryphon dropped to the ground, and rolled left as I slashed at her. I growled and turned to face Trixie, her eyes widened as my magic slammed into her. She crashed into the wall, and collapsed to the ground unconscious. I turned and slashed at Gilda again, but once again struck nothing but air.

“Yeah nice one Luna,” she shouted as she dodged another swipe from me. “Don’t like what you hear so you just throw your weight around some more!”

“Shutup!” I screamed, and sent a blast at her from my horn.

Her wings flapped and she slid over the attack as smooth as silk, before I could blink a handful of powder was thrown in my face and my eyes were burning.

“I bet you enjoyed it when Nightmare took over. I bet you loved it when she scared me and Trixie shitless, and you wished you could get that same reaction from me. Well little filly, you can’t. I’m not scared of you anymore, and I’m not scar-”

A dagger was aimed straight at Gilda’s head, but she immediately deflected it with her own, but that was more than enough time to pull out my entire arsenal of weapons. A dozen swords floated around me, each one controlled with expert precision, allowing me to cover every angle of my body. She wanted a fight? I’d give her a fight.

Gilda’s eyebrows rose. “Ah shit.”

Two of my swords went straight for her, and she rolled to the right as they embedded in the wall behind her. She threw a handful of powders against the ground and the room was obscured in smoke and haze. Idiot. My swords began spinning around me so that she couldn’t get close and a bit of pegasus magic dispersed the powder. I didn’t even bother to stop the swords from spinning, instead I called the two original swords to strike her from behind. However, she was not where she was standing last, so the swords passed through nothing but air. I glanced around the room and saw Gilda standing to the right with her claws brimming with powder.

“Hey Luna.” she smirked. “Look down.”

I glanced down and saw the area I was standing on was coated in some orange dust. There was no doubt in my mind that she expected me to move out of the powder as it ignited. Any sane pony would have, but I was not a pony. I was immortal. The powder detonated, and I felt my hooves and fur burn as the acrid sheen coated me. I ignored the pain and launched myself at her. Panic spread over her eyes and she threw the powder she had at me. My magic faltered and all my swords clattered to the ground. It didn’t matter; my hooves were more than enough to deal with this poultry.

We slammed into the wall full force with my forehoof pressed firmly against her throat. Gilda clawed at my chest, but it wasn’t even comparable to the pain I had suffered at the claws of Discord. With my entire bodyweight behind me, I slowly began choking the life out of her and soon, her claws were mere tickles against my bare skin. I collapsed to the ground suddenly, and Gilda breathed in a heavy breath. I tried to stand up, but my hind legs weren’t working. I glanced behind myself, and saw her dagger buried in my spine.

“Fuck you, Gilda,” I snarled as I ripped the dagger out of my spine.

She sucked in a lungful of air as she panted heavily, holding a claw to her bleeding side. “Go suck yourself.”

I blinked in confusion. “Excuse us? We art unfamiliar with that phrase.”

She chuckled and climbed to all fours. “Yeah, well ask Nightmare to explain it.” She staggered towards the unicorn lying on the ground.

“Knowing thou, We would rather not,” I replied as I tossed her a bottle of alcohol before lifting a bottle of my own in salute.

She caught it, before bending forward and checking the unicorns pulse. “What did you do to Trixie?”

“Unconscious. As annoying as she is, killing her would take too much effort.” I emptied the bottle and resisted the urge to throw up. “How can you drink this? It is horrible.”

Gilda nudged Trixie’s face before collapsing to the ground beside her. “I don’t drink it for the taste. Drunk is drunk.” She took a swig of her own bottle.

“Better get us drunk fast then, considering how horrible it tastes. Got more?”

“Yeah, but I’m outta powder thanks to that.” She pulled another bottle out of her pouches and threw it across the room at me.

I snatched it out of the air and took a deep drink. A quick glance over my shoulder told me I was healing up nicely. Slightly slower than normal, thanks to all the magic Nightmare had used, but enough for me to be healed within a couple of hours.

“Fuck. I just fought a goddess didn’t I?” She winced as she touched her bleeding side again. “That’s something I’m gonna brag about to Trixie. Fuck her little ursa.”

“Despite us having barely enough magic to even cast a fireball, and trying not to alert the gryphons to our location,” I chuckled. “Otherwise there would be nothing left except a crater.”

Gilda waved an irritated claw at me and took another drink. “Details. The statement I took on a goddess is still true. Plus, it might be a good way to get Trixie to shut up. You’re telling me you don’t want that?”

“If thou want that then we can gag her for thee.”

Her gaze hardened and she glared at me. “No.”

“At least she is unconscious then.”

She took another drink. “Look, fuck that little fight. I have a point, and this doesn’t change anything.” She pointed past me. “Give me that knife back?”

“Why should We? Thou did stab us in the back. Rather literally might We add.” I tested the edge of the blade. “Thou hast a very high quality knife.”

“You were strangling me. What, was I supposed to do, let you?” She snorted. “Fuck that. And who cares if it’s good? It’s mine, and I want it back.”

With an idle flick of my magic, I embedded it in the wall next to her head. “Though We art curious as to where thou learnt to fight like that. Wide Eyes mayhaps?”

Gilda shook her head as she ripped the knife out of the wall and sheathed it. “Nah, Wide Eyes don’t recruit females.” She rolled her eyes. “Stupid if you ask me. I mean, how much easier is it to spot an agent if you know he can only be a male between certain ages? If you leave the chicks out, that’s half your recruitment pool gone.”

“Not to mention females are so much better at seduction than males,” I chuckled. “The day gryphons start recruiting females for military service is the day they manage to actually win a war.”

“Hey, fuck you. In one on one combat, no one but dragons can top gryphons. Besides, we haven’t even had that many real wars since Celestia started to get involved in our politics. We haven’t had the chance to flex our military muscles yet.”

“Do not remind us,” I muttered in my bottle.

What was wrong with a war every couple of years? Chess was all well and good for keeping the mind sharp, but there was nothing like war to really get the mind moving. There was the terrain, the weather, innovative uses of units, and so much more to consider that was not captured in that simple board game. Plus, it kept populations to a manageable level and culled the weak. War was a good thing, and yet Celestia always worked so hard to keep it off the table. A thousand years has truly warped her thinking beyond recognition.

“Stupid Celly,” I grumbled.

Gilda glanced at me, but shrugged and shook her shoulders. “Anyway, enough about things I’m never going to tell you. Before you chucked your tantrum back there, I was trying to make a point.”

“A stupid point that needs not be made,nor accurate,” I replied.

“You know leaders are supposed to serve their people, right? My old elder taught me that, and he was a fuck ton smarter than you. If you ever want Celestia to give you a bigger role, she needs to know that you actually give a shit. As it is, I’m glad she just has you keeping the dungeons clean.” Gilda rubbed her head and muttered, “Goddesses, it’s weird having your crap in my head.”

“Thou make it sound like We do not protect the kingdom at all. Celly stays on her throne gaining all the glory, all the praise, all the love whilst We art left on the field of battle.” I laid back and stared up at the ceiling. “Equestria was not the peaceful land thou know now. We constantly faced incursions from the Changelings, greedy dragons, and the occasional foalish gryphon tribe that sought to take a bit of the land. We were constantly on the field of battle. War is all We know. Who does thou think keeps the land safe? As for what We are doing now? Thou saw the tubes, thou saw the monsters they were creating. This is a preemptive strike, a delaying tactic at worst and a crippling blow at best. Some things were left in the past for a reason.”

Gilda snorted. “Dude, you’re seriously telling me that you’re doing this for the good of Equestria? When you kidnapped me from the dungeons you knew, without a single fucking doubt, that the Kingdom was doing some dodgy shit with ancient magic? Nuh. I call bullshit. When you dragged me into this, you didn’t know anything and you were ready to kill I dunno how many for practically no reason.”

“Of course We knew,” I lied with a shrug of my shoulders. “We are a goddess after all.”

Gilda eyed me up and down. “I doubt it. If you were honestly trying to save Equestria, then you’d have gotten better help than me, a gryphon bar brawler you know shit about, and a showmare who can’t even speak in the first person.”

“Or We could get the guards and start a war?” I asked innocently.

“You don’t need guards.” Gilda replied. “I’m sure there’s somebody in Equestria that knows their way across the border and around a knife.”

“Us.” I cocked an eyebrow at her. “We art the best in this day and age. Apart from the pathetic excuse for a guard, We art the only weapons of war left.”

Gilda rolled her eyes. “There’s no way to say ‘I’m a weapon,’ and not sound like a douchebag.” She shifted in her position and took another drink. “You’re telling me, that in an operation to save the fate of Equestria, your best chance was with me and Trixie. That there was no better choice for a guide to the Gryphon Kingdom? Cause, if that’s what you’re saying, I’m flattered, but you’re not half the strategist you like to think you are.”

“No, the best chance was two idiots to act as cover for us,” I replied. “The fact that thou art competent is a mere bonus.”

“Bullshit.” Gilda shook her head. “You don’t want dupes on a mission like that, and you’re a fucking idiot if you work alone. Particularly, when you have Nightmare in the back of your head who can take over every now and again.”

“Nightmare is a monster who wishes to destroy everything, and our goal is exactly that. When it comes to a beast like that, thou points it in the right direction and watches the carnage. She destroyed the Temple which was source of their knowledge, and then destroyed their main research facility.” Sure, I was making stuff up as I went, but she didn’t need to know that. “And We wished for expendable pawns that could be tossed aside without worry. Like We said, We hath enough power to leave a crater if We so chose.”

Gilda sighed. “Look, I don’t believe you alright? Nightmare took over. You didn’t let her out at the temple, she got out. She herself told me that you don’t have experience in direct subterfuge, and your plan at the temple was even less subtle than hers. You were gonna blitz in there and butcher everything.” She shook her head. “Nah, when Nightmare was in my head, you were the dibshit rooting through my memories. I’m just glad you didn’t see much. I think you had no more idea what we were getting into than I did.”

“True. Though We art curious as to how thou knows the Lady of Loyalty. Rainbow Dash I believe she is called?”

Gilda snorted. “Dash ain’t a lady any more than I am.”

“Considering she is Loyalty, We wonder if bringing her on this mission would hath been a better idea. She would potentially have knowledge of the area through her relationship with thee...”

“Nah, I never told Dash much about where I was from. And plus she’s the Element of Loyalty. That’s not an expendable dupe.”

So much for needling her a bit.

She spoke up again, and I blinked in surprise. “If you really care, I’ve been friends with Dash for years. I met her when I was eight and Calisto had me and the others... Anyway, I was at Junior Speedster Flight Camp and we shared a cabin. I didn’t see her for another...” she paused and scrunched up her face. “Six years? Anyway, I started boarding at high school, and we were roommates there again.” She snorted. “I swear, it was fucking retarded. I walk in, and not only does she recognize me, but she acted like I hadn’t been gone at all. She was chatting to me for like, five minutes acting like we were best friends or whatever before I remembered who the fuck she was.” She chuckled and took a drink. “Yeah, she was like that. Time meant shit all to her if it wasn’t lap time.”

“‘Lap time’? Is that an innuendo for something?”

“What?” Gilda asked. “No, it just means how fast you can go around the track.” She shuddered. “Fucking nasty, dude. I don’t even wanna know how fast Dash is in the sack.”

“‘In the sack’?” I tilted my head to the side as I grabbed a fresh bottle of alcohol. I had to admit, the taste was not so bad once you got used to it.

“It means sex, dude.”

“Then why does thou not just say so?”

Gilda rolled her eyes. “I did say so, you’re just too retarded to pick it up. Seriously, at least Nightmare can hold a bloody conversation.”

“Probably read thy mind.” I drankhalf the bottle in one go. “She has a bad habit of doing that.”

“You're telling me?” Gilda chuckled. “I swear, she almost caught me thinking a few things that I’m glad she didn’t. Any goddess damn idea how hard it is to watch what you think?”

“Well We believe she hath feelings for thee. Romantic feelings.” I giggled at the absurdity of it.

Gilda grimaced. “I was hoping she was just messing with me.”

“Well, We cannot read her mind, but her emotions are indicative of as much.” I laughed at the face she pulled.

“Look, even putting aside the fact she’s in a filly’s body, sharing a head with you, and a complete goddess damn psychopath. Any relationship involving someone like me or her couldn’t end well. I mean, we’re both too crazy and unstable to keep any kind of real emotion from ruining everything.” She shrugged. “I know I’d get as jealous as piss if my partner looked at someone else, and I can get pretty damn irrational.”

“Thou... thou has actually thought about it.”

Gilda wrinkled her brow. “Yeah... I’m pretty desperate.” She took another drink. “Like I said, it’s a bad idea.”

I blinked in surprised and quickly hid a smirk behind a drink. Was Nightmare listening in? Perhaps, either way, that was something she should not have said aloud. Instead, I simply said, “Try being stuck on the moon for a thousand years.”

Gilda barked out a laugh. “H’yeah, I can imagine the party you had when you got back to Canterlot. Bet the Royal Guard do more than decoration, huh?” She winked at me.

Eyes wide, I flushed bright red and looked away.

Gilda stared at me. “Holy shit... I was fucking right?” She tilted her head back and laughed. It felt like hours before she was done pounding her fists on the floor and clutching her sides. “Heh, I bet that, heh, I bet they didn’t get taught that in basic training.” She sat up and put on a drill sergeants barking voice. “Cadet, you will assume the position each and every time I crack this whip!” She fell back to the floor laughing at her own joke.

“W-We did not do such a thing!” I yelled, though my red face did not help my case. “When We were last on Equestria, such things were not spoken of so openly, so thou took us by surprise.”

“I just hope you didn’t take them by surprise!” She hooted and took another drink. “Goddesses, the cleanup they’d need for me after a thousand year dry spell...”

And here I thought I could not blush even more.

“If thou wants, We are sure We can arrange for thee to spend some private time with the guards.” As soon as those words were out my mouth, I silently cursed my loose tongue.

“Hah! So that totally happened!”

“It did not!”

“Hah! Bullshit! Freaking damn it man.” She wheezed and winced as she clutched her bleeding side. “Don’t do this shit to me. I can imagine their faces, somewhere between, ‘Oh shit... I’m fucking a filly.’ and ‘Holy shit! I’m fucking a goddess!’”

“And We art telling thou such a thing did not occur. Please do not force thy fantasies onto us.” A shudder ran down my spine. “We do not need to know what thee pleasures thyself to late at night.”

“Heh, I bet Celestia was totally, ‘What the fuck...’ as she walked in on you and fifty mares and stallions. Or did you restrain yourself, and just go with thirty?”

“We think thou hast had too much to drink...”

“Yeah, probably.” She emptied the bottle and dropped it the floor with a clunk. “I’m gonna be so hung over in the morning.” I blinked in surprise. For somepony who just drained an entire bottle of corn whisky, she seemed surprisingly sober.

“Very well. We shalt take first watch then.”

“Sounds good to me.” She stood up and walked unsteadily away from Trixie’s unconscious form. “Just don’t let Nightmare out while I’m not thinking straight. I’d like to think I’d turn her away anyway, but better safe than sorry.”

Once again, that was something she should not say aloud.

“Very well. Shall We wake thee up for thy shift?” I finished off that bottle and tossed it onto the pile.

“Fuck no,” she replied as she settled into the corner.

“Very well. Night, and as thou is so fond of saying, ‘fuck you’.”

She barked a laugh. “Yeah, well you’d love to wouldn’t you? Everybody wants a piece of this action.”

“That would be Nightmare thou are thinking of.”

“Whatever. Unless someone’s dying, don’t wake me up.”

Chapter 10

I rolled my eyes as Trixie muttered something under her breath yet again as she gazed at the mess Gilda and I had made. There was no need to use emotion reading magic to know the showmare was annoyed at us, and considering how she avoided looking or talking to me in any shape or form, I did not wish to press the issue. As far as I was concerned, she was an idiot for believing whatever it was she was thinking. In fact, any words that came out of her mouth were probably stupid wastes of time and air.

“There was a reason why I never bothered reading her mind and just stuck with emotions,” smirked Nightmare Moon from inside my mind.

A quick glance to my right told me the lazy gryphon was still out cold and I resisted the urge to slap her awake. From what Nightmare had seen in Teotore’s mind, there was something else going on and that did not bode well for either of us. Whatever it was the gryphons were up to, they had to be stopped. The sooner the better. All we had were a couple of images and fragments to go from. Normally it would be enough for a goddess to find the location, but being gone a thousand years was definitely a hindrance. Stupid gryphons, they just had to form a monarchy and rename their towns.

There was a groan from beside me, and I glanced down. Gilda’s eyes flickered open only to immediately close again with a pained grunt as the light shone directly into them. I knew there was a reason why I moved the lamp there this morning. Turning the page of my journal, I let my eyes skim the words before me as she shifted and turned like a dragon coming out of hibernation. Probably just as grumpy, if that ‘hangover’ disease was as bad as Celly made it sound.

After a moment, Gilda’s eye opened more firmly, and fixed a glare on the lamp. Her claw shot out and knocked it over, but not putting the flame out. At the clattering sound she clenched both claws to her head and moaned. After a moment she said something, so softly I wouldn’t have caught it if I wasn’t an alicorn.

“Water...” she croaked as she faced the wall.

I held out a bottle of alcohol for her. “Here.”

She took it and clumsily fumbled it to her beak. The moment it touched her tongue she spat it out and threw the bottle at my face. I caught it with a chuckle and put it back down on the table before sitting back as I waited for the eventual tirade of colorful language.

“You suck so much fucking dragon cock.” She slowly pushed herself to standing, and her bloodshot eyes fixed on me.

Off to the side, Trixie began coughing as she thumped her chest.

“Less than thou, considering We hath been on the moon for a thousand years,” I replied.

She snorted, but then winced in pain and put a claw to her head. “I bet you made up for it the night you got back. Those guards probably limped away when you were done.”

“Really? Thou art still on about that? Thou hast no new material? We are disappointed.”

“I’m hung-over,” she shrugged. “Wait till midday, then I’ll have something better.” She glanced over at Trixie. “Hey Trix. You bashed your head pretty hard. You alright?”

The unicorn fixed us with a glare and muttered something under her breath.

“What? What’s your goddess damn problem?” Gilda sat down slowly and frowned. “It’s not like I’m the one who knocked you out.”

All the response Gilda got was a small shake of Trixie’s head as she turned back to the book she was reading.

The gryphon frowned. “Trixie, I’m as hung-over as fuck. Goddesses damn it, even my swearing is shit right now. So please, just tell me why you’re pissed. Is it because I lied to you about the pony killing thing?”

A fireball flew towards Gilda, forcing her to scramble out of the way.

“The fuck was that for!” she shouted, her hangover forgotten until the sound of her voice brought pain back. “Owe...” she muttered.

A second fireball was aimed at my head, but a simple reflective barrier sent it towards Gilda once more. She barely reared back away from it in time.

“The fuck is it with me and getting set on fire?” She shot a glare my way, and I merely shrugged innocently. “Whatever, fuck the both of you,” she muttered and turned away. “Where’s my bloody knife?” She asked herself.

Really? Am I surrounded by idiots? “Still in our spine, obviously.”

She turned around with a look of surprise on her face. “How are you standing?”

Trixie muttered something vicious, but we both ignored her.

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, there is absolutely a knife in our spine.”

She stared at me confused for a second before she recognized sarcasm. “Whatever,” she muttered as she looked around the room.

“It’s in your sheath!” Trixie snapped. “Right there, in your sheath you fool!”

Gilda winced at the sound of her voice, but checked the knife under her coat. “Thanks,” she muttered and fell to the floor gracelessly. “I need a bloody drink.”

I tossed the open bottle in her direction.

“Of water.” She glared at me as the alcohol splashed all over her. “You suck.”

“Thou insults are oddly lacking today,” I chuckled.

“I hope you die screaming in pain as a changeling worms its way up your ass and pushes your heart out your mouth,” she said flatly.

“Unless pony biology has completely changed these past thousand years, that is not even remotely plausible.” I slammed my head against the table. “Thou art an idiot.”

“And the changeling’s on fire,” Gilda added. “And the dragon from earlier is shitting in your face. And yeah, I know dragon turd is corrosive.”

“Now thou art trying too hard. Might We suggest something involving minotaurs? We hath found few utilize them properly in insults.”

She collapsed to the floor in defeat. “I’ll remember that for later. So where to?”

“We have no doubt that the gryphons will search all previously known locations that have been associated with thee. We need to find a location. Near a mountain range or some kind with a large river flowing through. A town called White Peak, we believe?”

“White Peak?” Gilda asked. “No. I’m not going to goddess damn White Peak, that’s right next to the Changeling Territory. Fuck that, me and Trix are going back to Equestria. I meant where to from here.”

“What makes you think Trixie is going anywhere with you?” Her eyes drifted over to me. “Either of you.”

Gilda glanced over at her. “Trixie... Are you alright?” She sighed and rubbed her eyes. “I don’t know why you’re pissed at me, but I’m fucking sorry alright? I just wanna get you out of this mess and go home.”

“That would be touching if you weren’t a fucking sociopath,” snapped Trixie. “I am done with both of you. Trixie is returning and she is going alone.”

Gilda snorted. “Trix, you won’t make it without my help.” She paused and added after a second. “And I’m not a sociopath.” That sounded like an afterthought to me.

“Being dead is better than spending one more second with either of you!” She suddenly vanished in an explosion of blue.

Gilda covered her eyes from the flash of light and loud sound. After a moment she looked around for the unicorn. “Trix?”

“The idiot teleported,” I said with a shrug. “Either she is dead or she is dead. Come, if you wish to save thy marefriend we will have to leave now.”

“Why? Where’d she go?” GIlda asked as she stepped closer to me, actual concern on her voice.

“Give us a second.” I closed my eyes and pressed forward with my magic at the spot she had vanished from. “Teleporting tends to leave behind a fourth dimensional signature that we can follow and... Got it!”

The air before us wavered, forming a translucent portal that seemed to superimpose an alpine environment on top of it. With far more magic than I had spare, I forced the tunnel to strengthen and stabilize. Sweat dripping down my brow, I narrowed my eyes and willed it to open. As soon as it did, I slumped back while taking deep gulps of air.

“Hurry. We do not know how long it will stay open.” On shaky legs I walked forward. “Come.”

Gilda pushed past me and jumped through the portal, causing me to stumble. Impudent little foal, if she wasn’t so useful I’d close the portal on her. Messy, but efficient death.

“Don’t you dare. Do that and I promise, I will make your life a living Tartarus.”

Fine, but they were pawns and the sooner they learnt that, the easier it would be for all of us. With a sigh I followed her through and let it snap shut behind me. With the snow, it was a matter of following the hoofprints. To think the gryphon would be so stupid as to not cover her own tracks. I saw her some distance ahead, doing the same hopping gliding gate she did when she first tracked Trixie.

It wasn’t long till I lost sight of her. She was moving quickly and I was utterly depleted from my use of magic, so I barely managed a respectable pace. It’s a good thing I did not require food nor water nor warmth, or I might have died out here in the cold.

Goddess damn it Trixie! I felt like screaming in frustration. I couldn’t tell if I was catching up to her or not, the tracks were too fresh for me to tell anything other than they were less than an hour old. Trixie was all but galloping from me and Luna, that I could tell from the hoof prints, so it wouldn’t take too long for her to run out of energy. She was in pretty damn good shape, so she’d probably be able to keep her current pace up for about half an hour, taking into account unicorn physiology and the cold, then she’d slow down and try to find shelter if she was smart, so given my current pace, it was at least going to be an hour before I caught up to her.

I paused and glanced over my shoulder. Huh. Guess I hadn’t noticed Luna fall behind. Whatever, even she should be able to follow the tracks me and Trixie had left. I was ready to leave it at that before I decided to leave her a note. In the snow with a stick I’d snapped from a tree, I left a message.

WILL FIND TRIXIE IN HOUR. IF NOT CAUGHT UP TO US, WILL COME BACK FOR YOU

That done, I turned and chased after the pony who was actually at risk of dying. Despite the hangover I still had, and the hollow growling in my stomach, I made good time. I’d stopped to fill my canteen with snow, and my body heat began melting the ice so I’d have water soon enough.

It was good to lose myself to the hard work and muscle burn of chasing in the snow. My breath was short and sharp, and I loved it because it kept my mind from the fucking awful mess of emotions my head had become. Emotions suck, they were never good for anything. Why the fuck did it have to be on a dodgy as Tartarus mission in the Gryphon Kingdom that I learn Calisto was dead, that my brother was a Wide Eyes whose job it was to hunt me down, that the only friend I had at the moment thought I was a complete psycho, that there was a goddess that really genuinely seemed like she was attracted, if not outright crushing, on me, that I was probably the single most mentally damaged being in Equestria, other than said goddess, and that my dad died. I fucking laughed at that. I laughed at the fact that my dad died. That is not a good thing!

Shit, there go my thoughts again. I gave myself a slap that only hurt worse because of my hangover, and refocused on tracking Trixie. If she fucking died...

No! No, don’t think about that. She wasn’t going to die, you were going to find her, she’d say something annoying, you’d swear at her, Luna would act like a dumbass and everything would be back to normal. Well... as normal as it could possibly be in a situation as completely fucked up as this.

It was a little over an hour before I saw Trixie’s blue silhouette at the top of the next hill. By that time I was panting really heavily, and my breath was frosting over. If I didn’t have the same sort of cold resistance that pegasi did, I’d probably be feeling hypothermia. As it was, I was just a bit chilled. My chest heaving, I took to the air for one final flight to catch up to her.

“Trixie!” I shouted as I got closer. “Trix, wait up!” I didn’t really need her to wait for me, which was good cause she didn’t, so I landed next to her with a whump and a flurry of snow.

She didn’t even so much as look at me. Instead she kept trudging forward with her horn aglow and when I went to put a claw on her shoulder, a wave of heat suddenly engulfed it. I immediately pulled back with a frown. Some sort of heating spell? That explained how she was still alive.

“Trix, just-”

“Don’t call me that!” she yelled over her shoulder.

Well at least she was saying something.

“Trixie, just wait up. You’re acting retarded.”

“No.” I was flung back, hitting a tree with enough force to give me whiplash. “If Trixie sees you or that insane alicorn ever again, Trixie will kill you.”

I growled as I rolled back onto all fours. Fucking unicorns and alicorns with their goddess damn magic!

“Well isn’t that just a bit fucking hypocritical! I’ve never killed anyone for trying to save my life!”

“But you have killed!”

“And?!” I shouted at her.

“Exactly!” She jabbed a hoof in my direction. “You don’t even care do you? You’re like Nightmare. You are exactly like her. You think you’re so high and mighty with your moral high ground, constantly mocking her and calling her a monster, but you’re not better.”

I grit my jaw. “I’m nowhere near as bad as that.” I said quietly. “I’ve done shit I regret, but I’m not a monster like her.”

“How!? How are you any different to her? Do you even care when you kill somepony?” Trixie turned away and kept walking, obviously convinced she knew my answer.

“No,” I said slowly, and she stiffened in surprise. “No I never fucking cared about anyone I killed. Because I never killed anyone that didn’t deserve it. I care about the fact that I don’t care, it fucking scares me, but I never gave a second thought to any of the pricks I ended.”

“And Luna? Do you believe she feels any different? Despite everything you may think, Trixie is educated and she knows of the wars Luna speaks of. The commander of the army is always left blank, but...” She stopped and looked off into the distance. “If Luna did not win those wars, Equestria would not exist today.”

“I’m nothing like Luna!” I yelled back my answer. “Luna doesn’t even care about right or wrong, she doesn’t give a fuck about anyone or anything other than herself.”

“Is that Luna or Nightmare Moon?” Trixie shot back. “And what about me? Do you think I care about anything other than myself?”

“Yeah, I do, Trix! Because if you cared about nothing other than yourself, you wouldn’t be willing to die out here on fucking principle! You wouldn’t be hurt by the fact that I lied to you, and you wouldn’t even be talking to me right now!” As an afterthought I shrugged and added. “And what does it matter if it’s Nightmare or Luna?”

“Maybe I just don’t want to be caught in the crossfire when you two finally decide to kill each other!” she screamed back. “Trixie hates you! She hates both of you! Crawl back to where ever you came from and just die already.”

“If you hate me so much, then why’d you shoot that flare at Luna when she first went after me, huh? If it’s about self-preservation, than why the fuck are you out here?!” I shouted and reared on my hind legs, my arms spread, indicating the mountains around us.

“Oh yes, let the idiot gryphon die so that Trixie bears the full insanity of Nightmare Moon. Brilliant plan that.” Trixie glared at me. “And it is self-preservation. Trixie has decided making a break for the border has a better chance of survival than staying with you two.”

“Well fine then, let’s ditch Luna and go. Without her there, you won’t get caught in the crossfire, and I can get you to somewhere fucking safe!” I jabbed my finger at her and fell down to all fours.

For a brief second, uncertainty flashed over her face, but it immediately returned to that arrogant smirk of hers. “No. Trixie doesn’t need you. You’re mere presence is more likely to bring more problems for Trixie.”

“Trix, you’re not an idiot. You know as well as I do that you’d never cross the border with them looking for you. You couldn’t stop at any towns or hit up anyone you know. They’ll be looking for you.” I glanced at the sun and her hoof prints. “Also, the border’s that way.” I pointed left of the direction she’d been heading in.

Without a word, she changed directions and kept trudging on in silence.

“Still think you’ll be better off without me?” I shouted after her. “You can’t even tell me what mountains we’re in can you?” I walked behind her, keeping pace pretty easily.

Great, back to the silent treatment.

“Trix, this isn’t even about your survival chances. This is about the fact that your first real friend in what I’m guessing is years, turned out to be... me. You’re hurt, because it’s the first time you’ve gotten close, or even slightly close, to someone in ye-”

“Shut up!” Hey, she was speaking aga- I was suddenly on my back, Trixie’s horn jabbed against my throat, glowing bright blue. “Shut up, shut up, shut up! You don’t know anything! Ju- Just shut up!”

“Go ahead then!” I shouted. “Kill me! I won't fucking stop you.” I grabbed her horn and pulled it right up to my forehead so she was staring me in the eyes. “Do it.”

She stared me straight in the eye, and for a second, I actually thought she would do it. There was that frenzied look in her eye someone gets when they’re angry enough to something dumb. Then, at the last second, her horn stopped glowing and she slumped down. She was still on top of me, so I shoved her off and stood up.

“Trix...we’re friends, alright? Whether you’ll admit it or not, I get you and you get me. Even if we know practically nothing about each other, we both understand each other.” I sat down in the snow next to her. “If that wasn’t true, then you wouldn’t be here at all. You could’ve teleported away at any time. You were sticking with us, because you actually cared.”

“More than you two...” she whispered. “I hate you so much. So very much.”

I snorted. “Fair enough. Very a few have more reason to hate me than you.”

“Trixie doubts that.” She sighed softly as she finally collapsed onto me. “Trixie doubts that a lot.”

I awkwardly put an arm around her shoulder. “Doubt that anyone has more reason, or just that it’s a few?”

“Both.” Her hoof slammed into my chest causing me to wince. “Jerk.”

“Yeah, well fuck you too Trix.” I thought about punching her in the shoulder, but she was still probably feeling a bit too tender for that kind of thing. “You know I quit drinking once?” Well that was a sudden change in topic. Well done me. Is it just something I do when things are getting emotional? Randomly throw the conversation in another direction.

“Shut up,” she mumbled. “Take Trixie back, she’s too tired to walk on her own four hooves.”

I was feeling bloody tired too. Still, I took some of her weight, and we headed back in the direction we’d come from. “Do you really want to go back? I’m not kidding when I say we can make a run for the border.”

“Whatever,” Trixie sighed as she snuggled into me. “Just... just whatever you think is best.”

I blinked in surprise. Maybe the cold was getting to her. “Uh... well, honestly, I doubt we’ll make it to the border from these mountains. They’re sort of even further from Equestria than Aviana. And more dangerous. We don’t have any supplies, and you’ll burn through your magic and freeze to death without something warmer.” I didn’t mention that I’d freeze too. “I guess, we go back to Luna, get off the mountain range, and make our way to Equestria someway we won’t freeze to death.” I paused and added. “Unless you can teleport the both of us.”

“Alright.” Trixie wrapped both hooves around my neck.

Yeesh. Was she drunk? Talk about getting affectionate. Whatever, as long as she wasn’t going to go back to moping.

We made painfully slow progress back towards Luna. I wasn’t feeling up to flying her, and I doubt she’d want me to carry her either. We lapsed into bored silence, until eventually I felt like I had to say something.

“I wasn’t kidding when I said I quit drinking.” I glanced over at Trixie. “Last year, I gave up on it. That’s why there was all that corn whisky in the basement. It wasn’t a cache, just shit I decided I wanted to leave behind.” My claw touched the knife under my cloak.

“Maybe we can share a bottle later tonight.”

“Nah, Luna drank it all, and spilled the rest when she threw it at me.” I sighed. “Whatever, it was shit anyway.” I shifted and adjusted her weight on me. “Cognac. That’s a good drink. I fucking love cognac. Calisto used to have this cabinet full of scotch, whiskey and cognac. Shame I didn’t start drinking till after I left, but I’d love to get my claws on that cabinet.”

“Well Trixie would love to share a drink with you at some time.” She looked up at me with half lidded eyes. “Trixie is willing to buy.”

I looked down at her, my eyes widening in surprise. Oh...

I shifted uncomfortably. “Uh... Yeah alright.” I shrugged. “But it could be awhile before we can do that.”

Yikes. Smooth one Gilda. Real smooth. Geez, did I even want to date Trixie? I mean, sure she was pretty enough, but I honestly hadn’t thought of her in that way at all. I couldn’t think of anything particularly wrong with the idea, but... sudden I guess?

“Um... Trixie doesn’t mind.” A happy sigh escaped.

Fucking Tartarus. Was I suddenly a hot commodity? First Nightmare, now this?

I blinked in surprise and stared at Trixie in horror. “Holy shit, I forgot about Nightmare.”

“Screw Nightmare. She can go fuck herself,” chuckled Trixie. “Or would that be fucking Luna?”

“No dude, I mean Nightmare will bloody kill you.” I replied. “She’s not gonna take it well when she learns you’re... dating me? Are we dating?” I shrugged my shoulders. “Whatever. The point is you could die, dude.”

“Then we make sure Nightmare doesn’t come out. If you hadn’t noticed, she only appears when Luna is knocked out.” To my surprise, Trixie blushed. “Trixie does not know, are we dating?”

“I guess... I mean, we have plans for a date, right?” I shrugged. “I guess that means we’re dating.” There’s no way this was going to end well. I could tell that right now. No relationship with me ever ends well, and I’m not just thinking about romance either. My luck is so bad, shit gets ironic.

Trixie’s blush deepened. “Trixie has... that is... I have never dated another pony before let alone a gryphon...”

I chuckled. Oh, stupid me, bad move. Stop laughing. “Well, I’m not very experienced either... Was still a virgin this time last year.”

Ah, fuck. She didn’t need to know that. Goddesses damn it, me! You’re good at not saying things! It’s easy! You just don’t say the thing! It’s as easy as doing nothing! Because it is doing nothing!

It must have showed on my expression because she burst out laughing.

“Um... anyway.” I looked up at the sky and closed my eyes, trying to think of how to say this. Shit. Emotions suck. Even when they’re someone else’s they just fuck things up. “Look Trix, I think we should just keep this between you and me for now.”

“Nah, really?” She looked at me as though I was an idiot. “I am not an idiot you know.”

“Oh,” I said dumbly. Well that made an awkward discussion less awkward. “It’s just with Nightmare, and if she got out and all...” I decided to leave out the part about Trixie being split into many smaller chunks of Trixie.

“Trixie is the master of illusions and misdirection.”

“Uh, yeah sure.” I thought about it. “Yeah sure, it shouldn’t be too hard to keep this from Nightmare. You just keep teasing me about it, and acting like Nightmare and me is just a big joke to you, and I just keep acting like I’m not attracted to you.” As soon as I said that, I realized the problem with that statement... I wasn’t attracted to Trixie. Fuck... this was not going to end well.

“Hm... That certainly works for Trixie.” A small chuckle escaped. “To think Trixie would fall for a gryphon of all things.”

I snorted. “Damn racist.” She said ‘fall’ for me...Ah shit. No, no, no. Fucking no! Oh goddesses, I just wanted to help Trixie. Not break her heart or make her ‘fall’ for me.

To my surprise, she burst out laughing. “How can Trixie be racist when she’s dating a gryphon?”

“I dunno. Those Red Claw comics are racist as all fuck, and they’re sexualizing gryphons to the point that it’s retarded.” And yet... I still read them. Go figure.

“Never heard of them,” replied Trixie. “And how did you follow me anyways?”

I glanced over at her before looking at the long line of hoof prints in the snow in front of us. I blinked and pointed at them. Even she could spot those.

“Trixie meant through the teleport.”

“Oh... Yeah, Luna was able to follow you through, but she was tired as fuck so I went ahead.” Shit, I was dating her now. Does that mean I have to stop swearing? I really hope not.

“Probably for the best.” She poked my chest. “And no more killing. Got that?”

I opened my mouth to answer her, but I found it really hard to say anything. After a really long and awkward silence, I spoke. “Trix... if someone’s going to try and hurt you, I can’t promise I won’t... hurt them. I mean... I never wanted to kill anyone, but... fuck. I quit killing the same time I quit drinking, and then less than a year later a bloody goddess yanks me from a dungeon and pulls me into this mess. I mean... goddesses, it feels like I can’t ever not kill.”

“At least try. Please...” She rested her head on my shoulder. “Perhaps... perhaps we should make a break for the border then? At least you’d be free...”

Free? “Of course I’ll try.” Holy shit that sounded like such an empty promise. Oh fucking Tartarus. What was Trixie doing with me? “Yeah, of course we’ll go for the border, but we’ll need some things we don’t have right now.” I shrugged. “It really shouldn’t be too hard to ditch Luna, but Nightmare could be tricky, she’s not as dumb.”

“Couldn’t be harder than getting away from your brother. Something we would have achieved if you hadn’t dropped me into an outhouse.” She glared up at me. “I demand reparation for that by the way.”

I smiled at that. “Yeah, I’d say I’m sorry for that, but I’m really not.” I chuckled, but her glare stayed firm. “Nah, it’ll be easier than getting away from Grace. He can track as well as I can and has the Kingdom’s resources behind him. Whatever though, I wouldn’t want either Luna or Nightmare coming after me.”

“I don’t blame you.”

I walked in silence for a while. “What about when we get back to Equestria?” I asked her. “If Luna doesn’t die without us, she’ll come back to Equestria, and she might come after us. Or, if Luna does die, Celestia might come after us... I mean shit dude, think about that... Where the fuck could we go if Celestia was coming after us?”

“If it comes to that, we can figure it out then. Plus, once we get back to Equestria, we get the Elements of Harmony to blast Nightmare Moon out of Luna. Done.”

I snorted. “We’re not exactly friends with the Elements though. I mean, if we say Nightmare’s still in Luna, aren’t they going to want to know how we know? Wouldn’t it be our word against hers?”

“Assuming Luna wants Nightmare Moon to stick around. Considering last time it got her banished to the moon for a thousand years, Trixie doubts Luna would want that.”

“But then why hasn’t she told Celestia that Nightmare’s in there already?” I glanced at her. “She has to have been keeping it a secret for a while now.”

“Fear? We can take care of that once we get there. Plus, you do know Rainbow Dash and she is the Element of Loyalty right?” As soon as those words left her lips, she winced.

“Uh... Me and Dash aren’t really... friendly at the moment. I think if I went back there, she’d just tell me to piss off. I mean, it’s what I’d do.”

She burst out laughing. “How many gryphons, let alone ponies, are like you? You are one of a kind.”

I smirked. “Well, depending on how many are left...” I trailed off and tallied it up in my head. “Yeah, I guess it could be just me.”

Trixie looked up at me curiously, but merely shrugged. “What happened between you and Rainbow Dash anyways?”

I shrugged. “Nothing much.” Vague answers are the best ones. “Like I said, we were just friends anyway.”

“Oh... sorry...” She leaned in and nuzzled my neck.

I hate myself so freaking much. Why, oh why did I agree to date her? I mean... fucking Tartarus, I was just going to hurt her when I do or say something stupid. When she realizes that I really am nothing but a hollow shell of violence, swearing and booze. What the fuck had I done to make her even want me in the first place? I’m not... wantable. I’m... me damn it. I’m nothing but me.

“Why me?” I asked as I tried to return her affection, but I’m pretty sure it was just awkward and I fumbled it.

To my surprise, she giggled softly at my fumbled attempt. Or maybe it was my question?

“Why you?” She sighed softly. “Trixie isn’t sure, but... You care. Despite being... well... you and rather monstrous on occasion, you actually care about Trixie. You looked after me, came after me, and cared about me. Nopony had ever done that for me and...” A blush appeared on her cheek, staining the fur dark purple. I had to admit, it looked adorable. “Trixie admits that she has a thing for non-ponies. The thought of being with a pony makes her sick.”

Oh wow. I couldn’t help it, I laughed a bit at that. “I’m sorry it’s just... really? Really? I’m attracted to ponies, but that’s because I spent puberty in Equestria, and that fucked my instincts so hard they bled. I mean... why non-ponies?”

“Ask yourself what type of ponies toss out their only child and then let Trixie tell you that her mother was a terrible drunk who has seen the inside of a jail cell more than once and you have your answer.”

“Oh...” I said aloud. Well, that might explain some things. “Sounds like your parents might have been even worse than mine.”

“Can we please not compare horrible histories? Trixie does not want to remember horrible times. She just wants to enjoy the present if that’s alright.” She looked up at me curiously. “And Trixie can walk if you're tired.”

Could she feel me getting tired? “Nah I’m cool. As long as you’re safe then I’m not worried if you’d like to walk or not.” Maybe it was just destiny, or that fact that I’m as unlucky as they come, but at that exact bloody second the slash I got from Luna cramped painfully and I stumbled.

Trixie immediately jumped out of my arms and slipped under my shoulder to help me stand up.

“No Trix, it’s fine,” I said and took as much of my weight off her as I could. “Just... Luna got me pretty nasty back there. I’ll be fine.”

“She hurt you!?” Ah shit. Probably shouldn’t have let her know that. She totally ignored my protests as she rolled me over with her magic, forced me to lift my arm just so that she could examine the wound. “Well it’s not that deep. And here Trixie thought you were tougher than that.”

I wriggled uncomfortably and tried to shove her away, but the bloody unicorn magic made that impossible. “Yeah, that’s why I said I was fine, so could you let me up already?”

“Alright.” Though she kept her snappish tone, there was a blush on her cheeks.

“Bloody unicorns.” I muttered as I rolled back to all fours and stood up. “Cheating with their damn magic.” I shook my head and looked over at Trixie. “Well... thanks for caring anyway.”

“Um...” Her hoof dug at the ground slightly as she looked off to the side. “You’re welcome...?”

I snorted. “Wow. Graceful.”

“Silence! The Great and Powerful Trixie will not tolerate your mockery.” A beat of silence. “Even if we are dating.”

I stared at her with a little smile on my beak. Okay, so maybe this wasn’t so bad. I mean... Yeah, there was no way this could end well, and in the end I’d regret saying yes, but really, there were far worse things in the world than dating a pretty unicorn that I was friends with.

I just shook my head. “Alright whatever. Let’s just keep going. I want to get out of these mountains already.”

“That is something Trixie agrees with. Does the weak gryphon require some heating courtesy of the Great and Powerful One?”

“Nah, I’m toasty.” To be honest I was a little chilled, but really I was fine, and I don’t know how much magic Trixie can really manage. One long distance teleport and heating herself up for an hour was probably getting close to her limits. “Are you alright though? I mean, you were hiking for an hour through the snow and that can be damn exhausting. Especially when you jump there straight from a warmer place like Aviana.”

“See?” Trixie gave me a small smile. “You care. Despite everything, you actually care. Trixie is sorry for calling you a monster, you definitely aren’t one.”

I shrugged, though to be honest it hurt a bit when she said it. “It’s fine... I mean, I’m not exactly... not a monster either.” Crap. Okay, there were just some things that had to be said. “Trixie, is the only reason you’re interested in me the fact that I care? I mean... that’s a really bad reason to start a relationship... Especially when it’s with me... I mean... I don’t have... any, good qualities really.”

Trixie simply stared at me as the silence stretched on. She opened her mouth a couple of times, but each time, she shut it again after a couple of seconds. In the end, she sighed and simply said, “Trixie is not stupid you know. Sure, she hasn’t been in a relationship before, but that’s because her past achievements and aura of superiority drove them away.” Her voice turned away from that arrogant tone as she said her next line, “And you do have good qualities, even if you don’t see them yourself.”

I shrugged. “Maybe.” I really doubted it. “but I think the drinking, the violence, and just... everything about me really... Like... fuck dude, even if there is something good about me, does that matter at all?”

“Which you gave up and only returned to thanks to Luna,” snapped Trixie, anger in her eyes. Wow. She was getting defensive of me. I have to say... it was kind of hot. “You tried to get out of it and you managed it. Trust me, please. Trixie grew up in a bad household and she knows bad from good. You are good, you’ve just been dealt a crap hand by fate and if Trixie finds those responsible, they will pay regardless of whether they are alicorns or not.”

I stared at her for a while, trying to think of... anything. Shit... how was I supposed to react to that? I opened my beak but shut it. In the end I just answered the last part of her statement.

“The guy that’s most responsible is already dead. I bumped into his grave in Aviana... That’s why I was moping and hitting the whiskey back in that basement.”

“Trixie is sorry...” She hugged me fiercely. I was caught off guard, but after a while I returned it and... it actually felt good. Fuck. I’m turning into a complete sap aren’t I? Emotions suck so much.

“We shall never mention this again in public,” Trixie whispered in my ear. “Trixie does have an image to maintain after all, but... Trixie will always be here for you.”

I laughed out loud. Goddesses damn it. We’re both really fucked up aren't we?

“I’m sorry, I’m not laughing at that... I mean, thanks for saying so... Shit. That makes it sound like I don’t really believe you does it? No I mean... I’m glad you’re here for me. I’ll be there for you too... It’s just, we’re both so damn damaged aren’t we? Between the two of us there’s more baggage than anyone else in Equestria isn’t there?”

A blink then her cocky smirk was back. “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing.”

I chuckled. “Yeah, that’s one way of looking at it.”

“If you can do it, Trixie can do it better!” She announced while throwing her hooves into the air, but for once, there were no fireworks. Huh, she must be really short on magic. I’m glad I didn’t take her up on that heat spell.

“Really?” I said. “How about a drinking contest?” Against a unicorn? Heh. No competition. Only bigger light weights are pegasi. Earth ponies. Yeah, don’t try to out drink an earth pony. You can get killed trying that.

Dark violet eyes narrowed.

“No.” Poke. “More.” Poke. “Drinking.”

“But I like drinking.” I backed away. “What’s wrong with a nice shot now and then?”

She paused. “No getting drunk then.”

“But I like getting drunk...” I didn’t add that it’s the best way to brawl. Good clean family fun.

Trixie took a step forward and the snow around her hoof melted as I felt the heat roll off her.

“Hey, calm down.” I said my palm waving towards the ground. “My drinking isn’t really a big deal anyway.”

“Trixie will give you the ability to drink simply because she doesn’t hate you, but if you get drunk, Trixie will throw you out in the rain and turn you bright pink.”

I froze. “But... that’s not fair! I can control myself, I mean... I was half drunk last night and I still managed to take on Luna.” It was after I said that, that I realized it probably wasn’t the best idea to bring up me fighting.

“You did what?” Oh fuck me. I began backing up, but she locked me in place with her magic. “Trixie’s family was an utter Tartarus thanks to an alcoholic mother and you’re telling her you want to get drunk whenever you want?”

“Well, when you say it like that I sound like a complete asshole.” Ah.. just... damn it me... Maybe I should be a mute. “Um... Not whenever I want... just... not never.”

“Because getting drunk and picking a fight with an alicorn is such a smart idea,” she snarled. “You can drink, but you will not get drunk.”

“I didn’t pick that fight, she swung at me first,” I answered defensively and all I got in response was a very, very, very evil glare. “Look... Trixie... If you don’t want me drink then ask... but you’re ordering me. I’m trying to be nice about this, but you know my views on gryphon females. I’m never just going to bend over for you like that.”

Trixie opened her mouth, only to close it. Then the anger just went out of her as did the magic holding me down, allowing me to stand back up. We stood there, gazing at each other silently before Trixie finally broke it.

“Then please, don’t get drunk. Trixie is...” She looked off to the side and spat it out as though it was venom, “Trixie is asking you. Nicely. She even said ‘please’.”

I smirked. “Well seeing as you said it so nicely.” After an awkward pause I added, “Trix... I get that your mom was an alcoholic, and I’ll remember that every time I pick up a bottle, but I’m not her. I can control myself. It’s not like I’m the self-destructive type anyway.” After a second I added. “Also, we don’t have kids. I’m not going to hurt anyone by drinking.”

“Trixie is just... You won’t hurt me? Promise?” The pleading look in her eyes scared me a little bit. I’ve never seen Trixie beg. I gave myself a mental smack, now’s not the time to be scared.

“I swear. If it ever comes to that...It’ll never come to that.” I took out my knife. “I can make blood oath here and now that I’ll never hurt you like that.”

“Please no.” Trixie looked green. “Trixie trusts you enough to not require that.”

I paused. “Trixie, are you afraid of the sight of blood?” I danced the knife over my knuckles and flipped it before lightly catching it by the blade. If anything, that just made her look as though she was about to throw up right then and there. “I’ll take that as a yes.” I put the knife back in my sheath. “How are you going to deal with me hunting? I do need meat you know.”

“Dead meat doesn’t bleed, though don’t expect any kisses unless you’ve brushed your... er... beak...?” She suddenly blushed red and looked away.

I laughed. Okay, Trixie was adorable when flustered. I was starting to warm up to this. Not that it wasn’t a bad idea. “Who said anything about dead meat? It’s not like I can just buy from a supermarket. I have a hunting and fishing license for a reason.”

She glared at me. “Unless you plan on dragging a living animal into the house and slaughter it there, Trixie doubts she’ll see it. Just keep it outside.”

“Aren’t we both homeless and traveling?” I asked. “What house is there for me to drag it into?”

“Just keep it outside!” she yelled as she turned her head and made a gagging sound before a shudder ran through her body. “Trixie is not afraid of anything, but blood makes her... uncomfortable.”

“Ponies...” I shook my head. “Alright, fine. I’ll keep it where you won’t see it.”

“Thank you.” She blushed yet again, but quickly turned away. “We should start getting back.”

“Yeah you’re right. Much as I’d love to never see that little bitch again, we sort of need her.”

I turned and began walking back in the direction we’d come from. It took me a few steps, before I realized that we’d just been setting the boundaries of our relationship... Fuck. If I wanted to back out without hurting her feelings, now was a bit late.

We walked in silence for a while. It wasn’t an awkward silence, just that we’d ended the conversation.

After a while I broke it. “So, Trix... Any reason you blushed when I said I’ll keep it outside?”

“Trixie did not blush! How dare you say such filth about such a magnificent mare?” After a long silence of me just staring at her as though she was an idiot, she dropped the act. “Trixie was thinking of other things. Nothing of importance.”

I grinned. “‘Other things’? Yeah, I have a tendency to make anyone around me think of ‘other things’. What can I say...” I swished my tail. “I get that reaction.”

Eyes wide, her face could have been an apple with how bloody red it was. “Not that! Trixie wasn’t thinking of that! Trixie was just pondering the mechanics of a muzzle to beak kiss was all!” All of a sudden she realized what she had said and she clamped her hooves over her muzzle, but the damage was already done.

I grinned viciously. “Hmm? That was the ‘other things’ I was referring to. Why, what did you think I meant?”

“Trixie- I- You- But!... And yet- Argh! You drive Trixie insane!” She stomped off in a huff.

“I drive you wild don’t I?” I called after her. “It’s okay, you’re not the first. It’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”

“Argh!”

“Yeah, you keep screaming!” I shouted and flapped my wings to catch up.

I landed next to her and she huffed, her face redder than my insides. I chuckled as I walked alongside her. Okay, so maybe emotions didn’t suck quite so hard. I mean, who knows. Yeah this is doomed to end badly, but maybe it’ll be fun while it lasts.

Chapter 11

It was oddly silent in their little, dinky, musty basement. To think I’d actually miss that gryphon’s brash personality or even that useless unicorn’s loud mouth. They were annoying enough to make me want to kill myself, but it was better than sitting here with nothing to do. There weren’t even any drinks left for me to indulge in. Stupid companions! How dare they leave me alone.

“As long as I’m around, you’re never alone.”

Correction, how dare they leave me alone with a sociopath.

“You say that as though you’re not a sociopath yourself.”

“Shut up,” I growled into the oppressive silence. “We art nothing like you.”

“Is that so?” Her silhouette appeared before me and I scrambled back, trying to get away from it. “And yet, I seem to recall a certain little filly blackmailing Gilda into joining her expedition, which might I add, was pulled off with exquisite skill. Really went all out on the tyrant and fish out of temporal water didn’t you?”

“S-Silence!” My blast of magic sailed harmlessly through her. “Dost thou truly believe we shalt fall for thy tricks? We fell for such words once, and we swore an oath to never let thy serpentine tongue affect me again.”

“Really?” Nightmare took a step forward and I flinched back as though struck. “You really are deluded aren’t you? We are not so dissimilar, you and I. Thou art I and I art thou. I was born from your subconscious, given shape through your desires and wishes. I do what you are too afraid to do. I am what you repress and hide from everypony, all that fear and sadness and anger and wrath.”

“Silence! Thou lies will not cloud us any more! We are not the same and we shalt never be the same. Thou art a sociopath, a monster, a creature so vile that being locked in Tartarus would be a blessing.” Though the entire room buckled under my magical might, Nightmare stood there as calm as always.

“You do not remember do you?” Her sad whisper gave me pause. “Aurora... thou dost not remember Aurora. Our precious Aurora...”

“Who?” I tilted my head to the side, but Nightmare was simply dissolved into nothingness. “A-Aurora? Who is this ‘Aurora’ thou speak'st of?”

Silence.

“Answer us!”

The entire ground shook from the sudden discharge or magic, but all was silent. Nary a creak as the dust rained down upon me. I managed to stand on my own two hooves for a split second before I collapsed once more. Every fiber of my being screamed out at me, but I ignored it all as I rearranged myself into a more comfortable position. Was this what it felt like to be mortal? To have such limited powers? A little explosion and my font was completely drained of magic. How pathetically weak.

“Hey! What is the meaning of that? How dare you cut of Trixie’s luxurious tail!” Oh, they were back. “Just because you are jealous of Trixie’s natural beauty.”

“That thing almost cut us in half, and you’re worried about your tail? Priorities Trix. You don’t have them.”

“What did you expect from that idiot?” I glared at the two of them. “And what kept you two so long?”

“You’re calling her an idiot when your plan to save Equestria was starting a war with the Gryphon Kingdom?” Gilda smirked. “At least Trixie can actually hold a conversation; you don’t even get half the phrases anyone uses.”

“Truth be told, We are surprised that you did not run for the nearest border,” I shot back. “No doubt the thought has crossed thy mind.”

“Nah. Those were the Red Tip mountain ranges. We were days from any kind of civilization, and at least a month from the Equestrian border. Aviana’s closer to the border anyway,” replied Gilda.

“So thou did consider it.” I sighed. “To think citizens of Equestria would turn their back on their nation so easily.”

“You’re not my nation. A nation is its populace, not its leader. Plus, you’re not even the leader of Equestria.” She paused and added, “I’m so fuckin-”

Trixie touched Gilda’s arm and shook her head slightly. For a split second, it looked as though Gilda was about to finish her sentence, but in the end she simply sighed.

“Whatever,” she muttered. “I didn’t pick that fight, she just can’t deal with it when I don’t take her shit.”

Curious and curiouser. There was something that I had not been privy too. A discussion of some sort. Perhaps... Nay, that was too improbable to even be a possibility. Nonetheless, it was a change in their interaction, and that required me to monitor it closely. Such changes often threw wrenches in plans, I believe the modern saying is.

“If thou art done, we must discuss what happens next.” I tapped the map before me. “We require thy assistance. With the number of changes both topographically and naming, it hath been less than fruitful.”

“Firstly, no duh dumbass. Do you even know where you want to go? Secondly, why the fuck would I help you? I just want to take Trixie and go home, and that has shit all to do with chasing up whatever half formed idea Nightmare dragged from Teotore’s head.”

“There are more of those creatures and test chambers.” I tossed a pile of notes onto the desk. “The Wide Eyes have changed their code, but We managed to decode enough of it to get that much. Why is another question entirely, but we must stop them.”

Gilda snorted, but her eyes darted to the notes. “I spent half my life avoiding the Wide Eyes. Why the heck would I go chasing them with you?”

“Thou desires monsters to roam the countryside at will?” My hoof slammed down on the table, splintering it in half. “We locked those creatures up in Tartarus for a reason!”

Pause.

“Oh. Buck,” I whispered.

“Tartarus?” Gilda repeated. “Tartarus? As in... the pit of eternal evil that I use as fucking curse...? I think you might have to explain some shit now. Particularly, what in the flying fuck has Tartarus got to do with this?”

I tried to back up, but Trixie managed to catch me with her magic, and thanks to Nightmare, I had none left to break the bonds. Nonetheless, I struggled against them, trying to forget about the familiar feeling of a collar around my neck, but there was nothing I could do. The two of them merely stood there dispassionately as they stared me down. There was no way to get out of this without telling them what I knew or waiting for a day at least for my magic to recharge.

Gilda’s claw covered her knife. “Trix, I know you don’t like blood, but... I could get her to talk if you’re okay with it.”

“No.” The unicorn looked up and whispered something that I couldn’t quite catch.

After a second Gilda sighed and took her claw from her knife. “We might have to, I mean... Tartarus, Trix? That’s something we need to know about if it’s involved.”

I simply kept watching under a hooded gaze.

“We need to know,” agreed Trixie, “but not like this. We will not stoop to such levels. Plus, the Great and Powerful Trixie’s aura is enough to scare the truth out of her.”

Gilda snorted. “Luna, tell us what this has to do with Tartarus, or with or without Trixie’s permission, I’m gonna hurt you so fucking bad that you’re gonna regret being immortal.” Her eyes were hard, and I was very aware she was not lying. She glanced over at the unicorn. “Sorry Trix, but this is one of those things that I put on the keeping you safe list.”

Are they idiots? Whatever.

“If thou art done, We would gladly explain.” Their surprised look only made me smirk. “We do not remember everything, but Tartarus did not always exist. Some time before our banishment, monsters began appearing and so We buried the entire valley and created a powerful enchantment to keep it all at bay. That location now lies deep beneath the Nightmare Plains.”

Gilda and Trixie stared at me, their faces somewhere between shock and incomprehension.

After a while, Gilda spoke. “Well, I don’t know about you Trix, but if that’s true... I say we get the fuck back to Equestria right now. Like... right now, now...”

“If what she said is true, what happens if they decide to use it as a weapon?” said Trixie and my eyes widened. Of course! They hadn’t figured out how to get the magic, but as a weapon? It would be second to none. Oblivious to my reaction, Trixie continued on, “If they deployed it in Equestria, the outfall would be catastrophic.”

“What?” Gilda turned to stare at Trixie. “No! Don’t tell me you’re thinking of getting us anymore caught up in this crap!’

“Equestria is my home you know...”

Gilda shook her head. “Look, there’s no way in... Tartarus...” She frowned and shook her head. “Whatever! There’s no way the Wide Eyes would set that off in Equestria. Our countries are allies, and the Kingdom’s economy is pretty much entirely based off Equestrian imports and trade cuts. That’s the way it’s been for years, Equestria bails out the Kingdom’s fucking awful economy, and the Kingdom fucks up anyone that thinks of invading Equestria. If the Wide Eyes were to go and attack Equestria, they’d get nothing out of it. I mean, the entire Kingdom’s dependent on Equestria. Like half the Wide Eye's job is keeping Equestria safe!”

Trixie continued to look troubled, but nodded slowly. “Trixie supposes that if any gryphon would know, it would be you. But what Trixie really wants to know is what else you are hiding from us, Luna.” Her gaze drifted to me. “You know about the experiments, but how do you even know about how it’s related to Tartarus? Well?”

“Trix has a point. Back in the temple, Nightmare seemed to think you knew more than she did. Plus, you’re dodgy as fuck and I don’t need any more reason to doubt you than I already do.”

I gave them my most reassuring smile, but that only caused their glares to deepen and for them to step forward. Oh dear, this was not going to end well.

“Well... Nightmare Moon is responsible for the experiments and they may have led to the formation of her army and Tartarus and...” I made circular motions with my hoof.

“What!? I did not such thing!”

Gilda stared at me, her face set in a frown. “Luna, blaming Nightmare sounds kinda easy to me. I mean, if Nightmare’s responsible, why bother keeping it a secret?”

“We are already marginalized as is. If it were known that Tartarus was real and that Nightmare Moon created it, that would transfer to us,” I snapped. “We would rather not be ostracized any further.”

Gilda shrugged. “...Well, to be honest I don’t give a fuck either way. Whether you’re full of crap or not, I just want out. I mean, I can just ask Nightmare next time she gets out, and she’d probably just tell me. I doubt she’s worried about ruining your reputation.”

“Trixie will have you know a reputation is an important thing,” commented the unicorn. “Important enough to protect zealously.”

“Alright whatever. I just don’t give a fuck what anyone thinks. Look, it doesn’t matter. When it turns out Tartarus is real and I’m sharing a room with the pony that made it, then fuck it. I’m bailing.”

Trixie opened her mouth to say something, only to immediately shut it again. “How about a compromise? We go with her to check out this secret lab and if it is not directed at Equestria, we leave again.”

“And what if Nightmare gets loose and kills everything in sight? I mean, if she knows we’re just gonna ditch anyway, she might decide witnesses are something she doesn’t need. I mean, yeah I cut Luna’s spine, but I’m not too proud to call that a one off. If Nightmare came after me, I’d be fucked.”

“You did what?” Trixie seemed oddly calm about this. “Why is Trixie not surprised about that?”

Gilda replied defensively. “Hey, she was strangling me! You can’t seriously blame me for that can you?”

“I just did,” snapped Trixie. “You severed her spine!”

“Look at her, she’s fine.” Gilda pointed at me. “Other than being a filly and magically drained she’s the picture of health.”

“You still severed her spine! What kind of normal gryphon severs spines in their free time? Let me guess, you were drunk at the time.” She paused as Gilda tried to give her best innocent expression. “You were. You were bucking drunk.”

“Half drunk. I only got full drunk after I won the fight.”

“You were drunk,” said Trixie disbelieving as she facehoofed. “Why did I agree to trust you again? Trixie needs a drink.”

“Hey, that’s not fair! I didn’t start that fight, and I was clear headed enough to win it anyway. Besides, I had good reason to be drinking. Me and booze is not a problem.”

“And yet We found you in jail because of thy drunken brawling,” I commented.

Gilda’s eyes widened and she looked at me in absolute horror. She glanced over at Trixie, whose eye was twitching, before turning her gaze back to me. “Oh you su-”

“Gilda...” For some odd reason, Trixie’s sweet voice only caused the gryphon to back up in fear. “Is what Luna said true? You were in jail because of your drunken antics?”

“Not... strictly.” she swallowed. “Technically, I was in jail for assault.”

“T’was quite impressive really.” I added as I examined my hoof. “Alone, she broke the bones of five different ponies in one fight. Not bad for a drunken unarmed mortal.”

Trixie’s eyes twitched. Then slowly, very, very slowly, she turned to face Gilda. “Please remind Trixie again she should trust you and your drinking again?”

Gilda swallowed. “Because... I … can control myself?” She gave Trixie a desperate smile. “Hey, no one got really badly hurt. I was careful. They’ll be back to work in a month... or two months for that earth pony... or... um...”

It was difficult to control my laughter as I watched Gilda founder for a reply.

“No more drinking. For a month if you are lucky,” announced Trixie. “Got that?”

Gilda opened her beak and closed it. She glanced at Trixie nervously before adding, “But it’s my birthday in two weeks.”

There was a pause then Trixie leaned in close and whispered something in Gilda’s ear.

Gilda jumped away from Trixie suddenly. “Okay, okay woah...” She blinked at Trixie in surprise. “Really?” she asked, her voice incredulous.

Trixie’s mane hid her face so I couldn’t see what she was doing, but Gilda apparently had a perfect view.

She grinned. “Well I guess I can go for that... Alright, sure. No drinking.” She ruffled her feathers and glared at me. “Anyway, we’re still leaving right? Or do you really want to go to White Peak?”

“White Peak. If she’s telling the truth...” A shudder ran through Trixie’s body. “If it has nothing to do with Equestria then we can leave.”

“Unless Luna agrees to drop us back at the border, then that’s another month's travel.”

I rolled my eyes. “Very well. We shall teleport thee back to Canterlot.”

Trixie glanced at Gilda who sighed. “Fine, but I’m telling you, there’s no risk to Equestria, and there’s the chance that Luna’s just gonna cut our throats when she’s done... I mean, national secrets and all.”

“Don’t worry, the Great and Powerful Trixie will protect you from the wittle filly.”

Gilda snorted. “I’d point out I’m the one who took her on in a fight, when you got knocked out in the first five seconds. You giving me shit for that’s a bit backwards.”

“Well... shut up,” huffed Trixie.

“Nice comeback.” Gilda rolled her eyes. “Look, I’ll do what you want to, but I really think it’s a bad idea to go to White Peak.”

Trixie paused before she answered. “Trixie would like to be certain that Equestria is safe. She would not be comfortable returning when her home and country might be at risk.”

Gilda sighed. “Alright then... Luna?” she turned to me. “I swear I’m gonna end you if you get us killed.”

“Likewise,” I replied as I returned everything to my pack. “Then let us leave. Lead the way.”

“To where? We still don’t have a good idea of where we’re going.” Gilda shook her head. “Nuh. We’re going to have a good long talk about what you know, what we’re actually going to do when we get there, and how you know what you know. I’m not letting us dive into this blind like you love doing.”

“Very well.” A pile of notes were tossed onto the table. “These are the notes We gathered from the laboratory. From what We have translated, there is another facility near White Hills-”

“White Peak,” Gilda interrupted.

“We care not what it is called. It is located in some abandoned mines of some description.”

“Well that’s vague to say the bloody least.” Gilda muttered. “There’s gotta be a thousand abandoned mines in that area left over from before we started relying on Equestrian imports. Do you know anything that will actually help us find the place?”

“It is in the notes and We figured that there would be more clues once we reached there,” I replied with a shrug.

“Uh huh. You just assumed you’ll stumble across a Wide Eyes secret facility? You were just gonna wander into a giant region, in the hopes of just finding more ‘clues’ leading you to a top secret facility ran by the most effective intelligence force on this continent?” She shook her head. “Do I need to tell you what wrong with that?”

“Find more clues? There are names in that document and we have had practice making unwilling participants talk.” I examined my hoof. “There will be no hope involved.”

Gilda faceclawed. “You are so fucking dumb... How the fuck were you ever a strategist! I could spend the next hour, telling you everything wrong with that plan. Why it wouldn’t work, why it would let the Wide Eyes know you’re coming, and why a unicorn wandering around near the changeling border might raise a few questions when they’re already on the lookout for ponies. But instead, I’m going to save time and patience with this. You.” She jabbed a claw at me. “Are.” Another jab. “Retarded.”

“Magic.” I sighed. “In case thou forgot, We can wipe minds. We can torture without leaving marks. We can implant fake memories. The only idiot here is thee.”

“Wow, just... just wow. I could not have put it any better.” A slow clap echoed through my mind. “I am proud of you. To think you were capable of such evil.”

“Shut up! Thy words are mere lies designed to confuse us and bring us under thy control”

“Then why is Trixie currently throwing up and Gilda looking at you like a monster?”

“What? They are not-” I paused mid rant as I stared at the scene before me.

“Okay... that’s fucked up. Not only wouldn’t it work, but seriously... What the fuck is wrong with you?” Gilda was glaring down at me with disgust and hate. “How the fuck are you any better than Nightmare?”

“N-No! Thou art wrong! Wrong!” I looked over at Trixie, but she merely shrunk back from my gaze. “Our methods are tried and true. We won wars and gained unmatched intelligence through these methods! Illusion magic, slip in, kidnap, mind read, rewire memory. We are... we are-”

“A complete fucking monster?” Gilda shook her head. “You can justify anything if you try hard enough. Here’s a good question, does it matter what your reasons are?” She glared at me. “Fucking Tartarus. As far as I can tell, you know what the difference between you and Nightmare is? At least Nightmare won’t use shit like that as a first fucking resort!”

“And how many wars did Nightmare win!?” I screamed. “We fought wars. We won wars. We protected Equestria while Celestia hid behind her morals and righteousness. W-”

“She ‘hid’ behind her morals?’” Gilda repeated. “Do you even hear yourself! Can you even see how fucking selfish you are?” She shook her head. “Holy shit, dude.”

“We could not let Equestria die! What choice did We have?” I looked over at Trixie, but she still could not meet my eyes.

“Celestia managed to make a fucking paradise without resorting to mind wiping and mental torture! Have you noticed how fucking perfect Equestria is? Obviously you had a choice!”

“Only because We struck fear in their souls!” I growled. “The dragons still tell tales of how We rained fire upon their heads. The changelings still tell stories about me! It was us who made them realize how powerful alicorn’s were. Without us they would have invaded whilst We were gone!”

Gilda shook her head. “You’re bragging Luna! Bragging about how scared they were of you! You don’t care about anyone, do you? You’re proud of yourself aren’t you?” She shoved me, and I stumbled back. “Inside your head, you’re proud that you did what you ‘had to’.” Her head tilted to the side. “Is it even a moral issue for you? Are you even worried about it at all? I bet you had a really fucking great time hearing what those dragons had to say about you. Crouching quietly and smiling to yourself as a brood mother warned its children about the fucking Nightmare god of Equestria! Don’t pretend you’re some kind of misunderstood hero. You’re a selfish goddess damn filly who’s every bit as sadistic as Nightmare!”

“We did what We had to!” Even to my ears my defense sounded weak. “We... We had to do it. Don’t you see? It was-”

“A good excuse?” Gilda cut across me. “All the reason you needed? Fuck you, Luna.”

“What would thou have us do!? Does thou think We wanted to be in war every day?”

“I didn’t know you back then, but from what I see now? Yes. Yes I fucking do Luna!”

“Gilda...” Trixie placed a hoof on the gryphon’s shoulder, but she shrugged it off.

“No! She needs to fucking hear this, Trix.” The gryphon turned back to me. “You love doing what you ‘have to do,’ don’t you?” Her claw went to her knife. “I would kill you before I let you take the throne! I could not fucking live with myself if I sat and watched you run Equestria into the fucking ground!”

“Then what should We do?” I whispered. “All our life We hath spent at war. What do We do? We want... We want to be a good leader, but We know nothing beyond killing.”

Gilda just stared at me. “Are you really asking me?”

“Trixie agrees. Gilda is probably the last person you should ask.”

“Then who? Who else has an inkling of knowledge about what it is like to be us?” I asked. “Thou hast seen our memories. Thou art as broken as us.”

Gilda snorted. “I fucking hope not. If I was as broken as that...” She shook her head. “Shit.” She glared at me. “How about Nightmare? She’s basically you Luna. Why the fuck can’t you talk to her about it? Or get some help from Celestia, or... something? There’s no way in Tartarus I can teach you about leadership.”

“Oh yes, tell thy guilt ridden sister that the reason We art unable to integrate back into society is because We were at war for every second of our life. She was already troubled by that a thousand years ago. There is no need to bring back further bad memories,” I snapped.

“Do you think she doesn’t know already?” Gilda asked. “Do you really think that someone who’s lived for a thousand years and seen more ponies live and breathe and die than I can count, doesn’t know what’s wrong with her sister? Grace knew what was wrong with me after six years, and he’s not a fucking goddess.”

“Said goddess missed Nightmare Moon,” I replied.

“It’s one thing to know your sister’s troubled, another thing to know she’s hiding a second personality. Honestly, would it really be that easy for her to tell you’re worried about your past, and you’re worried about Nightmare, apart from each other?”

“Thou would think hiding a second personality is more difficult,” I muttered under my breath.

“Not if it wants to stay hidden,” Gilda replied. “Aren’t you just doing what Nightmare wants by keeping her a secret?”

“We... We do not wish to be banished again,” I whispered.

“What happened to ‘do what you had to do’? If Nightmare can possess you and your powers at any time, isn’t what you ‘have to do’ take the manticore by the tail and deal with potential banishment? Not even guaranteed banishment, potential.” She pointed a claw at me. “You’re a selfish fucking filly Luna.”

“But... But...” To my surprise, I felt a pair of hooves wrap around my neck and looking up, there was Trixie, holding me close to her side.

“Trix, what are you doing?” Gilda asked, sounding as confused as I felt.

“You will shut up,” said Trixie in an oddly cold voice. “While Trixie may not like Luna, and while Trixie believes the Princess deserved to hear that, that is enough. Just look at her, Gilda. Just look at what you’ve reduced her down to. That’s enough.”

Gilda looked at me, and there must have been something in my eyes as I stared back at her. Sympathy flashed through her eyes, but it was soon replaced with a taut jaw and a glare.

“Whatever. It’s about damn time somebody did it.”

“Yes, it is, but any more would be too cruel.” She brushed my mane lightly and I instinctively leaned into it. It had been so long since someone had held me. In the back of my mind, I could feel Nightmare calling for somepony. Crying out a name, but I ignored it.

Gilda sighed and rolled her eyes, though her posture relaxed and she seemed less confrontational. “Whatever.”

“You okay?” Trixie whispered in my ear.

I took a shaky breath, but nodded in reply as I slowly climbed onto my hooves. There was a bit of rustling as I adjusted my wings and shook off the worst of Gilda’s words, but even then, I could hear the taunting echoing in my mind. I looked up at the gryphon and gazed straight into her eyes.

“A thousand years ago, thou would have lost thy head before thou were even halfway through thy first sentence.” She stiffened and Trixie seemed ready to kill, but I held out a hoof. “But it is not a thousand years ago and much hast changed. We would greatly appreciate it if thou wouldst be willing to help us adjust. Much hast changed and We hath been living in the past, clinging desperately to what We once knew.”

Gilda stared at me for a while, her eyes set in thought. “I don’t want anything to do with you. I want to take Trix and go home and pretend this never fucking happened. What you’re asking me isn’t something I can just say yes to and do. It’d take time and actual effort from both me and you. And like I’ve said, do you really think that I can teach you that? I’m probably the worst possible example of what normal life in Equestria is.”

Trixie snorted. “Better than some of the scum Trixie has had the displeasure of dealing with. You may be rough around the edges, but you’re decent enough underneath it all.”

Gilda snorted and shook her head with a wry smile. “There’s a reason I haven’t told you much about myself...” she trailed off. “Alright then Trix. If you both think that I’m really the one to do it, and I’m gonna travel with you, then why not?” She shrugged.

“Ha! Trixie never said you’d be the only one helping out, for that would be a foalish thing, and the Great and Powerful Trixie is anything but foalish.” Gilda just stared at the showmare as though she was insane. “Why, with the Great and Powerful Trixie helping out, you shall be a greater ruler than Celestia!”

Gilda just shook her head. “Holy fuck... between the two of us there’s no way this couldn’t end horribly. We’re like... heck, anti-normal training or something.”

“Good thing We are not normal then,” I replied in a soft voice.

“Oh come on! Naysayers! You two are naysayers! Where’s the fun in being normal? Normal ponies don’t get to travel the world. Normal ponies don’t get to go on adventures. Normal ponies don’t inspire others! Being normal is no fun. Trixie says to Tartarus with being normal and Trixie knows all.”

Gilda laughed. “Yeah, but normal ponies don’t kill anyone... ever. Let alone before they’re legally allowed to drink.” She paused and added. “Not that I waited till I was eighteen to drink. Thirteen.” She shook her head and sighed. “A lot of firsts for me that night.”

“Thirteen...” Trixie looked off into the distance, a frown on her brow. “Ah yes, Trixie was almost eaten by a timberwolf when she was twelve. You will have to do better than that to beat the Great and Powerful One.”

Gilda stared at her with an eyebrow raised. She shrugged and added, “How about a manticore hunt when I was ten? I wasn’t alone, but still. Ten for your first big game isn’t bad.”

“Burnt down a library at that age,” replied Trixie as she fixed the gryphon with a defiant stare. “And that doesn’t count, you weren’t alone. At that age Trixie had already travelled from one edge of Equestria to the other.”

“Really?” Gilda asked looking surprised. “Alright, how about killing a full grown buck when I was eight. Alone too. Luck more than anything, but I’m proud to say I dragged that sucker back myself. Pelt was ruined, meat was fucked, and I got the lecture of a lifetime from Calisto, but he still mounted those antlers on his wall.”

“Well Trixie had... er...”

“Well,” I interrupted, “Celestia and I have defeated the embodiment of chaos itself.”

They both stared at me for a moment, until Gilda broke the silence. “Goddesses fucking suck,” she muttered and turned away disgustedly. “Ruin bloody everything.”

“Well, Trixie earned the title of Great and Powerful when she was ten!” yelled the showmare before taking half a step back as we just stared at her. “What?”

Gilda opened her beak and shut it. After a second she just said, “Nothing Trix. Not a fucking thing.”

“We have been wondering, why dost thou call her ‘Trix’?” I tilted my head to the side. “Are such abbreviations of names acceptable in society these days?”

“Uh... Well if you’re friends with someone then sure... It’s not always, you know, appropriate or whatever, but really, when am I ever appropriate?” She paused and was about to say something more when Trixie interrupted.

“On that note, do not copy Gilda’s speaking patterns. Ever. And furt-”

“Gee, thanks Trix.”

“You’re welcome. As Trixie was suggesting, keep speaking as you have. Keep using that old dialect, except maybe dial it back a bit.” Gilda just looked at the show mare as though she was insane. “What? Being a Princess is merely manipulating the audience, just at a national level. Speaking in such a manner makes her endearing and adorable in the eyes of the public, which would definitely help.”

“But Celly said-”

“You asked for help right?” Trixie cocked an eyebrow at me. “And Trixie is telling you, keep speaking as you have been. At least until the press calm down a bit.”

Gilda shrugged. “Uh... yeah. I guess Trixie would know more about that than I would. I guess it wouldn’t be good if you spoke or acted like me.” She paused and added. “Though it would be completely fucking hilarious if you got up for a press conference or whatever and just said ‘Go fuck yourselves.’”

“Gilda...” That warning tone was back in Trixie’s voice.

Gilda sighed and rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Just… don’t do that. It’d be awesome but... just don’t do it.”

“We have heard of this... ‘awesome’ by guards in passing and they have spoken about it in much the same reverence as thou does. So why would thou tell us not to do such an act when it would be, ah, ‘awesome’ as thou puts it.”

Gilda stared at me for a moment before she broke into snickers. “Oh fuck... Me? Teaching Luna? Equestria’s doomed.” She turned and walked over to the pile of notes I’d left. “I’m gonna start decoding these. Trix, why don’t you... try to start explaining just how much is wrong with me.”

There was a pause as I gazed expectantly at Trixie. After a long paused filled with muffled curses and leafing of pages, Trixie finally said, “Everything.”

Gilda glanced up from her work. “Hey, that’s not true. I’m not saying I’m perfect or even alright, but ‘everything’? There’s gotta be some way that I’m socially acceptable.”

Once more silence descended as Trixie tried to think of an answer, only to come up with, “Nope. Everything.”

“You suck.” Gilda muttered as she turned back to her papers. “You didn’t even bother thinking about your answer, did you?” She said with a frown on her face as she began comparing two pages.

“Of course not,” came the reply without a hint of hesitation.

Was this... was this what friendship was? This bickering and back and forth banter full of insults that would have provoked a war a thousand years ago? How quaint. When Celly told me there had been no wars for a thousand years I had thought she was lying, but if such words could pass between two individuals with no consequences, then perhaps...

“Hey Trix. I stashed some notes from the lab in your pockets. Give ‘em here would you?” She settled on glancing between three different sheets. The pile of wet and dirty notes soon found themselves floating over to Gilda obediently as we gathered around her.

Gilda looked at the pile of dirty notes and sighed. “At least the ink didn’t run,” she muttered as she carefully examined them.

“So? Anything of interest?” I asked as I peered at the scribbles she had added. It was a shame I couldn’t read them, but the mere that fact she could translate so much more than me was curious indeed. Perhaps next time Nightmare was out, I’d let her ruffle through Gilda’s thoughts a bit to see wha-

No!

No. No, I would not do that. That was not how things were done anymore. No mind magic. No killing and no torture. By the stars! How did they manage to get anything done?

“Yeah... you’re right. These notes were headed to White Peak.” She tapped one part of the note, which as far as I could tell was a series of letters and numbers. “The facility's blacklisted, so we’re not gonna find it any public directory’s, but we have the mine’s name and general area. If we get a map of the region I’ll be able to figure out where it is... But, some seriously big names are in here. Heck, Teotore was being kept in the dark on this one, and he’s the highest ranked Wide Eyes in the capital.” She shook her head. “As far as I can tell, this is a Black Eyes only club.”

“Name of the mine is blacklisted as well,” I commented absent mindedly as I skimmed through the extra pages. “Implied on page two of Trixie’s documents and it’s not on any of the maps that we bought before our expedition.”

Gilda snorted. “I wasn’t just gonna check the map for a place named Anacleto Mines. Oh, that’s the name of the mine by the way. Nah, the maps would just help me figure it out, you know, narrow down our options.”

With a simple nod, I drew up the maps and spread them out before us. “They would want a secure location, easily defendable, but also easy to collapse to hide the evidence if necessary. Somewhere close so frequent coming and goings would not be amiss, but not so close that suspicious activity would be noticed. That rules out these three mines.” Large red crosses appeared on the map.

“Yeah, but you’re forgetting one thing. Changelings. Their territory has expanded since this map was written, so unless they want a massive military claw in this, I’d cut this half of the map. Uh... put a cross on every mine west of-”

“Wait.” Both Gilda and I looked at Trixie in surprise. “You said something is going down right? And Nightmare Moon managed to get something about testing this stuff out of Teotore’s head didn’t she? And Trixie assumes gryphons hate changelings, so...”

Gilda frowned. “I guess that’s a possibility. So, if they’re snatching changelings then they’d want somewhere fairly close to a hive’s outskirts...” She paused and tapped one part of the map. “This is a good candidate. Assuming they really are kidnapping the bugs.”

“Hm... It is close to the lake which means a simply explosion could flood the entire facility.” My eyes widened. “Oh no. No!”

Gilda’s eyes narrowed on me.

“Fuck!” Once more our attention snapped towards Trixie who was staring at the map intensely. “If they flood the place and the chemical gets into the lake, then it will affect everything downstream won’t it? Three villages, two towns and a small sized city if they all rely on the lake and river as their water source. That’s what you were thinking, wasn’t it?”

I simply nodded and Gilda sighed. “You guys are being retarded. The Wide Eyes aren’t just going to randomly kill Kingdom citizens, especially not a freaking city.”

“Of course they won’t,” I replied. “But can thou say the same for the changelings? All it takes is a single Wide Eyes to be captured, one of the little bugs to take his form, and then...”

Gilda snorted. “You think they don’t know that? A facility like this would take months to make, so they’ve been here for a while and nothing’s gone wrong. Any Wide Eye I know would kill themselves before they got captured.”

“Thou makes it sound like they have a choice. While thy confidence in them is refreshing, it is far from the truth. We have captured many Wide Eyes in the past and We have defeated even more. Though We loathe to say it, we fear no nation surpasses the changelings in subterfuge and ambushes.”

“Let me put it this way: What I’m hear you saying is you think the three of us are somehow more capable and prepared to deal with this than a government backed intelligence force that’s been doing this for longer than I’ve been born. And the Wide Eyes are different from the clansmen of a thousand years ago. They’re no longer the pack of primitives wandering around outside clan borders to just keep an eye on things.”

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. Deep calming breaths, seven seconds in, hold, seven seconds to exhale. Rinse and repeat. It was only once the calmness settled in that I opened my eyes once more. In the back of my mind, I could feel Nightmare watching on silently, just as curious as the two before me were.

“Thou may doubt our abilities, but We can assure thee, they are nothing, but insignificant ants in our eyes.” For the first time since coming back, I felt at ease. “Gilda? Outside, now. We shall show you what a goddess is capable of.”

Gilda blinked. “Dude, this isn’t... You don’t need to prove to me how big your horn is, or how fast you can fly.”

“And yet We tire of thy doubts. We are as capable in this task, perhaps more so than any being that has ever lived. Some prefer long drawn out wars, others prefer to hide behind their morals. Thou call us ‘Monster’ for the tactics we employed and yet our tactics brought us victory.”

“You say you’re the best, but you signed your own fucking passport didn’t you?” Gilda shook her head. “I’ve yet to see anything that makes you seem like a barely decent strategist let alone the master you claim to be.”

I sighed sadly. “We got into the capital, managed to get information out of Teotore’s head, destroyed their main laboratory, and escaped. They are unable to instigate anything because as far as Celestia knows, we randomly vanished off the face of the planet just after passing through the border and is no doubt panicking over my location. They wished for us to help in their endeavors which meant the Wide Eyes probably never informed Celestia of my whereabouts, therefore to blame the destruction on us would insinuate them in capturing us to begin with.”

She listed my points off on her claws. “You got arrested and taken to the capital, Nightmare got the information from Teotore, Nightmare destroyed the laboratory and escaped, and I doubt you planned any of it.” Gilda paused in thought. “Wait, they asked you to help in their research?”

“Yes.”

“So you really think that they weren’t prepared for the possibility they couldn’t trust you? You really think, that-”

With a roll of my eyes, I pulled out another stack of papers, easily twice the size of what we had before. “These are all the fake documents that they left planted around and thanks to Nightmare’s liberal use of mindreading, it was impossible to lie to us.”

Gilda opened her beak to speak again, but Trixie cut in. “So you’re telling us, that you’ve been working with Nightmare this entire time?”

“...That’s a good point Trix.” Gilda’s eyes narrowed on me.

What is it with me and putting my hoof in my mouth today?

“If thou prefers, We could have let Nightmare Moon slaughter the entire castle and then mind rape the king,” I shot back. “Without us guiding her actions, we would be dead by now. You two would most certainly be dead.”

Gilda glared at me. “I’m so fucking sick of your condescension and lies. When you make a mistake just fucking admit it! I was in Nightmare’s head! You don’t control her at all!”

“Control is not about forcing somepony to do thy every will!” I yelled back. “And to think to control Nightmare is stupidity itself. The most We can do is contain the damage she will cause and direct it. Dost thou truly wish to know what Nightmare had planned? She planned on slaughtering all the guards, reading the king’s mind and then leaving a crater where the castle stood!”

Gilda frowned and paced back and forth. “No. I saw her mind... She’s not just some mindless sadist. She has a goal, and things she wants and a plan. She enjoys fucking with people, but... It’s not what she wants out of this. She’s not a monster... But she is...” She sat on her haunches and put her claws to her head. “Ergh! The shit I saw is so confusing!” Her fist slammed into a wall, punching a hole in the rotten plaster. “Who the fuck is Aurora! What the bloody fuck has she got to do with me?!”

“Really?” I peered at her curious. I had thought that Nightmare had used false memories to confuse Gilda, but if Aurora was in there, that was highly unlikely. Whoever she was, she sounded important. “What else do thou remember?”

Gilda looked up, her head rising from her claws. “Why would I tell you that? It was Nightmare that stopped from you checking out all my memories. Least I can do is return the favor.”

“Except Nightmare is a monster,” I replied.

Gilda snorted. “Like I’ve said, and you’re not?”

“Right,” I looked away,“More of a monster then.”

Gilda sighed. “Fair point... The thing is...” she scratched her head confused. “Urgh...” she stood up and started pacing before she growled and screamed in frustration. “Fuck it. Those memories were personal, okay? They’re not... Look, if it was something I thought you should know then I’d tell you.”

“Private? As in it occurred during her reign?”

“I don’t know.” Gilda shrugged. “It’s just this... big bundle of emotions and images and sensations. There wasn’t any clear idea or pattern, just... I dunno. Ideas I guess. I’m not a unicorn, I’m not supposed to know anything about mind magic anyway.”

“We could always read thy mind and piece it together that way?” It was doubtful she’d allow it, but there was no harm in asking.

Her confused gaze settled into an angry glare. “If I’m not going to tell you it because it’s private, I’m not gonna show you it either. Especially not when last time you had a shot at my brain you made yourself at bloody home.”

“We did no such thing.”

Gilda just shook her head. “You’re full of shit. Nightmare had to help me drag you out of my head.”

“Or it could have been a ploy by Nightmare to get you to trust her.” An innocent smile found its way onto my face. “She is called ‘Nightmare Moon’ for a reason.”

“Hey! I resent that. Just because I have an evil sounding word in my name doesn’t make me evil. Plus, I have a rule against mind reading those I like.”

Gilda paused to think about that. “Nah, bullshit. Your mind wasn’t the same as hers. I could... ‘feel’... the difference.”

“And yet thou knows nothing about mind magic,” I replied.

“If Trixie may interrupt, shouldn’t we be getting a move on!?” She fixed us a glare. “Trixie finds this... housing arrangement less than satisfactory and would appreciate it if we could find somewhere else to stay. The sooner we get a move on, the sooner we can leave.”

Gilda nodded. “Yeah Trix has a point. Let’s just get this run to White Peak over with and go home.” She added, “Even if it is totally pointless.”

“It is not pointless,” I retorted as I began putting everything back into my saddlebag. “But very well.”

“So how are we getting out of here?” Gilda asked. “You don’t look like you’re up for a teleport.”

“We walk,” I snapped. “Thou can walk correct?”

Gilda paused. “Alright... I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you’re not retarded as fuck, and not tell you why that’s a dumb idea. I’m even going to be nice and guess that you were joking or being sarcastic or knew something I didn’t when you suggested we just ‘walk’ out of Aviana.”

“There is a class of magic known as ‘illusion magic’. Thou dost know this, correct?”

She rolled her eyes. “Fine then smart ass. Are you feeling up to casting an invisibility spell that will cover us from here to the edge of the city?” She paused and added. “Or a disguise or whatever spell it is you’re planning.”

“We were thinking disguise. Gryphon.” I eyed Gilda. “With thou as a male and us as your harem. Thy country still has harems correct?”

“W-What!? Trixie does not approve of this. Trixie is not anypony’s harem!”

Gilda spared her a glance but turned to me. “Yeah, harems are around, but thanks to Equestrian influence they’re not so common. And you’d need an audible adjustment to make me sound like a guy... Something with a north-eastern accent, maybe a White Beak? They still do harems.” She shrugged. “Why do you want me to be the guy anyway?”

“Thou knows thy culture, and thou hast the body for it.” Behind me, I heard Trixie snicker. “We will have less reason to speak and thus, less probable to be detected.”

“Trixie still hasn’t agreed to this!”

Gilda nodded at me and shrugged. “Okay, that makes sense I guess.” She tapped a claw to her beak. “How are you gonna disguise you and Trix? And what if they have anti-spell powders?”

“Illusion magic. It will not be perfect, but in the past we hath found it sufficient.” I paused and thought it over. “As for anti-spell powders, we do not give them a reason to use them.”

“How dare you ignore the Great and Powerful Trixie! If anything, Trixie should be the male. How dare you suggest Trixie should be part of a harem?”

Gilda continued, either failing to hear Trixie or not caring. “What can you do about speech? If we’re posing as a harem, we’ll need decent sounding accents. I mean, I can fake one, but I don’t sound like a guy, so that’s another problem.”

“Harem’s are there to be seen and enjoyed. There is no need for speech. Surely that is still the case?” I tilted my head quizzically.

“Well... yeah I guess, but I’d be coming off as a real douchebag. Some Great Scars can get real ‘white knight’ for an abused female.” She shrugged her shoulders. “And you still haven’t answered me. If I’m gonna do the talking, I’ll need a different voice.”

“Whatever thou think is best.” I turned my attention to Trixie who was busy huffing. “Have there been any advancements in voice changing spells?”

“Oh, so now you care about what Trixie has to say,” she snapped. “Well too late!”

Gilda rolled her eyes. “Trix, this is business and espionage. Just get past yourself and do what you have to do. Ever had to crawl through a sewer barely big enough to move your arms? If not, then get over it. More important things than not wanting to pose as a harem are at stake here.”

“As long as Trixie doesn’t have to-” She stuck her tongue out and made a gagging noise. “-get physical with you.”

“Well if she doesn’t want to, I would gladly volunteer myself.”

“Yeah, of course they’re not gonna expect us to break out in group sex right beneath the fucking city gates.” Gilda shook her head and sounded incredulous. “Fuck, what do you think you’ll actually have to do? Give me head?”

“Considering you lack the parts? That’d be impossible,” replied Trixie.

“‘Head’?” There was no doubt something about that word that was I missing.

Gilda turned to me and stared for a second. “You know what? Fuck it. You know males have dicks right? Head, or sucking it off, or oral, or any one of a thousand bloody words I use is when someone takes a dick in their mouth and sucks it until they blow. Okay?”

Heat rushed to my cheeks. “W-What? Thou mean ponies put a phallus in their mouth? That’s disgusting!”

“More like interesting. I wonder what else ponies have come up with in the past one thousand years. Do you think Celestia has any... ‘educational’ material lying about on this?”

Gilda nodded. “Yeah. It is. That’s why I use it as an insult. So when I say go suck yourself, I think you can figure the rest out.”

More heat. “Is... is that even possible?”

“Well now... that sounds... hot...”

Gilda shrugged. “Well, why don’t you get some ribs removed and try to find out? I sure as bloody Tartarus ain’t gonna try it.”

“C-Can we stop talking about this?” asked Trixie, her face entire red. “And can we get a move on?”

“Well that depends,” Gilda turned to her. “Unless you really want me to fuck you brainless beneath the city gates, I can’t imagine any problems with the illusion magic.” Trixie’s face colored again and Gilda focused her attention on me again. “What disguises have you got for us to work with?”

“Whatever is required.” I closed my eyes and with a bit of magic, my form filled out to be slightly larger, the fur around face and chest became light blue, the rest was dark blue and some tail feathers appeared. “Does this work?”

Gilda just stared at me before she shook her head in exasperation. “When was the last time you met a blue gryphon?”

“Fine,” I spat at her. A bit more magic and I was a perfect color copy of Gilda. “Better?”

She shook her head. “Dude... come on? A little originality... And they’re searching for me, remember? I mean, is that hard to come up with something original? Plus, northern gryphons have a darker more gray color. Like that Chef Gustav guy, the one in the magazines.”

“Very well,” I sighed and changed the coloration again so that I was a mix of black and grey. “This work?”

“No. Fuck, do you pay an attention to gryphon appearance at all? Crown feathers usually have colored tips, also around the eyes are colored too, not like that Gustav guy. If you like, you can use your blue there.”

“Picky,” I muttered under my breath as I added light blue to the areas she suggested. “Better?”

She nodded. “Alright, now for Trix. Most harems are made with variety in mind, so maybe make her a lighter, more ash gray... with golden crown feathers?”

“No. You will not touch Trixie’s coloration! Trixie’s blue is the most majestic color ever invented and you will not-” She let out a shriek her coat color changed. “No! Trixie is Great and Powerful! How dare you? This is unforgivable. You!” She jabbed a hoof at Gilda. “This is all your fault!”

Gilda just laughed. “I don’t know Trix, isn’t this like a fantasy of yours? Being a non-pony, with rocking hot curves? Don’t know if Luna did it deliberately, but she’s made you the bloody stereotype of a hot-ass chick.”

“Really?” Trixie visibly perked up and conjured a mirror, allowing her to admire herself. “Hm... This might come in use at a later date,” she chuckled darkly.

Gilda blanched. “Why does that worry me so much?”

Trixie just smiled at the gryphon sweetly. “Trixie has no idea what you’re talking about.”

Gilda shook her head and turned to me. “Messed up sexuality aside, now I need my disguise.”

“Coloration?” I asked while ignoring the way Trixie’s eye roamed over her illusionary body.

“Uh... charcoal gray with... I dunno... white feathers and...” She shrugged. “I don’t give a fuck, dude... Just crown feathers that aren’t pink.”

I smirked and did exactly as she said, making sure to give her the pinkest crown feathers I could manage.

“Alright,” she said and turned to Trixie. “Let me see that mirror.” She held out her claw and glanced at it. “Oh, huh. I’ve got bigger claws now. Nice.” Trixie passed her, or perhaps the new him, the mirror. She glanced at it before turning to glare at me. “Oh, gee. Really fucking mature Luna.”

“We do not know what thou are speaking of.” I examined my claws. “Can we leave now?”

“No, because I have pink fucking crown feathers!” The newly minted male bristled, and her humorously pink crown feathers stood up. “I said not pink!”

“It looks good on thee. Right Trixie?” I smiled sweetly.

“I don’t give a fuck if it looks good or not!” The male shrieked. “Give me red or green or fucking lilac, or some shit. Not. Fucking. Pink.” Gilda punctuated each pause with a jab of her claw.

“What is wrong with pink?” I asked innocently.

Gilda scowled, which actually looked quite intimidating on male features. Or it would have if it wasn’t for the pink feathers. “The Pink One,” she snarled the phrase like she’d said it before. “Not goddess damn pink.”

I rolled my eyes, but changed the crown feathers to red like she asked. It was best to indulge her before she started huffing.

She checked her reflection in the mirror. “Alright, that’s better. Now we just need to do something with my voice and we’re ready to go.”

“If we’re your harem, how should we act?” asked Trixie. “Should we drape off your arms and smother you in kisses or what?”

I could feel Nightmare bristling inside me.

“No.” Gilda rolled her eyes. “That’d be a favored wife or whatever. Northern females would follow at my shoulders and keep their eyes down. Keep an eye on my claw gestures and just look like you’re ready to jump without me asking.” She scowled. “And you wonder why I don’t think much of females.”

It was as though Trixie completely changed persona. Her body seemed to shrink, her head wasn’t held as tall and her entire body oozed meekness. “Like this Master?” she said tenderly.

Gilda blanched and looked disgusted. “Ugh... yeah.” The male glanced over at me. “Luna, you going to practice?”

With a sigh, I let my shoulders droop and let myself slip back into the shadows just like I had done in the past when in the same room as Celly. It’s not as though I was actually needed at those meetings anyways.

“Try to order us around, and we shall hurt you.” I smacked Gilda in the face with my invisible pony tail. “Got that?”

Gilda shifted back in surprise at the sudden sensation. “Yeah, no. Believe me I don’t like this any more than you do.” The male shivered. “Meekness... Just... I fucking hate anyone that’s meek.”

“Mmmmmhm,” replied Trixie with half lidded eyes. “I hate it too, so don’t you dare try to take advantage of it.”

“I won’t, believe me.” Gilda turned to me. “And I still need a deeper voice. I can add the accent, just give me a baritone.”

“Um...” I tilted my head. “Trixie? When we were banished, voice changing magic had not yet been invented...”

“She’s read about it once, but never tried it.” The space where her horn was lit up in a familiar blue glow and a small beam shot out at Gilda’s throat.

“Is it working? Woah!” Gilda blinked in surprise at her deep voice. Yes. Yes it was working. “Sweet. I sound fucking bass.” She gave a deep throaty chuckle. “Oh crap. Hey, deep and sexy here. I roll smooth and hard.” She waggled an eyebrow at no one. “Fuck.” She glanced at the both of us. “This is so freaking weird.” She turned to me. “Did you give me a fake dick?”

“W-What!?” I backed up, a bright red blush on my cheeks. “Even if we did, we don’t even know what that would look like!”

With a sigh and eye roll, a fine blue mist settled on Gilda. “There,” smirked Trixie. “Done.”

Gilda’s head ducked down, but she caught herself before she checked fully. A small blush forming on her face as she remembered we were watching her. Then her brow furrowed and evil smirk came over her face.

“Trix, how do you know what a gryphon cock looks like?”

“N-No reason!” cried Trixie as she suddenly turned and barged out the door. “But come! We have been waiting long enough.”

“And why’d you make it so big?” called Gilda after the unicorn.

“Shut up!” screamed Trixie.

“I’m hung like a bleeding titan!” Gilda shouted after her again as we followed her out.

“No you’re not! You’re only above average by a couple of in-” Silence. “Gah!”

“Living out some kind of a fantasy here?” Gilda walked up the stairs behind her, just managing to duck in time as Trixie bucked backwards. She started laughing. “Just how big do I have to be before I’m officially big Trix? I’m only asking because you’re the expert here.”

“Not listening!” She began trotting in an attempt to get away, but we easily kept pace. I had to admit, this was the best entertainment I have had in a long time.

“Oh, not listening babe?” Gilda moved right up to Trixie and whispered in her ear with a seductively bass tone that I easily overheard. “But there’re so many things we have to... ‘talk’ about.”

Trixie jumped away from her as though she was stung, and Gilda burst out laughing. It was a good thing we weren't outside the building yet, or we would have been attracting much attention. In the back of my mind, I heard a low growl from Nightmare and I just knew, next time she was out, Trixie was going to pay.

“Anyway,” Gilda shook her head. “Seriously though, now’s the time to get into character.” She shook her head. “Everyone focus.”

Once again, Trixie’s entire body language change and she even snuggled herself up against Gilda slightly. From the looks of things, she was practically draping herself over Gilda, which caused jealousy to flash through Nightmare. Gilda better watch out. If Nightmare came out, she was going to cling to the gryphoness like a dragon to its hoard.

“Trix, back off a bit.” Gilda pushed her away. “You’re being too pushy. It’s like you’re trying to get my attention. Gryphon females are supposed to be subtle and part of the wall paper.”

“Alright...” Trixie back off slightly and walked beside Gilda, but kept close so they were walking side by side with their flanks touching.

“Take a step back. When you’re walking alongside me, it doesn’t look quite like I’m leading the way.”

Like an obedient puppy Trixie dropped back.

“Yeah that’s good.” Gilda glanced back at me. “Luna, you take the other side, but walk a few steps further back. That way it’s like Trix is the preferred bride and you’ve got a bit more to do to earn my...” Her beak curled in disgust. “Favor. Ugh...” She shook her head in disgust. “I hate my culture so much.”

I smirked in reply, but did as she bid. It was a shame gryphon culture had changed so much, otherwise I’d be in front as was proper of somepony of my status. No. Stop that. I had to stop thinking that way! Things had changed, things were different now.

“We think it wouldst be best if thou proclaimed We were mute,” I said. “After all a harem is wanted for their beauty, not for functionality, and it wouldst prevent us from being identified through our unique speech.”

Gilda snorted. “Fuck. I’m gonna have to play a real douchebag aren’t I?” She shook her head. “Alright, you’re mute then. Umm... Names. We need names. I’ll be Adalberto, Trix can be Adelina, and you can be Alicia.” She glanced between the two of us. “Any problems with those names?”

No reply. After a couple of seconds, Trixie spoke up, “Will Trixie have to call you ‘Master’? And how should she act and speak? Seductively? Submissively?”

Gilda shrugged. “Just cause you’re female, doesn’t mean you don’t have a personality. As long as you’re not in their face or challenging, you’ll be able to pass off as a White Beak pretty easy. But remember, northern accents. Like this,” She changed her tone and began to speak in a forced accent. I was not familiar with gryphon accents, so I could tell if it was a particularly good one or not. To me, it sounded similar to the Chef Gustav that Celestia hired from time to time for special feasts or foreign dignitaries. “You will sound like this, oui?” Her voice was deeper than Gustav’s and she stressed her vowels slightly more. Whether this was deliberate or not, I did not know.

“Keep speaking,” said Trixie. “She needs a bit more than that.”

“Testing, one two three. The quick brown dog jumps over the lazy yellow fox.” Trixie made a ‘keep going’ gesture. “Uh... bonjure, my name is Adalberto, and I’m a complete douchebag. My wives are beaten into submission, and one of them is mute so I don’t have to put up with her voice. I doubt we’ll be questioned much by guards, but it never hurts to prepare a bit. Testing, testing. How much more do you need?”

“That should be enough.” Trixie cleared her throat and began speaking in a lighter voice, with a bit of a tilt at the end that reminded me of Fleur. “Ah yes, it’s a pleasure to meet you, my name is Adelina. How does this sound?”

“Good to me.” Gilda also spoke in her Adalberto accent. “Alright my harem. Let us go.” She turned and walked out the front door onto the street.

We followed meekly behind her. The first thing that struck me about was how run down everything was. It reminded me of Equestria from a couple thousand years ago, rundown housing, obsolete factories, and beggars everywhere. Gryphons glanced over at us and a couple even leered at us, but one look from Gilda made them change their minds. Well, most of them. There were one or two that kept watching us, no doubt fantasizing about what they’d do to Trixie and I if they managed to capture us. Ha! I’d like to see them try.

“See why I said no pink?” Gilda glanced over her shoulder at us before turning forwards to glare at another shady looking gryphon.

“Should we take care of them?” I whispered back.

Gilda just gave a slight shake of her head. “I’ll deal with them if they try anything, and I’ll make it nasty so no one else takes a shot.”

“Alright,” I replied as my eyes darted over to a pair that was following us. Gilda seemed to notice as well for I could see her body tense, but as we continued through, they didn’t make a single move. Eventually they dropped back as the area around us became living quarters. Wasn’t really fancy, but at least they had windows.

We kept moving through the area and soon it was full of cubs playing in the street and guards everywhere. A whole bunch of houses had some gaudy red claw slash with a multitude of colors to offset it and I was tempted to bash my head in. Seems like the Red Ends hadn’t changed at all, and if possible, they had gotten worse. At least there were enough Great Scars around to offset it, otherwise I’d be tempted to rip my eyes out. A simple single vertical blue line. Perfect. You could just tell they were a military clan. Only idiots who wanted to die on the battlefield had gaudy symbols that could be seen across the battlefield.

“Red Ends.” Gilda snorted as she looked around. “And they think they’re the lords of battle or someshit.”

I snorted. “Seriously? We crushed them on the field of battle.”

Gilda shrugged. “Yeah. They’re so freaking dramatic about everything. They lose the first battle of the war and name it the ‘Battle of Red Tears’.” She shook her head in disgust and glanced back at me. “Hey, you’re supposed to be a mute, remember?”

It took all my willpower to not snap at her.

With a sigh, I continued following her like the meek female I was meant to be. Stupid gryphons, I knew there was a reason they were below ponies. Ha! Look at their guards. Pathetic. We strolled right past them as though we belonged, and not once did they even bat an eyelash at us. With Gilda leading the way, we quickly made it to the gates and with a simple smile, they let us pass. Idiots. If that had been committed by one of my underlings, I would have had them flog-

No. Stop right there. That practice had been outlawed over nine hundred years ago. Making these changes was going to be far harder than I thought.

This week cannot end soon enough.

Chapter 12

I sat back, breathing a sigh of relief as a very long fucking day finally came to an end. My back was pressed against some nice black granite that was still warm from the sun even as the air got cold for the evening. No fire tonight. That had been a long discussion, and Trixie might have tried to pull her new ‘relationship’ strings on me, but in the end me and Luna won out.

“Are you sure Trixie can’t light a small fire?”

My eye twitched. I glared over at her, my head tilted to the side. “...”

Trixie just huffed and turned away.

I shook my head and faced the front. It was the end of our first day as a couple, or whatever the fuck we are, and I was still convinced this was a bad idea. My stomach churned whenever I thought about telling Trixie that, or what would happen when she learned I only agreed for her sake, and I was still trying to convince myself that maybe this would work out for the best. The problem with that though, was I knew that it would end badly, and I was just being a dumb-shit optimist by trying to think this wouldn’t end with her hurt. I needed to do more than just go along with her and hope for the best.

“Hope ain’t a plan.” I sighed to myself.

To be honest, this wasn’t the most practical campsite I could’ve chosen, but whatever. I kind of didn’t care anymore. Yeah we were exposed, but... I just couldn’t summon up the give-a-fuck to actually worry about us getting caught.

“Thou are usually more... attentive than this,” remarked Luna as she stood next to me. “This campsite is less than ideal. Something on thy mind? Thou hast been distracted all day.”

“Fuck off Luna.” I glanced over at her. “You didn’t have a problem when I said we could break camp here, why bitch now?”

“We are merely being concerned. Is that not the proper thing to do these days? To care about thy underlings?”

I snorted. “I’m not your fucking underling. Just the unlucky bitch you dragged into this mess.” I shook my head. “Yeah, that’s the right thing to do I guess. Take care of the people beneath you and all... just...” I shook my head. “Just cause I don’t act ‘pleasant’ when you do the right thing, doesn’t mean you did the wrong thing.”

“In the past We would merely drag the individual out onto the practice field and spar with them for an hour or two. Idle minds are fickle things, able to consume and undermine a pony’s confidence. Fighting is all about action and reaction, not time for other thoughts, and by the time we were done, the pony would be too tired to dwell any further.” A sad sigh. “Things have changed a lot in one thousand years, have they not?”

I chuckled. “I don’t imagine the Royal Guard would be too great for a spar these days. None of them have...” I clicked my fingers. “You know, that instinct. That... real idea of what it’s like in a fight. They can practice all they like, but until their life is actually on the line, they just can’t get that experience, you know?” I glanced over at the princess.

“Thou hast no idea. The closest We hath come to an actual fight was our small misunderstanding back in the basement,” replied Luna as she summoned her sword before her. “And even then We were too blinded by emotions to fight properly. We fear our skill hath slipped these past thousand years. There was a time We could distance ourselves from our emotions, and nothing could break that eternal calm. Celly still has it though. We see her use it often when talking to nobles.”

I shook my head. “Nah you got it wrong. Use your emotions while fighting. If you hate the guy, or are really pissed or just want to feel bones break, channel that. Direct it, you know?”

“Be consumed by it and blinded by it, thou means,” I replied. “Raw emotion is the greatest enemy on the field. Cold, calculated logic wins wars.”

Gilda shrugged. “I’m not talking about a game of chess dude. Yeah there’s strategy to just an out and out fight, but you’re not thinking really. Thoughts are too slow, reactions rely on instinct. You build the habits and strategies you use before you start the fight, and after that you just... lose yourself?” I shrugged. “Not the right words but whatever.”

“Instinct can be taken advantage of.” Luna looked far too smug as she said that. “An-”

“Are you two talking about fighting?” asked Trixie as she plopped down next to us. “As far as Trixie is concerned, you two rely on pure brute strength. A true fighter uses deception and cunning to trick their enemies into making a mistake that can be taken advantage of.”

I glanced at her, and in the corner of my eye, Luna did too, before we both looked away from her.

I shook my head. “Anyway, I’m not saying that there’s only one way to fight. I mean, Calisto used to kick my ass and he never fought like I did, but I know that someone who fights by thinking their way around every attack isn’t gonna be half as fast as a more reactionary fighter. I mean, I don’t need to think to notice a guy has a limp or they’re slightly slower on the right overhand or whatever. I just see that and exploit it. There’s no conscious idea between me spotting that, and me using that.”

Luna burst out laughing and she suddenly stood up. “Come then, let us put our respective styles to the test.” She readied her blade. “One on one, no magic, no powder. We use one sword, you may use whatever is on your person at the time.”

I shrugged my shoulders. “Not much of a test. You’re a goddess, I’m a gryphon who had way too much to drink last night.” I drew my knife with a spin. “And all I’ve got on me is this.”

A second sword appeared in the ground before me. Then a spear. Then an axe. Then a mace, flail and bow. Luna looked at me expectantly before commenting, “We all had too much to drink last night.”

“Alright then.” I snatched up a short sword and sheathed my knife. The cloak I wore was shrugged off and I followed her to open patch of ground. “You’re still an alicorn though, it’s not exactly a fair fight.”

“We promise to fight as a normal pony would.” Luna lifted her sword into a defensive stance. “No tricks, no crazy tactics, nothing that thou would not normally face in a fight.”

Trixie looked at us then sighed. “Once you two are done bashing each other over the head, call Trixie. She shall be preparing dinner and setting up camp. You know, what you two should be doing. Don’t come crying to Trixie if you end up losing a limb!”

I rolled my eyes. “Relax Trix, this is just a spar between friends.... Well, not friends, but people who don’t want to kill each other.” I gave her a reassuring nod as I rested the short sword against my shoulder. “Try watching. It’s the best sport around.”

Trixie merely snorted in response and turned away. Before we broke eye contact though, I could see the fear in her eyes.

I sighed when I saw that. Fuck. Trix had no place being in a relationship with me. Maybe I could set her up with Grace or something. That’d be good for both of them.

I turned back to Luna. “Mares, huh?”

“We would not know what thou means by thy statement,” she replied while avoiding my gaze.

I rolled my eyes. “Whatever.”

I rose onto my hind legs, the sword Luna summoned in my claw before me in a rookie’s basic defense. Maybe Luna’s arrogance would have her try to capitalize on that or something. Instead she merely cocked an eyebrow at me and shifted into a stance I had never seen before. Alright, so that feint wasn’t gonna work. I lowered myself to three’s now, my sword to the front and slightly to the side in the actual pose I liked to use and Luna immediately followed suit, changing to a stance I had seen unicorn fencers use.

“So do we go on three or wh-”

She immediately attacked with a fencer’s lunge. I knocked her thrust aside pretty easily, and moved forward to get inside her guard where her telekinesis wouldn’t work as well. Instead she skipped back out of reach. I stepped back away from her too, my eyes on hers. That’s the thing about unicorns, because they don’t fight with their hooves, they were really freaking hard to predict. The best hint you had was their eyes, but even then, don’t bet on it.

We circled each other for a second, and I took note of where her hooves where. Not really set to a fencer’s stance, but not like a normal brawler’s either. I guess this was a warfighter’s hoofwork. I’ve never fought a real unicorn bladesmare before.

She stepped forward, feinting to the left then right, her blade flicking out at her max reach before she danced back once more. I slid under it and moved forward to try and get inside her guard again, but I knew she’d expect that so I kept my sword ready for a quick deflection rather than a real swipe at her. Instead, her hoof snapped out, aimed straight at my throat. Earthpony fighting tactics kicked in, and I moved to the right, catching it with my claw. I barely had time to block and switch back to unicorn fighting as her sword came around again.

That small stumble was all Luna needed. She stepped forward, her blade coming down on me again and again in rapid succession. Just as I found the tempo of her attacks, she began tossing in hoof strikes between the sword cuts. I was caught way off guard by fighting both an earth pony and a unicorn at once. I grit my beak and found myself caught between two warring sets of instincts, one begging me to get close and get inside the guard, and the other telling me to back off and use my reach and maneuverability. Fuck. So yeah, the bitch knew what she was doing.

I used my sword to try and pin hers away from me, ready for her hoof to lash out. I managed to actually catch it this time. With a heave I threw her over my shoulder and finally bought myself some space. Wings flaring open, the alicorn flipped herself in midair and came down as light as a feather. Didn’t matter, the idea was to get her to back off for a second, and it worked as we circled each other again.

The seconds ticked by as we did nothing. We simply circled each other, as a light smirk danced on her lips. Bitch was confident she knew how to fight gryphons. And she was right. Her style was basically some bastard hybrid of techniques built from the ground up to fuck with your expectations and make sure anyone who knew how to fight normally was caught off guard. So yeah, her style was awesome. Thing is though, the Great Scars had a long and proud history of getting deep into shit that was over their heads. Yeah, I was outclassed, but so were the first of the Wide Eyes as they ventured into the pony world and decided a war between the gods. In fact, we got so used to taking on shit we couldn’t handle that we actually learned a thing or two about handling it.

I rose up onto my hind legs and drew my knife, holding it under hand in the ‘wannabe badass’ way. I’d like to see that arrogant bitch deal with this. How do you like it when I use a style you’ve never seen before? Heh, heh. Fighting changes a lot over a thousand years. It was properly called ‘The Outsider’ but I like to call it the Batshit Loopy.

Luna merely cocked an eyebrow at me as a slow grin spread over her face. “Something new. How refreshing.”

She immediately began circling at a fast pace, darting in and out with complex hoof work forcing me to try to keep up with her mobility. I didn’t do that. I was on my hind legs, so trying to do that would be retarded. Instead I slowly moved one paw after the other, not keeping pace, but not quite falling behind either. It was up to her to make the first move.

And that’s when the bitch decided to go pegasus on me. Fast, quick hitting moves. Darting in and out, lots of feints, and lots of movement as she hit from the right, then the left, then the front, then the back. Light, shallow blows designed to whittle down an enemy. It was all about mobility and that was the one thing I lacked with this style. Throw in a unicorn’s reach and it was absolute Tartarus. Smart of her to immediately spot the weaknesses and exploit them.

“Instinct is reactive,” she said as she moved in for another blow.

I flapped my wings and gusted towards her, the first quick move I’d made and she didn’t have time to redirect as she found herself moving into my sword swipe. She blocked it like I expected, and my knife only touched her mane as she dodged that. She didn’t duck the wing that smacked into her face, or the paw that kicked her kidney. She might have spotted the weaknesses, but she didn’t spot the strengths. Before she could counter, I had already breezed past.

Chuckles filled the air as she turned around to face me. “A very curious stance indeed.”

I didn’t answer her.

“Let us try that again then,” she said as rushed me, using the pegasus style once again.

This time I didn’t even attempt to block her, another flap of my wings and I spun past her, my attacks raining down on her back. Or rather, they should have. She rolled over in midair, her back to the ground as she caught my blows. Skidding to a stop, I spun around just in time to catch her crashing into the ground as she failed to turn back over on time.

I pounced.

The sword took the lead and my knife played second fiddle. Two quick slices, parry, skip to the side, and dive right in again. Back and forth we went. We were done with the crazy stuff, the dumbass crap, the shit that should have never worked. We went back to basics. Two against one and still she managed to hold on, using her experience to help guide her.

Our blades glinted in the moonlight and firelight, clashing again and again withou-

Firelight?

“Damn it Trixie! I said no fires!” I yelled as I spun around.

It was only when a sword thrust narrowly missed my neck that I remembered we were in the middle of a sparring match with very sharp weapons. It was amazing Luna didn’t accidently turn me into another piece of meat on a skewer. Luna didn’t even really seem to notice that I’d stopped, and it was too late to get my defense back up. It was less than a second before she’d won, and her sword was pressed against my neck with a smile on her muzzle.

“We will admit, thou did admirably on thy first try. That style was one We had not seen before, but there was little doubt We would hath figured out a successful counter on the next pass.” She stepped back and lowered her sword. “Perhaps next time, thou shall not be distracted so untimely.”

I snorted. “Figure out the Batshit Loopy with one pass?” I shook my head. “I doubt it. Not in the middle of a fight.”

“We almost figured it out on that second pass if thou remembers. Our landing was... less than efficient though.” A frown creased her brows. “Perhaps we should have gone with an unarmed gryphon style instead. Seek to catch a blow then disarm, disable or throw. Could have worked.”

I shrugged. “I don’t really know the Loopy that well. I never exactly finished my training, and that was something I was taught towards the end. So honestly, it’s my weakest style.” I shook my head and turned away. “Damn it, Trix! You cost me the freaking fight! I said no fires!”

“Well Trixie is sorry, but fire is needed for cooking,” she yelled back as we began walking back to her.

“You don’t need to start a fucking fire for grass and hay!” Bloody mare, what the heck was she thinking? Did she want to die?

With a death glare, she tossed a bowl at me and stalked off into the forest.

“The fuck was that about?” I asked Luna, but she merely shrugged as she went to investigate what was for dinner. Looking down, I blinked in surprise. This was meat. Cooked meat. Eyes drifting up, I looked at the spot Trixie had vanished into. Had she cooked this for me?

“Ah... shit.” I put a palm to my face. “Nice one Gilda.” I muttered.

“This is...” I looked over at Luna, who was greedily eating her bowl of grass. “Better than eating grass...”

I picked up the bowl she’d left for me and tried to figure out what to do. This was why no one should be in a relationship with me. I fucking ruin everything.

“Luna... wait here. I need to go...” I sighed and walked after Trixie. “I dunno... convince Trix I’m not a total douche... or something.”

The alicorn looked up from her bowl, a leaf of lettuce on her nose and said, “Better thou than us,” before diving back in like a starving beggar.

It wasn’t hard to find Trixie. Even in the dark, her hoof prints were clear to me, and it wasn’t long before I found her lying on the ground and staring up at the stars through the forest canopy.

“I’m sorry, Trix,” I said as I padded up next to her. “I should have...” Geez, I don’t even know. Waited to see what she was cooking... or something? I eventually settled on, “I shouldn’t have yelled.”

“You better be sorry,” she muttered under her breath. “All Trixie wanted to do was give you a treat. Do you know how much she threw up cooking that for you? Not in the food of course, but... Trixie just wanted to do something nice,” she finished lamely.

I scrunched up my eyes in annoyance and lay down next to her. “I’m such an asshole.”

“Yes. Yes you are.” She suddenly rolled over and wrapped an arm around my chest, keeping me in place. “But you’re my asshole.”

I snickered. “Think about what you just said.” Then I noticed her hurt expression and I cleared my throat. “I mean... yeah, I’m sorry. I’ll try to be more... sensitive or whatever.”

Her eyes softened. “Thanks...”

I put my arm around her shoulder, started to scoop food from her bowl into my beak. I resisted the urge to spit it out... Ponies have no fucking idea how to treat meat. I swallowed the fucking awful half burnt, half undercooked crap and resisted the urge to scrape the after taste off my tongue. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed Trixie watching me eat.

“S-Sorry... Trixie has never cooked meat before...”

Oh shit. There I go being a jerk again. “No, no. It’s not bad for a first try.” It was fucking awful. “You’ll get it with a few more.”

“Perhaps you could teach Trixie then?” She looked away nervously. “She doesn’t want to handle meat often, but... it could be romantic. Right?”

Oh goddesses. At least there was no way it could be worse than this.

“Heh. A pony learning to cook meat.” I smiled. “Seems a bit unnatural, doesn’t it?”

A dangerous glint appeared in her eyes. “And Trixie fully expects you to learn how to prepare a vegetarian dish. Understood?”

I blinked in surprise. “Uh... sure?” I think that was the answer she wanted to hear. “I’ll learn how to cook... brocolli... prinachi... or whatever that was you asked me to get you back at the palace.”

“Good.” Despite the edge to her voice, she snuggled closer. “And Trixie never knew how warm gryphons were.”

I smiled. Yeah, being hugged was nice. What of it? I’m not some swooning affectionate, but I could enjoy this without being a total pussy.

“Yeah, most of the Gryphon Kingdom’s way colder than Equestria. Our magic’s pretty much the exact same as pegasus, so we’re good for all weather.”

“Good. Trixie has been meaning to get a new blanket for cold winter nights, but now that she has you, she can save some more bits.”

Internally I cringed. Okay, Trixie was starting to scare me with all this. She couldn’t be this attached to me already could she? Fuck. There’s no way she’ll get out of this without being hurt. Why did I ever say yes?

“Yeah well, there’s a few things that are best done under the sheets.” I smirked at her. “Don’t go throwing out the blankets just yet.”

“Hm... Trixie would disagree on that score,” she replied with a faint blush.

I blinked in surprise. “What do you mean?”

Instead of a reply, I got an unamused look. “If you expect Trixie to it say out loud, you are sorely mistaken.”

I stared at her and shook my head. “Sex under the sheets, sex on them or without them...” I shrugged. “What’s the difference? As long as no one’s watching.”

She merely chuckled in reply as she began running her hoof through the feathers on my chest.

I just shook my head. “Alright then. I guess you’ve had a long time to work your imagination. I don’t even want to know some of the messed up fantasies you got in that head of yours.”

That caused her to burst out into giggles. “Even if you might be into some of them?”

I smirked. “And what exactly would I be into, oh Great and Powerful one?”

“How is Trixie supposed to know?” she replied with a devious little smile.

I shrugged. “I know a way to find out.”

“And that would be...?”

I rolled my eyes. “Sex dude. We fuck each other. I try to be subtle with it and then you go and make me say it.”

She smacked me on the stomach. Not hard enough to actually hurt me, but it got her point across.

“Fine, fine.” I muttered. “Come on, we better get back to Luna before she starts to get suspicious or something.”

Trixie sighed sadly, but crawled onto her hooves. “Very well. Can we at least walk back slowly?”

Goddesses damnit. She really wants romance doesn’t she? She really wants a real damn relationship. Not just me going along with her, she wants me to actually contribute. Sweet fucking Celestia, why would anyone expect that from me?

A shiver ran through her and she pulled her tattered cloak closer to her body in an attempt to keep the heat in. Without really thinking about it, I opened a wing and wrapped it around her torso. The shivering immediately stopped and she snuggled close.

“Thanks. Can’t really afford to waste magic with a heating spell.”

“No worries.” I told her.

We slowly began to make our way back to the camp, and I kind of enjoyed just having her next to me. We didn’t talk, and it took us about five minutes to walk what should have taken just two. I was happy that Trixie was enjoying herself, and even though inside myself I was dying a bit from just how fucking badly I’d handled all this. I shut that part of me up for long to enjoy a walk from here to the camp with Trixie.

When we got into sight, I reluctantly took my wing off her, and she pouted as she stepped away from me. As we cleared the trees, Luna was in camp, her blade drawn once more as she practiced a series of cuts and thrusts.

“Hey Luna.” I said to her as we left the clearing. “Want to spar tomorrow night? That was pretty damn fun and I haven’t had anyone to practice with in ages, I’m getting kinda rusty.”

“That would be most desirable,” replied Luna as she leapt back while thrusting down. “Perhaps Trixie would desire some training? We hath not caught up on the advancements in magic, but We hath learned enough to be of assistance, We hope.”

Trixie blinked in surprise, but nodded slowly. “Trixie is not saying she does not already know everything about magic, but to be tutored by a goddess would definitely be a once in a lifetime opportunity.”

I laughed. “Hey Luna, that’s the closest you’re ever gonna get to Trix admitting you’re better than her at anything. Enjoy it while it lasts.”

A hoof slammed into the back of my head.

I rubbed a claw against it. It didn’t hurt too bad, but hooves are pretty solid. “Is this gonna be a thing with us?” I asked Trixie. “I might get brain damage or some shit.”

“Wait, you still have brain cells to kill? Trixie thought you had already lost them all.”

“Eh.” I shrugged. “There’s a few of the tougher ones still hanging on, but don’t worry. I’ll get those little bastards eventually.”

Trixie chuckled under her breath. “Trixie certainly hopes not, a couple of brain cells would be nice.”

I gave a light laugh. “Nah, don’t bet on it. Between head trauma and booze those bastards’ll be lucky to last the month.”

“No drinking.” She jabbed my chest. “Remember?”

Ah shit. I’d forgot about that. I sighed and turned away. “So they live to fight another day. It’s just a matter of time.”

“It’ll be worth it though,” she whispered in my ear before walking away, her hips swaying seductively as she went.

I watched her out of the corner of my eye, until I remembered we weren’t supposed to be a couple and yanked my eyes back to the embers of the fire. Shit. We’re really not doing a good job hiding this are we?

I sat down again and put my back to the rock. “So, Luna. Who taught you how to fight anyway? I’m guessing there was more than one guy, what with the way you balance earth pony, pegasus and unicorn.”

“Thou would be correct. In the beginning We relied entirely on our magic much like Celly, but then Discord came along.” A scowl appeared on her face. “At one point, We found ourselves devoid of our magic and We were forced to fight hoof to hoof. That was the most embarrassing and one sided battle We hath ever participated in. After that, We devoted our time to mastering the martial arts and We like to think We hath developed a degree of competence.”

I shrugged. “Well you’re better than most I know, but your fight isn’t exactly flawless either. You’re working on the assumption that you can basically overwhelm anyone just by fighting with all three styles. I mean, in a real fight, if you tried that shit where you landed on your back, it wouldn’t be pretty. It really feels to me like you just think you can shrug anything off.”

“If it were a real fight, We would not hath tried using the pegasus style a second time,” I replied. “It was a spar, therefore We felt safe trying out potential counters.”

“If you say so.” I sat there for a second. “Anything you noticed about the way I fight? I mean... I haven’t gotten the chance to really cover up my problems before. You know what you’re doing, so your opinion’ll mean something.”

“Hm...” Luna leaned back on the log she was sitting on. “Thy strikes with the backhand knife are a tad sloppy at times. You overstretch slightly. Stance is good, good footwork... Perhaps a bit more defense? Thou seemed to be uncomfortable playing defensively and that was when We felt We had the upper hoof.”

I nodded. “I guess that sounds right enough. I don’t usually fight with my knife playing second fiddle, and the defense thing was ‘cause I’m more used to putting them on the defense at the start, or countering them when they try to come after me.”

“Thou art also used to brawling correct? It has influenced thy style, making thy natural stance sloppy at times and open to attack,” Luna added with a frown. “Be careful not to use brawling tactics in a fight.”

“Yeah I know. My trainer used to hate it when I picked fights in the schoolyard, said it’d make me worse when it came to a real fight.” I shrugged. “Alright. I guess that’s just something I’ll have to patch up.” I glanced over at Trixie. She’d probably like it if I stopped brawling as well.

“Thou wilt if thou wish to live.”

I glanced back at her. “Or I could just go back to Equestria and never have to fight again? Fighting isn’t even really a survival skill anymore.”

“In the past, at least it was a sport,” Luna muttered under her breath.

“Boxing’s still around. I mean, it’s not the real thing but it still gives you that real visceral feel that makes fighting fun anyway.”

“Not the same. We wonder what the coliseum is now used for?” she mused.

“Coliseum? You mean the one in Cloudsdale?”

“There were also ones in Canterlot, outside Fillydelphia and Manehattan.”

“Not there anymore. There are hoof ball arenas in Manehattan and Fillydelphia, but no coliseums. Down in Dice they have this whole bare hoof underground fighting community, but it’s mostly just a pack of earth ponies with daddy issues. I got bored with it heaps quick, only a few of them were real fighters.”

“You did what!?” Both our heads snapped towards Trixie who was staring at me with a twitch in her eye.

“What?” I asked her. “I was in Dice for a while, got dragged to one of the rings by some guy whose nose I broke in a bar fight, had a fun night, realized that only like, three of the guys knew what they were doing, got bored and left.” I shrugged. “It really wasn’t a big deal.”

Trixie’s mouth open and closed multiple times before she flopped back onto the ground with her cloak wrapped tightly around her body.

I sighed. “Trix, I hadn’t even met you yet. I mean, I was fifteen. You can’t blame me now because of what I did when I wasn’t even allowed to sign own my own library card?”

“Of course Trixie can.”

I rolled my eyes. “Trix, you can’t get mad every time you learn something about me. I mean, you’ll spend more time pissed off at me for shit that’s not my fault than anything else.”

“Trixie isn’t mad. She’s not even a bit mad.” She turned so her back was to me. “She’s just not surprised.”

I looked at her for a while, trying to figure out what she was saying by not saying it at the same time. After a moment I gave up. I shook my head and looked away. Mares.

I turned my head to Luna. “So, I’ve been meaning to ask you. You saw my brain right?”

“Bit and pieces.”

“What did you see?” I asked her. “I mean, what was the impression you got? I got an idea of what Nightmare was like by seeing just pieces of her head. What was I like?”

“Competent, loyal, angry,” Luna replied with a shrug.

“That it?” I asked her. “Those are the three parts of me that represent me best? Competent, loyal, and pissed off?”

“Sounds right,” called Trixie from her makeshift bed.

I sat back and thought about that. Huh. Well I guess they’re not exactly bad attributes. I mean, it’s better than just ‘bitchy’ or something.

“Really? ‘angry’?” I glanced between the two of them. “I know I have a temper, but I’m not pissed off all day every day.”

“No, but you are pissed off often,” replied Trixie.

“Am I?” I leaned back and thought. “When was the last time I got really ticked off?”

“When you shoved a knife in Luna’s spine?” There was a pause. “Or so Trixie has been told.”

I thought about. “Nah, I wasn’t really angry when I did that. Just wanting air. I was more pissed off when she was trying to drag up sympathy like some retarded foal who wants to be part of the big kids club.”

Luna glared at, but didn’t say anything.

“Fine, violent then,” said Trixie.

I laughed. “Alright then.” I leaned back against a rock. Anger? Really? Was that really one of the three things that defined me? I shrugged. “Why not?”

We all lapsed into silence as the conversation died.

“Come, thou should sleep. We shall keep watch for thee.” Luna’s eyes darted over to Trixie’s shivering form. “Perhaps thou should sleep with Trixie tonight. Thy natural feathers should help keep both of you warm.”

I blinked at her. “Uh... that might be a bit awkward.”

“Waking up tomorrow morning with a travelling companion frozen to death would be more awkward and even more inconvenient,” snapped Luna. “Get over thy distaste for her. We will not allow either of you to die unnecessarily on this mission.”

“Trix?” I turned to ask her. “Luna’s decided she cares about us or something. Do you mind if I...” I trailed off. I knew what her answer would be, but I wanted to give her the choice. Plus, it was smart to keep up the act with Luna around.

“Seriously? You expect the Great and Powerful Trixie to sleep in close proximity with that meat eater?” She made a gagging noise. “Trixie shall just use a heating spell all night.”

Huh. Not the answer I was expecting. “Trix, you know that’s a bad idea. The constant burn on your horn all night will stop your natural power recharging.” I glanced up at the sky. “I think? It’s been a while since high school Health Ed. I’m right aren’t I?” I checked between her and Luna.

“Thou wouldst be correct.” Luna’s eyes narrowed as she focused on Trixie. “Thou will sleep with Gilda and if thou complain, We will tie thee up. There shall be no arguing over that.”

“Ha! I bet you’d love that, wouldn’t you, Gilda?” Though I couldn’t see her face, I just knew Trixie was smirking. “Fine. Whatever. You better not snore though.”

I glanced between her and Luna. “Uh...okay?” I scratched the back of my head. “I mean... why would I Iove you being tied up? I’m pretty sure that’s Luna’s shit. Did I ever tell you about the time she tied me up and locked me in her closet?”

“W-What?” spluttered Trixie. Was... was she blushing? I couldn’t see her face, but I think she was.

“Yeah, I bet Luna’s totally into bondage and straps and shit.” I smirked. “After she blackmailed me in the dungeon, she dragged me back to her room. When Celestia walked in, Luna threw me in her closet and then told her I was some mare she planned on ‘ravaging’.” I looked towards Luna. “I bet Nightmare’s not the only one that wants a piece of this action.”

Luna rolled her eyes. “Stop flattering thyself, we prefer less muscular partners. Our tastes lie in more toned or curvy individuals. Nightmare just gets lustful over blood and thy skill in combat is something she likes.”

“Curvy eh? I take it you like the mares then?” Please, oh please merciful fucking Celestia. I pray to you in total fucking desperation; Nightmare better not want me just ‘cause I can cut others open. Oh goddesses, that would be so fucked up. “Trix, you better watch out. You’re exactly what Luna likes apparently. Curvy and toned and all that.”

“Trixie is toned and curvy?” She sounded surprised.

I glanced at her. “Uh... yeah? You knew that right? That’s why you have that cloak and all, sex appeal for your shows? When that thing billows it pulls all eyes to your flank.”

“Um- Well- That is...” She coughed. “When Trixie left home, she only had a cape and hat with her. Over the years she remade it again and again so it stayed in shape. Most of the stars cover tears and holes.”

Huh. Well there you go. “Alright.” I glanced between her and Luna. Yeah, the joke seemed dead. Don’t make that comment about how Luna was getting her rape face on. “So anyway, are you sure you’re okay with sleeping next to me? I won’t do it if you’re not cool with it.” I turned Luna. “No matter what Luna says.”

“Whatever,” shrugged Trixie. “Just no snoring.”

I walked over to her, and lay down next to her. I glanced back at Luna, who was watching us, before I draped a wing over the unicorn. I seriously hope Nightmare’s not the hyper jealous type, but really, if she’s as much like me as I think she is, then that’s not something I was betting on. After a second I looked forward and put my head down in my claws.

“Night, Trix,” I muttered.

“Whatever,” she snapped in reply before adding in a whisper, “Do you really think Trixie’s toned and curvy?”

I smiled. Good ol’ Trix the egotist. “Well you’ve been trotting from one end of Equestria to the other all those years. If you keep up a decent diet, then yeah. It shouldn’t surprise you when you turn out a total ten.”

I blinked in surprise as Trixie began purring, like, literally purring or something. It was weird hearing it come from a pony, but also kinda hot.

I couldn’t help myself. After a second I smirked and added, “Or you know, at least a six.”

The purring stopped and she glared up at me. “And here Trixie was thinking about giving you a treat.”

I glanced over at Luna, whose back was turned and her ears weren’t pointed our way. “I was just joking Trix. You make nine on a bad day. And, I’m not sure now’s the time for that.” I tilted my head towards the deity that seemed more intent on the night sky than us.

“Fine.” Trixie pouted playfully and I hate to admit it, but she could seriously pull that look off. Then she darted forward and kissed me lightly on the beak before blushing bright red and pulling back.

I blinked in surprise, and put a claw to where she touched me. I’m glad she was looking away and didn’t see me blush. Yeah, so sure, this was all a really bad idea. But we were definitely going to have fun while it lasted. Hope ain’t a plan and all, but the shit ideas can be the best ones. Who knows? Maybe me and Trix will still be friends by the end.

“Wait, so thou art telling us that exile is no longer a punishment? Nor is life time imprisonment or putting the criminal to death?” I shook my head in disbelief. “Equestria has changed more than I expected.”

Gilda called back from ahead. “Yeah well, there aren’t a lot of crimes that need the death sentence anymore. I’m probably the only multiple murderer living in Canterlot at the moment.”

“What?” Trixie was glaring at Gilda again. “Multiple murderer?”

“Yeah, that’s the technical term for someone that’s killed more than once. I looked it up.” She glanced over at Trixie. “I’ve told you I’ve killed before.”

“Multiple. Murderer. Trixie thought you killed because you had no other choice! That the others were bad or something!” I rolled my eyes as she went into full hysterics.

“They were.” Gilda answered her. “Doesn’t mean the terminology is any different. Murder is murder. Killing is killing.” She shrugged. “Do you want me to use a nicer word?”

“Yes. Yes she would. Something involving self-defense would be preferable.” Trixie turned to me. “That’s another lesson. Use ‘nice’ words to fudge the truth.”

Gilda just rolled her eyes. “Fine. What word would you like me to use? ‘Ended’ or ‘Iced’ or something?”

“Do not mock Trixie! It was self-defense. You acted in self-defense. That is final.”

I don’t believe Trixie heard it, but I overheard Gilda mutter, “Does it matter if it was self-defense?”

“Anyway, so as Trixie was saying.” She looked across at me again. “Most crime and punishment in Equestria revolves around minor crimes such as vandalism or public indecency.”

Gilda laughed. “Yeah those are fun. Break a window in Manehattan, and the guards’ll give you a place to sleep for the night, and a hot meal.”

“Gilda...” growled Trixie.

“What? I’m just telling her the truth.” She shrugged. “That’s how a lot of orphan kids look at it when they don’t want to spend another night in the homes.”

“And these... orphans... this is a problem in Equestria?” I asked.

Trixie stared at me with a concerned expression on her face. “Luna. Orphans are just foals who no longer have parents, not a social plague.”

“But... this is an issue right? There are a lot of these ‘orphans’? Are they being taken care of at all?” Surely Celly knew about this.

“Well yeah,” Gilda dropped back. “Orphanages are set up to take care of them, but when a foal loses their parents they get a nice big chip on their shoulder. You put them all in one place, and it’s freaking destiny that it’s not a nice place. Most of them go on to lead a lower end life style. I mean, I was in orphanage for a while, so what does that tell you?”

“Nothing good,” I whispered to myself. Once I got back to Canterlot, I would have to talk to Celly about this orphan situation. Perhaps there was something I could do to help alleviate the scenario somewhat.

“Yeah exactly. Most orphanages aren’t nice places to live, especially not when you have bullies like me who make shit miserable for everyone else.” She shook her head and turned ahead. “I’m so fucking glad I boarded for high school.”

A frown creased my brow. Surely Celly would not let such needy ones go untended. Whatever the case, that was an injustice I would not let continue.

“Hey Trix, you were in an orphanage for a while there right?”

“Nope. Trixie would rather be dead than caught in a place like that. She travelled the world instead.”

Gilda nodded. “Fair enough.Heh. Imagine how shit it was being the only gryphon in that place, then imagine an earth pony four years older than me who decided to make shit harder.” She shrugged. “I’m proud that I lasted a whole day before I put that prick in hospital. After that I was the one throwing my weight around. It was like a fucking food chain. You were either at the top, or getting dirt kicked in your face by whoever was.”

“So these orphanages are not places to raise children? Has Celly done nothing to remedy this?”

Gilda shrugged. “Probably, but if she’s anything like you, then there’s only so much she can do.”

“Celestia is nothing like us,” I snapped. “Do not even dare think she is.”

Gilda looked across at me with an eyebrow raised. “Uh... okay?”

“We are sorry for our outburst, but Celly is...” I winced and said the next few words as though they were venom, “Better than us in everything except warfare.”

Gilda snorted. “Well she must be pretty shit at war then, cause I’m yet to be impressed by any of your strategy.”

A chuckle escaped. “We used to tell her that if she was given an army of a thousand to fight a hundred blind, crippled warriors, she would find a way to lose.”

“Well, I don’t know about that, but honestly with the way Equestria’s set up, any real army would be obsolete and a waste of bits. Celestia’s negotiations and political work have pretty much made the idea of open war with Equestria just plain stupid.”

“It does not help she controls the sun, has enough power to level Equestria with a single thought and knows the most powerful war spells ever devised,” I replied with a shrug. “Her mastery of the magical arts is far beyond our own.”

“So then why did Nightmare think she could take her on? I mean, you’re powerful and all, but against that? Good luck.”

“Please, our power matches our sister’s. Furthermore, Nightmare was not restrained by thoughts of casualties whereas Celly is, and will always be,” I replied.

“Tell them about the time I almost managed to destroy the entire area from the Everfree Forest to Cloudsdale. The only thing that stopped me was Celestia’s damn shield, and once that was gone, she was too weak to do anything. I should have won the war right then and there, but she had to have those bloody Elements on her, tucked away as a final resort.” I could feel the annoyance oozing off her. “Actually, don’t tell them that.”

“The simple matter of the fact was, Nightmare deliberately picked crowded areas for straight on matches and Celly would always protect the citizens first, leaving her no room or magic to go on the offensive,” I said.

“Well, you might have once been as powerful as she was, but I know you’re not now. What happened? Did the Elements take your power or something?” She grinned. “Aww dude, imagine if Dash had the power of an alicorn. The world would be dead by the afternoon, but it’d be so fucking awesome while it lasted.”

“Are you an idiot? Magic doesn’t work that way,” sighed Trixie. “Trixie would explain, but she doubts your small brain would be able to understand such complicated information.”

Gilda shrugged. “Whatever dude. It was just an idea, and obviously it hasn’t happened. I mean, I used the word ‘imagine’ right? I doubt Dash is gonna end up with a horn any time soon.”

“Regardless, Trixie is curious as to why you are so weak. As far as she knows, magic regenerates and it has been months since your return,” commented Trixie.

I winced. Turns out their little argument had not distracted them from the original question.

“Well...” I drew circles in the air with my hoof. “It is far too complex for us to explain.”

“Oh give it up already, you might as well tell them already. They’re already in too deep to not know everything.”

“We liked it better when thou hated their guts.”

“I still hate the blue one.”

“Regardless, thine emotions are clouding thy judgment.”

“...”

“Give Trixie a shot. She is the Great and Powerful for a reason.”

Gilda looked at me, her head tilted to the side. “Nah, I’m betting she just doesn’t know why her powers are gone.” She looked back at Trixie. “She gets all ‘puny mortals, rargh-rargh bitch-bitch we’re a goddess,’ when she’s trying to act like she knows more than she does.”

I just stared at the gryphon as though she was insane before replying, “Art thou right in thy head?”

“Heh.Nah, not really. But that was just sarcasm, so no I’m not going retarded just yet. Anyway, am I right? Do you even know?”

“Yes. Thou art entirely correct,” I replied in a monotone. “After all, thou art a genius.”

Gilda just raised an eyebrow. “Alright then smartass, tell me why you’ve lost your power.”

“Because We gave it to the Element of Loyalty just as thou suggested.”

She rolled her eyes. “Just fucking tell us. I’m already sick of ‘everyone gang up on the gryphon who can’t do magic.’ I mean fuck, is it really my fault that I barely know shit about this?”

“Yes,” replied Trixie.

“We have to agree. If thou wish to survive a fight with a unicorn, thou must know how their strength functions,” I added.

Gilda snorted and glared at me. “My kill count would disagree. Not just some randoms either, but actual fighters too.”

“We doubt thou hast killed as many as us,” I replied.

“And Trixie’s... er... practical experience with disagreeable bar patrons would also disagree.” Gilda and I stared at the unicorn before turning away once more. “Hey! Why do you two always treat Trixie as though she knows nothing about fighting? Just because she hasn’t killed anypony doesn’t mean she is defenseless or an idiot.”

“Would thou like to explain, or shall We?” I asked Gilda.

“Just ignore her. She won’t get it till she bags her first. Mind you, I’m hoping that doesn’t happen anytime soon, if ever.” She looked back at me. “And you’re a goddess that’s been around since creation as far as I know.” Not strictly true, but she didn’t need to know that. “I mean, if half the shit you’ve told me about being a god of war is true, then your count’s gonna be way higher than mine ever will.”

“‘God of war’? Please, flattery will get you nowhere.” A stone bounced along the dirt road as I gave it a solid kick. “But yes, We were responsible for many kills, though We are certain Celly’s kill count is higher.”

“Really? Huh, who’d have thought it. Good ol’ Celly, more murderific than Nightmare Moon? They don’t teach that in the history books.” She glanced across at me. “Flattery?” She snorted. “I never flatter anyone. Ever. It’s kind of fucked up that you took that as a complement.”

“As thou hath commented in the past, We art ‘fucked up’ indeed.”

“Luna, please don’t use that. Ever,” said Trixie. “Especially not in public. It is indecent to the highest degree and only degenerate ponies use it at all.”

“Like me.” Gilda piped up with a smile. “It’s an awesome word though. It’s total goddess damn bullshit that it’s fucking social crime. Stupid upper-class cunts and bitchy Celestians.” She rolled her eyes. “Fuck is a word that needs more respect than it gets.”

“Ignore all that,” commented Trixie. “She is insane. Completely and utterly insane.”

“Yeah, Trix is probably right. You’re not gonna make any friends by speaking like I do. I mean, I start enough fights as it is.”

“Everything Gilda does, do the exact opposite,” added Trixie.

“Okay, there’s gotta be exceptions to that one.” Gilda shook her head. “I mean, there are times when I haven’t killed or haven’t acted out of line.” She looked up in thought. “I mean, I think there’ve been times.”

“Name one.” A smirk danced on Trixie’s lips as she stared at Gilda.

“Uh... did you have to be there?”

The unicorn nodded.

“Uh... how about that time when I was showing you around Port Town? Nothing really happened there.”

“Except for that small anecdote where you butchered a corpse and sold the meat to a butcher.One who Trixie might add, was a friend and didn’t know where the meat was from.”

“Really? Did thou poison the meat first? We did that once when fighting the dragons. Equestria was not known for having meat lying around so We were forced to use the meat from some ambushed dragons.” A small chuckle escaped. “We had to use illusion magic and bundle them up to look like cows and such, but it did the trick. We still are not sure how any non-blind creature could have mistaken those for anything other than a trap.”

“Ah yes, I remember that! That was a stroke of pure genius.”

There was a second of shocked silence, before Trixie shattered it by throwing up.

“Ah fuck,” Gilda danced away from the unicorn. “Trix! Come on! It’s just dead animal. No it’s not even dead animal, it’s the idea of dead animal. How the fuck did you even cook that food last night?” She started patting the unicorn on the back. “Come on, spit out the bile after taste. This is something you’re gonna have to get used to.”

“Trixie hopes not,” she replied in a raspy voice. “How can you two be so callous about all this? Dragons are sentient!”

“We were at war,” I replied with a shrug.

“There you go, waving that flag again.” Gilda turned to me. “So what if you were at war? Shit you did was wrong. Face it. You can justify everything all you want, but the fact is you did messed up things, and it was your fault.”

“All is fair in love and war,” I replied. “Until thou hast fought for the lives of thousands, thou cannot judge our acts. We are not saying We would repeat our actions in this day and age, but We do not regret our actions.”

Gilda grit her jaw. “Fuck.” She put a palm to her head. “You don’t get it? Stop justifying yourself damn it! If you’re the bad guy, you’re the fucking bad guy! Deal with your issues dude, don’t hide behind your fucking excuses.”

“So We should not hath done that and instead found some nice peaceful solution or have some drawn out, bloody war where thousands would die?” I cocked an eyebrow at them. “All the while, the dragons would be breeding ponies like cattle to feed their ever growing population. Of course, ho-”

“No!” Gilda looked frustrated. “You do what you have to do at the time you have to do it, but fucking Tartarus... You can’t be happy about it, and you need to stop justifying it. You did fucked up things, and you’re still refusing to admit it. It doesn’t matter why you did it, just own up to it without all this crap about why you had to. I’m a fucking murderer, not a ‘self-defense’ or whatever retarded spin you want to put on it. I’m never going to dress that up as anything else. I’ll hide that because I don’t want to go to jail, but when someone finds, out I make no bones about the fact that I’m a fucking killer.”

“Does it sound as though We were trying to justify our actions? We merely stated a fact. What others think is of no matter to us, for We did what was necessary to stop a war in its tracks.” I rubbed my temples. “Thou art starting to remind us of Celly.”

“You’re not getting it. Even if you don’t give a shit what anyone else thinks, you have to face up to yourself. You need to know what you did, live with it. Stop hiding behind your own excuses. If shit like that doesn’t eat you up, then you’re not dealing with it, damn it!”

“If We allowed things like that to eat us up, thou wouldst have two less rulers,” I snapped back. “We are immortal. We have committed crimes that none should have to even contemplate. Unlike thou, We cannot afford to regret what we have done, for such acts would drive us insane. If either of theebelieve Celly is less steeped in blood than us, thou art sorely mistaken.”

“Well maybe that’s what you both deserve.” Gilda poked a finger at us. “Forget everyone else, what about you?”

“Death,” I replied without missing a beat. “We deserved to die for everything We hath done. Death is what Celly should have delivered to us when she used the Elements on us.”

“...You still don’t get it.” She turned and started walking ahead of us again, her voice dripping with disgust. “Fuck it. Whatever. You still haven’t told us why you’ve lost your powers.”

I cursed under my breath. “And We are not going to tell thee.”

Her shoulders betrayed her anger, even if I could not see her expression. “Why not?” Her voice was taut with irritation too. “What bigger secret could you possibly have than you made Tartarus? I think after we’ve heard that, you haven’t got much else left that’s worth hiding.”

“Thou wouldst be surprised,” I replied darkly. “It is more to stop thee from fearing the worst than anything else.”

Gilda just snorted and kept walking.

After a second Trixie spoke up, “Well that answer does not satisfy Trixie. She already fears the worst, not that Trixie’s afraid of anything, but how much worse could it be?”

“Well...” I channeled a bit of Nightmare as I gave her my most frightening grin. “If thou really want to know, our power is split with Nightmare currently.”

“And here I expected you to outright lie rather than give a white lie.”

“The best lies are the ones that contain a grain of truth,” I replied easily.

“Bullshit.” Gilda looked back at us. “You were exhausted when Nightmare used magic, so you’re sharing the same source. Also, Nightmare’s power isn’t enough to level Equestria or even a part of it. Either you’re lying about Celestia’s power, or your own.”

Since when did she get so smart?

“You might as well tell them the truth. You’ve dug yourself a hole.”

“Silence! There is still-”

“There is no way out of this! Just tell them the truth already. If you don’t I will.”

“In order to access our magic, We need to... That is...” I looked away. “We need to give the other permission otherwise they cannot use the magic.”

They both stared at me, processing the statement. “So, basically, if you want your power back, you need to ask Nightmare nicely, and if she wants hers back, she needs you to give the go ahead?”

“They... They are idiots.”

“Agreed. Beneficial to us though.”

“Something like that, yes. It is far more complex than that though,” I replied.

Gilda’s eyes narrowed. “So then I was wrong? That’s not how it works? You were lying to us, again? You went all ‘it’s over your heads’ again, and that answer was way too vague.”

“We cannot give a straight answer, because We have never heard of something like this before!” I groaned in frustration. “We have no answer.”

“Wait.” All eyes focused on Trixie. “If you can’t cast magic without Nightmare’s permission, how can you cast magic at all?”

“Maybe she’s not a complete idiot after all,” chuckled Nightmare.

“We have a small pool in reserve that the other cannot touch,” I lied easily.

“Is that even possible?” Gilda eyed me up and down. “Nah, I think she’s lying again.” She turned to Trixie. “She’s full of shit, right? That’s not possible is it?”

“Trixie... Trixie doesn’t know. Such a thing is completely unheard of...” For once, the admission did not look as though it was forced out of her.

“Well, if it’s unheard of, doesn’t that make it less likely? In a thousand years of existence this can’t be a completely unique case, right?” Gilda reasoned it out. “If it hasn’t happened before, what are the chances of it happening now?” She glanced back at me. “Nah, I don’t buy it.” She stared me in the eyes. “You’re lying to us again. I know for a fact Nightmare’s power’s tied to yours... somehow. But it’s not what you’re saying it is.”

“Of course,” came the sarcastic reply from Trixie. “You just ‘know this’ with absolutely nothing to back it up. Name one other unicorn with not only split personality disorder, but it’s got a magical component to it all. One.”

“Well I don’t know any unicorns or magical history at all, but I was in Nightmare’s head for a bit there. I mean, it’s confusing, but I just... I don’t know what I know, but when I know it, I know that I know it. And I know that their power is tied to each other... somehow.”

“Cut the shit!” snarled Trixie. “You dislike Luna. Trixie gets it. Everypony gets it. But enough with the damn conspiracies. Just listen to yourself. You’re basing your theories off something you saw in a mad pony’s head! And don’t you dare say ‘I know it was the truth’ because she’s a fucking goddess! Limitless power and a biology that’s completely different to a pony’s. So just shut the fuck up and stop this unicorn hunt.”

Gilda just stared at her for a second. “‘Unicorn hunt’? What?”

“Dark period in Equestrian history before Celly and I came to power. Unicorns were hunted for practicing magic,” I replied automatically. “And for their horns.Said to contain unimaginable power.”

Gilda shook her head. “Uh, okay. Trix are you okay? I mean, why are you pissed off? I don’t trust Luna, yeah... but why do you care if I do or don’t?”

“Trixie doesn’t want to talk about it,” she snapped back.

Gilda sighed and looked up to the sky frustrated. “Mares.” After a moment she just rolled her eyes and looked straight at Trixie. “Whatever. Luna’s lying. Even if it’s paranoid, I know I’m right.”

“Of course you do.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Gilda asked Trixie with irritation in her voice.

“Absolutely nothing,” replied the unicorn.

Gilda rolled her eyes. “Ugh. Whatever.” She didn’t say anything and we walked in silence.

As annoying as their bickering could be, it did have its benefits. I sent a silent prayer to Harmony in thanks for giving Trixie such emotional issues and for making her so sensitive to them. Without her comments, there was little doubt that anything I said would have resulted in Gilda becoming even more suspicious. That was one of the few things I could not afford to happen.

“Goddesses damn it.” Gilda said to no one in particular. “Can we last a fucking day without someone having a big emotional thing? Stupid fucking feelings.” She muttered to herself.

Trixie burst out laughing. “Are there three more emotionally stunted individuals than us? Think about it. We’re probably the most insane group ever.”

Gilda cracked a grin. “Maybe most insane alive, but I’m not sure about ‘ever’. Heard any gryphon legends? I’m telling ya, those were some crazy bastards if half of what’s said is true.”

“Dragon legends are also rather amusing in that regard. Vaunted as heroes when they were in fact sociopaths,” I added.

Gilda shrugged. “Yeah well, sounds like history to me. Most of the big historical figures, like the first king of the Black Eyes or Commander Hurricane, were really fucked up. It’s just ‘cause they won and wrote the history books that we remember them as heroes.” She shrugged. “If Nightmare won the war, I’m betting Celestia would be a name as bad as Discord. The sun would just be a cub’s horror story, what with eternal night and all.”

“Well Trixie is sorry if she likes her heroes to be heroic and virtuous.”

“Heroes are just ponies. Or gryphons or whatever. Everyone has their vices and issues. I mean, the stories I used to love when I was a cub were about the gryphons that went to Equestria and fought in the war against Nightmare. That doesn’t change the fact that Anibal was only doing what he did to piss the Black Eyes off. Yeah, he changed the Kingdom forever and set the Great Scars up as what they are today, but all he really wanted to do was get at the tribe that forced his tribe into a war he couldn’t give a shit about.” She shook her head. “I don’t really think anyone that we call heroes were really all that great at the time.”

“Twilight Sparkle?” I asked out of curiosity.

“T-Twilight Sparkle!?” I recoiled at Trixie’s sudden outburst. “She’s a fake and fraud! Don’t you dare mention her name in the presence of the Great and Powerful Trixie.”

My eyes narrowed. “Thou shalt still thy tongue. Thou art speaking of the mare who set us free.”

Gilda glanced between the two of us. “Personally, I never really met her.”

“Well We have, and from what We have heard of thy encounter with her, We are willing to say thine opinion was formed from a bruised ego.” I flicked a lock of stray mane out of my eyes. “After all, thou bragged that thou defeated an ursa major, only for an ursa minor turn up and defeat thee. Then out came Twilight Sparkle, vanquishing the beast with nary a thought.”

“Like I said, wasn’t there, got no opinion.” Gilda turned to Trixie. “But, I really want to know Trix, why have you got such a grudge against her? Is it really just a ton of butt hurt?”

“Later,” she replied with a glance over at Luna.

“Really? Thou trust this gryphon more than thine own princess?”

“Hey, don’t feel too bad about it.” Gilda gave me a reassuring tone. “I mean, I trust you as far as I can piss, and I’m female, so I don’t blame Trix for not wanting you to know.” She gave me a smirk.

“What.” Trixie’s eye twitched. “You butchered that saying on purpose! Luna, never say that. It’s meant to be ‘as far as I can throw you,’ but Gilda here is just a foul mouthed braggart.”

“Hey!” Gilda turned to glare at Trixie. “I resent that. Braggart? Since when am I a braggart? I’ve got nothing on you when it comes to narcissism. Hell, I’m downright self-destructive.”

A frown appeared on Trixie’s face. “You... hate yourself...?”

Gilda paused. “Well... hate’s a strong word. I mean, I’m just honest with myself.” She shrugged. “I’m not the good guy, or really even half decent. I’ve never pretended to be anything other than me.”

“Do you hate yourself?” asked Trixie.

“Uh...” Gilda shrugged. “I don’t ‘love’ myself.” She stopped and smirked. “Except for those times I do love myself. If you know what I mean.”

“You-I-Trixie-” Though I did not understand what had made Trixie blush and stammer so, knowing Gilda, it was probably something lewd.

Gilda smirked at Trixie. “Hey Trix, you’ve gone purple. Need me to clear your throat?”

“S-Silence you ruffian!” Her blush did not fade one bit. “And you know what Trixie meant! Stop dodging the question.”

Gilda just drew her claws across her beak. “Sorry, but you told me to be silent, can’t do both.”

“Answer the question then!”

Gilda rolled her eyes. “What question?”

“Do you love yourself? Do you hate yourself? Answer me damn it!”

Gilda shifted uncomfortably. “I dunno. I guess?” She shrugged her shoulders. “But who doesn’t hate things about themself? I mean, everyone has things they wish they could change. Heck, sixteen year old fillies all despise themselves.”

“You know what Trixie is asking...” said Trixie.

Again the gryphon fidgeted. “Do you really have to ask? Does it matter if I do or not? I mean, what does it matter if I’m nothing but booze, swearing and violence? Who cares? It’s not like I matter anyway.”

Trixie opened mouth to say something, only to suddenly close it again.

“When you’ve never done anything but hurt and disappoint, or get abandoned or... shit I dunno.” Gilda shook her head and sighed. “I guess I do hate myself. How couldn’t I? There’s nothing good about me.” She snorted. “Fuck. No wonder Nightmare wants me so bad.”

“Gilda...” To my surprise, Trixie threw her arms around the gryphon and hugged her tight. After a brief second, I laid a gentle hoof on her shoulder for extra support.

“I am going to kill that bitch,” growled Nightmare before sighing, “Oh Aurora, I miss you so much. Come back to me, my love.”

“Love!?” But Nightmare was already lost in her own depression.

Gilda almost seemed to relax, for a split second she seemed close to settling into the hug, but after a moment her wings flared, and she pulled herself away from us.

“No. Fuck. Trix, I’m not trying to drag up sympathy or anything.”

A blue glow surrounded Gilda and she was forcibly dragged back into Trixie’s arms. “It’s not sympathy. You shouldn’t hate yourself, you know?”

She struggled in the glow. “Let go of me, Trix.” There was almost an edge to her voice. “I’m not fucking kidding, let me go.”

For a brief second, Trixie hesitated before she let the gryphon go and stepped back. “Sorry...”

Gilda glared at her. “No! You don’t need to be sorry.” Her expression softened and she put a palm to her face and sighed. “I mean... look, I’m sorry.”

“Trixie just doesn’t want you to hate yourself,” whispered the unicorn.

Gilda shrugged. “Give it time. In a few months you won’t care anymore, and you’ll hate me as much as anyone else.”

A death glare appeared on Trixie’s face, only for a sly smile to slowly replace it. Leaning forward, she whispered something in Gilda’s ear and the gryphoness immediately flinched away.

“No Trix, you don’t need to fix me or...” She sighed. “Look, don’t worry about it alright? I’ll be fine, and in the end you will too.” She shook her head. “Let’s just keep moving, okay? I’ve had enough emotional shit for one day.”

“Trixie isn’t trying to fix you! She just doesn’t want to see you destroy yourself like her mother did, alright? Trixie just wants to help. Somehow.” And then spoke in something akin to a whimper, “Please...”

Gilda stiffened, and she stared at Trixie with shock. She opened her beak to answer, only to close it after a moment. She stood in silence for a minute, before sighing and turning away. “You’ll be fine, Trix. Don’t worry about it.”

“Trixie wants you to be fine though.”

I blinked in surprise, eyes darting between the two as the pieces fell into place. As soon as they did, I turned my attention inwards and was relieved to find Nightmare still moping in the back of my mind. They may be annoying, but I would not wish Nightmare’s wrath on anypony.

Gilda sighed. “I’m not going to promise anything. Let’s just get you back to Equestria, then... we’ll see what happens.”

“At least promise to try.”

Gilda looked up at the sky. “Goddesses damnit Trix. I promise I’ll get you back to Equestria. I promise I won’t hurt you. I promise that I’m not gonna cut my wrists and drown myself in booze. That’s all I have to offer you right now.”

“Trixie just doesn’t want you to hate yourself. You don’t deserve to hate yourself. You are a good person, regardless of what other ponies may believe or say, it’s the truth. Alright?”

Gilda looked across at her. “I killed my first sentient when I was thirteen years old.” She stated flatly. “It wasn’t self-defense. It wasn’t an accident. I murdered them.” She swallowed and looked ahead. “I wasn’t sorry, and I’m still not. I’m not a good person.”

“I don’t care.” I blinked in surprise at Trixie’s use of first person. “I don’t care about that you silly gryphon. I just want you to be happy. Is that so hard to understand?”

Gilda smirked and nudged her shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. In a month you’ll hate me, and then you won’t give a fuck anymore.”

“Not. Funny.” Trixie punched Gilda and for once, it looked as though it was meant to hurt the gryphon. “Don’t you dare say that again. I will not-” Her mouth slammed shut as her eyes darted over to me.

“Do not worry, Nightmare is currently busy up here.” I tapped my forehead. “We shall keep this from her for as long as we live.”

“Good.” Gilda turned around. “Cause if Nightmare touches her,” She jabbed a claw into my chest. “Then I’m gonna kill you both if you’re in there or not. And I don’t give a fuck if you’re a goddess, I’ll find a way.”

“Gilda!”

With a laugh, I waved Trixie off. “Thou may hate thyself, but there are far worse individuals out there. For all thy faults, thou art one of the best persons we have come across in a long time.” I turned my attention to Trixie. “Thou have made a good choice. Could do better considering the fowl language that comes from her mouth, but she is still a good choice. Do not let her get away.”

Gilda blinked and stepped back from me. “Luna, your opinion on what makes someone a good person means jackshit.” She glanced over at Trixie before turning back to me. “And I’m not fucking kidding. If you tell Nightmare, I swear to all the fucking elders, goddesses, and gryphon spirits that I will fucking end you.”

“Gilda...” Trixie laid a restraining hoof on her shoulder. “If you weren’t threatening a goddess, Trixie might actually have found this romantic.”

Gilda snorted. “It’s only funny until it happens. Everyone laughed about the Great Scars, saying they were barbarians and idiots, but in the end they were the ones who pulled the Kingdom up into the military power it is today. A mortal killing an immortal?” She shrugged. “Crazier things have happened.”

“May We suggest that thou behead us and then to lock the two in two separate boxes? We are unsure if this will actually kill an immortal, for We have never tried, but it is thy best chance.”

Gilda raised an eyebrow. “I was thinking I just skin you, and use your brains to tan that into leather. I disconnect all your muscle, and separate your bones. Basically just pull every last part of you apart and use it like I would for a normal kill. If that doesn’t kill someone, nothing I can do will.”

“Well We merely wished to tell thee the surefire way of doing it. Or thou could leave something buried in our heart or brain. It will degrade over time, but by then thou shalt be long dead.” I glanced over at Trixie who was staring at Gilda with a mixture of awe, lust, and fear. Weird filly.

“Well, I was planning on wearing your skin like a cloak.” Gilda shrugged.

“Gilda!” snapped Trixie.

“Right-right-right. If, Nightmare found out. I forgot the ‘if’.”

“Gilda... No skinning enemies and wearing them as a cloak. Got that?”

Gilda rolled her eyes and turned to her. “You’re taking the fun out of it. If I kill a goddess, there’s no way in Tartarus I’m not taking a trophy. If Calisto put manticore tails on his wall, I can wear a goddess cloak.” She paused and added. “If.”

“Trixie would rather you not die trying to get a goddess damn cloak.”

“Oh no. I won’t be trying to get the cloak. I’ll be trying to save your life or avenge your death. Whichever comes first. The cloak’s just a bonus.”

“So Trixie’s death is just a catalyst for you getting a cloak?” And there was the raised eyebrow. It had been far too long since I had seen that particular look given to a significant other. It always meant a show was about to start.

“What?” Gilda shook her head confused. “No. It’s not about the cloak, the cloak’s just an extra. It really is about either revenge or protecting you.”

“And yet you keep focusing on the cloak.”

“Pfft. What cloak?” She shrugged. “I’ve forgotten about it already?”

“You had better,” replied Trixie.

“Totally.” She smiled. “I’ve already forgotten what we’re even talking about.”

“So now Trixie’s death is that forgettable?”

Gilda claw impacted her face. “Goddesses damnit.” She shook her head and looked Trixie in the eye. “No. Your death is not forgettable.” She turned to me. “You better not tell Nightmare.” She pointed a thumb at herself. “And you better shut your beak before you get yourself in even more trouble.”

“Actually, how much can you keep from Nightmare anyways?” asked Trixie.

At her shoulder, Gilda silently mouthed at me, “I’m not kidding about the cloak. I will fucking wear you.”

“We can’t try to keep it away from her too actively or else she will sense We are hiding things and will try to break through. But We can misdirect her easily enough. We have managed to keep a lot hidden from her thus far, and there’s little reason to begin doubting otherwise,” I replied while ignoring Gilda.

The gryphon spoke up. “I just realized that if Luna figured it out, and she’s pretty freaking retarded, we’re gonna have to work way harder to hide it from Nightmare, who’s way less stupid.”

I bit my tongue at that comment.

“Does it matter? We just stop getting all emotional and play it cool.” Trixie turned to me. “Is Nightmare still preoccupied?”

“Yes. Why?” I asked as Gilda glanced over at Trixie.

With a sly grin Trixie suddenly whirled around, grabbed Gilda’s head and planted a kiss right on her beak. It looked awkward, sloppy and very messy, but when Trixie pulled back a second or two later, she was flushed red and very happy.

Gilda just stood there, looking as shocked as if she’d been struck with lightning. “Well,” she said after a second. “It looks like you just figured out beak to muzzle kissing.”

A smirk appeared on Trixie’s face. “Well I am the Great and Powerful for a reason. But, Trixie thinks she can still do with some practice.” Both hooves found themselves wrapped around Gilda’s neck as Trixie looked up with bedroom eyes. “Care to oblige?”

Gilda smirked. “Well, well, well. Trixie admitting there’s something she hasn’t mastered.” She tilted her head. “Who are you, and what did you do to Trix?”

“Does it matter?” Trixie leaned forward until her lips were brushing along Gilda’s beak. “And are you really complaining?”

After a second Gilda pulled away. “As awesome as it might be,” She jerked her head at me. “We have company, and in the back of that company’s head is a murderer who might become unbusy at any moment.” She looked down. “Later though.”

“We are willing to give thee some privacy at night if thou prefer. Perhaps separate rooms at an inn next time we are in a town,” I commented. “Or even to just sleep further away from thee.”

“Hey, woah.” Gilda glanced over at me. “We’ve only been going out for a day now, and that was our first kiss.” She paused. “Unless you count last night,” she shook her head. “Whatever, the point is we’re not fucking yet. We don’t exactly need a shit ton of privacy.”

“Wait, thou mean ponies kiss in public now?” My eyes widened in surprise. “Truly? Well, at any rate, with some privacy, you two will be able to snuggle and kiss without fear is what We meant.”

“Oh.” Gilda said flatly.

“And here Trixie thought you were the type to jump in bed for some early fun.” My eyes widened as I stared at them. Ponies actually talked about such things so openly now?

Gilda shifted uncomfortably. “Well, uh, I mean... it’s like, uh.... Ah fuck it.” She looked up at the sky. “I don’t want to have sex yet.”

“...You say that as though it’s a bad thing or admitting it will end the relationship,” chuckled Trixie.

Gilda shifted. “Uh... Trix. I’m not... fuck. There’s no way to put this really nicely, so I’m just going to say it. I only agreed to date you to be nice. I hadn’t even thought of you like that until last night. I mean, yeah I’m attracted, but... “ Again that uncomfortable shuffle. “I’m not sure I want to screw just yet, okay?”

“Are... are you... are you breaking up with me...?” Trixie looked on the verge of tears.

Gilda swallowed, and looked like she weighing up her options. “Well, no I wasn’t, but maybe that’s a good idea?” She squirmed again. “I mean, you’d be way better off without being attached to me.”

“Trixie... That is... I disagree...” replied Trixie as she tried to keep her tears in. “Trixie has never felt safer.”

Gilda immediately leaned across and put an arm around her shoulders. “No- shit- uh.... I mean...” she stumbled for words. “Damn it Trix. You’re just not getting how bad of news I am. Fuck, I just want you safe. More than anything else, and I can’t do that. Okay?”

“As far as Trixie is concerned, you are good news,” replied Trixie as she drew out of Gilda’s arms. “So are you breaking up with Trixie or not?”

“Uh... I guess?” she answered hesitantly. “I mean, it’s... uh...Shit. I don’t want to, I really fucking don’t, bu-”

Trixie leaned forward and forced another kiss on Gilda. This one lingered though, and it was clear that there was tongue involved this time. A lot of tongue. I looked up at the sky and rolled my eyes. To think such public displays were acceptable now!

“Then don’t,” whispered Trixie as I looked back at the two. The two stood there, foreheads touching. “Then don’t leave me. Please...”

Gilda sighed and furrowed her brow. “...I’m such a selfish bitch.” She pulled back. “This cannot end well. Fuck. Alright. We’ll stay together, but...” She trailed off. “Alright. We’ll see how far we can take this.”

“Good.” A tender nuzzle from Trixie. “Don’t scare me like that.”

“Yeah okay.” Gilda put a palm to her face, and sighed. “Come on, we better keep moving.”

“Agreed,” I said. “And please refrain from such displays of affection. We are not used to such open shows. It is... disturbing.”

Gilda rolled her eyes. “Old ponies. Geez, were they ever young? Lame old farts have no idea how to have fun.”

Trixie chuckled as she leaned against Gilda. “Mmmmhm.”

We all turned and began to walk again, after a while Trixie stepped away from Gilda and I glanced up at the sky. We had lost too much time to all that emotional talk, but it had given me an insight into their life. Their relationship was something I had not considered at all, and that required a few adjustments, but overall, nothing too serious. Another check on Nightmare told me, she was still moping, and I frowned. This ‘Aurora’ was a starting to become a serious problem.

Regardless, a couple more days and then I shall finally get the answers I so desperately seek.

Chapter 13

Once more, we were in our disguises, and once more, Gilda was leading us through the town. All the leering males, being ordered around like a slave, and overall degrading treatment reminded me of exactly why I never partook in any undercover missions within the gryphon borders. I was a princess, not some piece of meat to be weighed and measured by the common rabble. The worst part was, this was just the countryside, once we actually got within the township of White Peak itself there was no doubt there would be even more males.

And guards.

A shudder ran through my body at that thought. Filthy guards and their filthy armor. If one so much as touches me, I cannot be held responsible for what happens next. Especially if Nightmare Moon manages to find her way out through pure coincidence and no action of my own.

Trixie on the other hoof, was enjoying this immensely. Sure, she hated the idea of being part of a harem, but you wouldn’t know that if you were one of the poor males watching us pass. Considering the way she would sway her hips, hang off Gilda’s wing, whisper things in the gryphon’s ear, and be an absolute tease about everything. Even without reading any emotions or minds, I could feel the annoyance and frustration radiating off the poor gryphoness. Torn between her hate for sexualized female items and her desire to just kiss Trixie silly no doubt.

A quick check told me Nightmare still had no idea about their relationship. Good. If one good thing could come out of all this, I hope this was it. Plus, it had been so long since I had last played matchmaker, and I recalled fond memories of pushing two ponies together and watching the sparks fly. Love-hate relationships were always the best.

“-stop it, Trix,” Gilda muttered in annoyance. “Seriously, it’s old now.”

The unicorn-disguised-gryphoness cocked an eyebrow. “Trix?”

Gilda-the-male, growled in annoyance. “Adelina then. I shouldn’t have to tell you that wives aren’t supposed to wave flank at half the town. If I was a male from the northern tribes, I would probably be beating you right now. But, I’m not a douche like that.”

“Not my fault you wouldn’t let me walk in front of you. If you did, you’d have enjoyed a nice show for the past three hours,” replied Trixie with a smirk. “But if you insist ‘dear’.”

Gilda put out her arm to stop Trixie walking ahead. “No, that’s not the point and you know it. Stay behind me, and stop flirting with everyone in sight. I’m not asking for anything remotely hard.”

“I wasn’t flirting with everyone in sight,” muttered Trixie, but she did drop back slightly. While her flank still swayed, it was less exaggerated now, much to my disappointment. Walking for so long with the same scenery does get dull after a while.

As we passed the final hill, the township came into view and behind it loomed a large mountain range, the highest of which had a peak of pure white. The green grass underfoot soon turned to a pale yellow and the soil was soon dry like sand. Off in the distance, we could see the grassland turn into the desert so representative of the Changeling Wastes.

“Alright we’re here.” Gilda looked over her shoulder at us, “Seriously, now’s the time to really fit in. We’re at the edge of the Changeling Wastes, so I’m betting bits the guards will be tighter than a trip wire.”

We simply nodded in reply and I could see Trixie’s entire body slumping into the submissive stance she used back in the cabin. Truth be told, I picked up the showmare on a whim, thinking she might be useful as a cover story, a total liability once they got captured, but I was seriously starting to reconsider. As we got closer to the guards, I followed her example and looked down at the ground while letting my shoulders go slack.

Gilda stood up taller, and she reduced her usual glancing about. She still had her predatory walk, and I wasn’t convinced she could not walk like that, but now there was a very male arrogance to it. In just this week of travel and sparring I’d been surprised by just how quickly she improved. She still had her flaws taking a defensive stance, but she was learning, and that was the important thing. As long as she didn’t get herself killed in combat, I’d consider myself lucky.

Gilda gave us one last quick appraising glance before walking up to the gate at a brisk pace. Beside her and just slightly back stood Trixie, and I trailed behind both of them. The guards immediately... relaxed? They slouched, leaning against their spears with lazy abandon.

As we came to a halt before them they didn’t respond, seemingly staring into the sky with a lazy smile tugging at the corners of their beaks. After a moment of being ignored, Gilda coughed loudly. They blinked, as if awoken from a stupor and turned to scowl at us.

“What?” The darker coated one asked with annoyance.

“The gates friend.” Gilda replied in her false accent. “We-”

“Yeah, yeah.” He waved a claw before he turned around and shouted up, “Get the gate!”

Gilda blinked in surprise, and her brow furrowed. She glanced between the guard and the gate while the heavy wooden doors slowly swung open. Her beak opened to protest, but after a second she shut it and walked through that gate. After a moment, we followed her.

As we stepped through the gate, a buzzing began filling my ears and an oppressive weight lodged itself between my wings. With a shake of my head, the buzzing disappeared and I could feel Nightmare stirring in the back of my mind. Magic. Strong magic permeated this place, no doubt the result of the Wide Eyes’ testing facility, and it was no surprise that the gryphons couldn’t feel it. Still, there was something familiar about this sensation.

A quick glance over at Trixie told me nothing. It was impossible to tell if she felt it or not.

“Nightmare?”

“This is definitely familiar, but I can’t put my hoof on it either. If you find the epicenter, perhaps it will help jog my memory.”

I nodded in response and picked up my pace to catch up to the others. Out the corner of my eye, I kept a close watch on those around us. Sure, I might have been gone for a thousand years, but I’d never seen a town this at peace and idyllic, even in Equestria. Considering this was a fortified town next to the Changeling Wastes, such calmness should have been impossible.

Gilda frowned over her shoulder at the gate, her eyes narrowing on the guards. “Last time I was here... they didn’t even let me in. I had to smuggle myself inside...” She shook her head. “They didn’t even check us for weapons or...” She scowled and turned around. “What?” She froze in shock for some reason.

“Gilda?” whispered Trixie.

“Huh?” Gilda turned back towards her. She shook her head. “Sorry, I swear someone just said my name.” She smirked and tapped a claw to the side of her head before rolling her eyes. “What’s up?”

“N-Nothing.” Trixie’s eyes flicked to the side. “And did you hear that?”

“Heard what?” Gilda blinked.

“I could have sworn I heard sobbing...” she replied with a frown.

Gilda looked around. “Well I didn’t hear anything.” She turned towards me. “Did you hear something?”

I simply shook my head.

She frowned at me. “Are you not telling us shit again?”

An eye roll followed by a flick of my eye to the other gryphons around us.

“Oh...” Gilda had the grace to look embarrassed. “Right...” She muttered and turned around. “Come on, let’s go find an inn.”

“Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

“I’m... not certain... It was like the ghost of a word, and yet, it felt as though I knew what was being spoken. If that makes any sense.”

“Something dark is afoot here.”

“You don’t think they’d be experimenting on the entire town do you?”

I frowned and shook my head. “We do not think so. Gilda may idolize the Wide Eyes, but only fools would test such a dangerous chemical on their own citizens.”

“This place is wrong.” Gilda said aloud. “Everyone’s so...” she stared at a passing couple that were having a relaxing picnic. “Normal. This place was set on a hair string last time I was here. Everyone had that... you know, hard, ready-for-anything look. Even the females glared at everyone else.”

Trixie cast a look my way. “Perhaps we should discuss this somewhere private?”

“Yeah, seriously,” Gilda looked over her shoulder at me. “When we get to the inn, you’re talking.” She looked forward again. “This is really weirding me out.”

A simple nod in reply.

We passed through the town, apparently not attracting any attention, and Gilda led us to an inn. She pushed the door open, and approached the counter, checking the room out as she went. A quick survey told me the bar was empty, but for a few patrons, who were merely sitting alone and drinking with odd half-smiles on their beaks.

“A room for the night.” Gilda ordered the bartender and I could see a shiver run through Trixie.

He just stared at her for a second, before shrugging. “Alright.”

Gilda blinked. “And the price of such?” she inquired.

He shrugged again. “Ten crowns?”

Gilda’s brow furrowed. “Are you insulting me and my harem?”

Trixie shifted uncomfortably.

The bartender shrugged. “Alright, fifty crowns?”

Gilda tilted her head and stared at him. “...”

He just stared back at her, but with far less intensity, almost as though he was bored.

After a moment, Gilda left ten bits on the counter and held her claw out. “Keys.”

After another moments bored observation, her turned around and came back with several. He dumped them on the counter and then turned away to stare into space with the same half-smile.

“Changelings?” whispered Nightmare in my mind.

Gilda shifted uncomfortably, before pocketing all the keys and making her way up stairs. I lingered just a bit longer, examining the gryphons in the room before following her up the stairs. A quick glance back down at the innkeeper told me all I needed to know.

“Impossible. Changelings are far more adept at mimicking gryphons than this. It’s almost as though their minds have been tampered with,” I replied. “And this is not the mindless insanity brought about by the chemicals either. This is something else entirely.”

Gilda stopped at a room, and unlocked it with one of the keys. A peek inside and she shut it. “I think we should all sleep in one room tonight.” She jerked her thumb at the door. “That one’s just one bed.” She walked along the corridor, trying different rooms until eventually she stepped through a door.

I followed her into a fairly large room with three small beds, and a very homemade, almost rustic, appearance. Even as large as the room was, three beds took up most of the space, and the confines were uncomfortably tight. The blinds were shut, the door was locked, and I cast a sound proofing spell over the room.

“Trixie, dost thou feel any magic usage?” I asked.

“I’ve felt... something...” She frowned as she began pacing. “It’s not exactly like magic, but it is at the same time. It’s been buzzing in the back of Trixie’s mind and she can’t place her hoof on what it is. It’s familiar, yet not.”

“Wait,” Gilda looked directly at me. “You really don’t know what’s happening?”

“How could We, we just arrived,” I snapped back.

Gilda shrugged. “Well, I just assume you’re always holding something back on us, and I’ll find out what when it’s about to bite us in the ass.”

“All We know for certain is that it is magical in nature,” I replied.

“No shit, Sherclop,” Gilda replied sarcastically. “Got any info that’s slightly more... not completely Goddess damn obvious?”

“It is not Changelings,” I replied. “They are far more adept at impersonation than what we have seen thus far.”

“Well what else could it be then? Could the town have just been overrun by a particularly retarded hive?” Though her voice betrayed her lack of faith in that idea, she shrugged, “Or should we not drink the water or what?”

“If We knew, we wouldn’t be having this discussion,” I said. “This entire situation reeks of mind magic.”

Gilda shook her head. “Well, sorry for exactly not trusting you... Oh wait, I’m not sorry.” She snorted and turned to Trixie. “Hey, remember that time Luna warned us she had Nightmare in her head and totally told us what we should do if Nightmare came out? Oh, wait, you don’t remember that do you?” She turned to glare at me, “Probably because you didn’t warn us!”

I shrugged in response. “We are entitled to some privacy.”

She seethed with frustration. “Oh... fuck I hate you so much.” She turned away. “From this point forward, I’m adopting a policy of ‘blame Luna’.” She walked towards the door. “You two don’t burn anything down while I’m gone, alright?”

The door clicked shut behind her and we sat there in an awkward silence.

“So...” I said as I rubbed the back of my neck.

Trixie looked towards me. “Yes?”

The illusionary disguises disappeared and I gestured at her horn. “How did that happen?”

She blinked and scowled. “Trixie is afraid that’s none of your business.” Her hat was back in place as was her cape.

“Just refrain from doing anything stupid,” I replied.

“Please, Trixie is smart enough to know her limits. Gilda is far more likely to be the cause of trouble.”

“Merely commenting was all,” I replied with a shrug.

“Well, Trixie would prefer it if you kept your comments to yourself.” She huffed.

“Very well.” We lapsed back into silence. “Any idea as to what might be causing the current strangeness in this town?”

Trixie shrugged. “Is it really so strange? Beyond seeing things and the strange magic Trixie feels, are the gryphons truly being so odd?” She gave a small smile. “Gilda is rather paranoid.”

“Yes, yes she is, but that’s probably why she has survived as long as she has.” I shrugged. “Do whatever thou wish, We are going to grab some extra sleep.”

She paused. “Luna, do you know why Gilda is... um... what she is?” She stared at me, gauging my reactions. “She isn’t very communicative.”

“That is something thou will either have to ask Nightmare or Gilda herself. We are not in the job of giving up secrets so liberally,” I said.

She hesitated, before asking, “Does Nightmare actually know? Gilda claims you’re the one who tried to see her memories.”

“A lady never kisses and tells.” I smirked at her. “Or in this case, a lady never reads and tells. If thou wish to know the truth, thou shalt have to ask Gilda thyself.”

Trixie frowned. “And she will dodge the question, or simply tell me to not ask.” She paused. “Do you know who Gilda was mourning, back in the basement?”

“Nope,” I lied.

Trixie sighed. “Gilda’s right. You never tell anypony anything.” She flopped onto her bed and blew the mane out of her eyes. “Trixie tires of you. Be quiet so she can rest.”

I rolled my eyes. If only I could cast a silence spell on the mare so I wouldn’t have to listen to her annoying voice.

I pushed open the door to the shop, and one of those stupid tinkling bells let the guy in there know he had business. Assuming he wasn’t staring at the sky with some retarded, ‘all is well with the world’ look on his face.

I kicked the door shut, as if I could shut the... I dunno. Weight? That weird faint pressure I had in the back of my mind. Whatever, I shut the door like I was trying to shut the town out. Then I noticed the gryphon smiling into space in complete fucking bliss.

I scowled. All these happy gryphons were putting me in a bad mood.

I began to browse the store, looking for anything I might have use for. We were going into the Changeling Wastes, or at least in that direction, so we’d need some supplies for desert travel. I didn’t know what ponies could or couldn’t eat out there, so I’d better get something to dry grass with for Trix and Luna too. Head wraps for me and Trixie... what else? Blankets for Trixie, it can get cold at night out there, and she’d probably like some decent things to cook with. She hasn’t said so, but I know Trixie actually enjoys making food, so maybe this would be nice for her.

After I’d pieced together the supplies we’d need, I hesitated when I found myself staring at a bottle of whiskey. Not shit stuff either, but not great. I picked it up and thought about it. I know Trixie wouldn’t like it, but... I sighed and put it in with the other supplies. What she won’t know won’t hurt her. Who knows what we’ll run into out there? I doubt I’ll be able to get through the rest of this week without needing at least one drink.

The small display of knives and other weapons drew my interest. I wanted more than just my knife if shit got bad, and I wasn’t gonna rely on Luna to summon up that sword for me every time things went to Tartarus. I added three new knives and a hatchet to the supplies.

With nothing else left to shop, I approached the counter. He just ignored me as I glared at him. Fucking happy prick.

I jabbed him with my claw, “Hey.”

He frowned and absently rubbed the place I’d just touched him. His head slowly creaked around to face me, tilting to the side and staring at me with a confused look in his eye.

We stood in silence for a moment, until I got fed up with his retarded gawk. “Yeah, I’m buying shithead.”

He nodded and gave me a polite smile. “Alright.” That happy smile returned to his face, and he drifted off into lala land again.

I grit my beak and threw a couple of bits on the counter. He didn’t even pay attention as I packed away the things I’d brought and turned to walk away.

“Sir,” he called out as I was about to walk out the door. I looked back at him. “You forgot your change.” He pushed the bits I’d left towards me.

I scowled and stepped back to scoop them up. Whatever. If he was brain dead it wasn’t my problem.

I was in a worse mood by the time I made it back to the inn. Between there and the supply store were what seemed like hundreds of the happy shit brains, looking oh so bloody peaceful. I wanted to just start punching everyone I saw. None of them even seemed to notice that the sun had set and it was dark now.

I entered the bar and not a single gryphon noticed. I grit my beak. Where was the bouncer who glared at everyone? The musician who played the piano in the back, or the cute serving maid who almost met the patron’s eyes? It felt like everyone was just... gone. Like, not only were some of the gryphons I remember from here last time not there, but everyone just felt like they were somewhere else.

It was really pissing me off. Stupid happy fucking assholes.

I made my way up the stairs and opened the door to our room. I slammed it shut behind me and looked to the room with a scowl.

“Well I just robbed some douchebag.”

“You did what?” Trixie sat up in her bed and glared at me.

“I mean, at the general supply store, the guy gave me back the bits I paid with.” I fell onto my bed. “Fucking bastard didn’t care that I had a handful of his shit. He just had that brain-dead, shit eating, ‘I’m such a happy fucker!’ smile on his beak.”

“Oh... Trixie is sorry then.” She peered curiously as the supplies I had brought and her eyes lit up. “Are those cooking utensils?”

“Yeah,” I took them out. “I didn’t know what was good, but I figured you’d like something to work with.”

With a little squee I’d never heard from her before, she began rummaging through the stuff, examining each of the pots and pans for something. When she finally finished looking through them, she glanced up at me with a huge smile.

“Thank you!” She half tackled me with her hug before her disguise came back up and she opened the door. “Trixie shall make us a feast worthy of a princess! She’s gotten sick of the crap we’ve been eating.”

I smiled, glad that I could make her happy like this at least. “Alright. Hey, maybe now would be a good time for you to show me that vegetarian cooking that you wanted from me.” And I silently prayed that she forgot about learning to cook my food. Seriously, ponies can’t cook meat for shit.

If it were possible, her grin became even wider and for a split second, it reminded me of that pink one. Then, with a playful little smile, she bounced out the door.

“Well... that was... unexpected...” remarked Luna. “We hope thou dost realize we will not be able to carry all those utensils with us.”

I sighed. “I know... but hey they were free right?” I glanced at her. “Just let her enjoy it while it lasts.” I shrugged. “At least one of us can be happy, right?”

“Happy allies are a blessing,” she remarked as she eyed the daggers and hatchet I’d bought. “We can melt those down and forge something better if thou wish.”

I nodded. “Yeah, they’re shit.” I took out the best of the knives I’d brought. “But, you get what you pay for, right? Can’t expect too much from just a supply store.” I shifted. “But honestly, how much use am I gonna get from a sword, and what do you know about forging anyway?”

“Enough to make passable equipment. We spent a thousand years on the moon and during that time We forged our own armor from the tattered remains of our equipment. It has been one of the few areas of study We have been meaning to expand upon.”

I glanced at her. “So what’s the catch then? Where’s the hook in your generous little offer?” I narrowed my eyes. “You’re not the giving type, so this either bait or a bargain.”

“Or maybe We are trying to be a better ruler like thou suggested. Or, perhaps, warfare is something We know and despite everything, We do look after those under us and want them to live.”

I snorted. “I’ll believe that when you tell me why you and Nightmare aren’t as powerful as Celestia is.” After a moment I added. “Or any one of the other billion secrets you’re keeping from me.” I lay down on the bed. “Though, I doubt you forging me a sword’s gonna do much harm.” I shrugged. “Alright, if you want to, then I won’t stop you.”

“Thou must be truly arrogant to think We keep any secrets from thee specifically.” Luna stood up and the daggers began hovering in the air before her. “We suggest thou close thine eye if thou wish to keep thy sight.”

“Wait, you’re just gonna forge a sword right here? Don’t you need like... an anvil or something?” I stood up and backed away from her. I doubt she’d do it right then and there, but you never know.

“We would tell thou to sit back and watch, but watching will leave thee blind.” She smirked at me. “And anvils are for mortals.”

“If it’s so bright should you really do it here? Isn’t that a bit of a giveaway that some of us aren’t really gryphons?”

“Very well, We shall do it at a later date then.” I swear she was pouting.

I took the sword-to-be knives from the air. “Well, we’ll have plenty of privacy out in the desert.”

“With any luck, we won’t have to go out in that direction.” She sighed. “Alas, hope is not a plan.”

I frowned. “Don’t say that.”

Luna cocked an eyebrow at me, but refrained from saying anything else.

“That’s a Great Scars saying. You’re not a Great Scar.”

She blinked before bursting out laughing. “The Great Scar’s use that saying?” Soon she was rolling on the floor while tears streamed down her cheeks.

“What’s so fucking funny?”

After a couple of seconds, she finally calmed down enough to actually talk coherently. “It’s just, that was Slight’s favorite saying. To think the Great Scars use their enemies saying. Ha! She’d get a kick out of this no doubt.”

I stared at her blankly. “Slight... as in Song of Night? Curse? The goddess damn legend?”

“‘Song of Night’? ‘Curse’?” Once more she burst out laughing. “Oh Slight, if only you were still around to hear these names.”

“Wait, so that story was real?” I fell onto my haunches. “The legend of the Last Shadow in the Day is true?”

“We knew gryphons were a melodramatic species, but even that is a tad over the top.” Luna cleared her throat and straightened her mane. “Yes, those legends are real, though no doubt exaggerated.”

I nodded. Right, of course some of it was true. Feeling stupid for freaking out, I spoke, “Yeah, you’re right. Sorry, it’s just... fuck, I love those stories. I mean, what she faced, and... I dunno. It was someone I looked up to when I was a cub.” I snorted. “Whatever, you’re right. I really doubt she had bat wings and could disappear into shadow at will.”

“Oh, those were true.”

I blinked in surprise and stared at her. “What?” I said blankly after a moment.

“Oh yes, some of the nightkin had bat wings, and others could disappear into the shadow at will. A couple even had both, though it was rare due to how dangerous it could be to go through the ritual twice.”

I just stared at her. “‘Nightkin’?”

“Did thou truly believe only one such as her existed? Though it would be best to ask Nightmare about it, for she was in total control closer to the end there.”

“Well, in the legend I heard she was like, the last pony loyal to Nightmare and when Nightmare was defeated, she changed Slight into a bat pony as a final curse on Celestia.” I shrugged. “Really though, ‘nightkin’? What happened to them?”

“That is most assuredly false, though she was the last surviving nightkin,” replied Luna. “As for the rest of them... no doubt slaughtered by those fighting against Nightmare Moon, whether they deserved it or not.”

“Huh.” I looked across at her. “I like your version of the story better.” I smirked. “I always loved how she was just one pony spitting defiance into a god’s eye. How, despite being so hated and loathed, she defeated all comers and made a legend for herself.” I shrugged. “Heck, all Great Scars love that story. The pony who made the goddesses weep. Against the odds, doing something stupid just because. Great story.”

“Yes, Slight was a rather... fun... individual to be around.” For once, Luna’s smile seemed to reach her eyes.

“So... where did the bat ponies come from? You mentioned a ritual, right?”

“Thou will have to ask Nightmare Moon. We have an idea of what was involved, but We lack specifics.”

“I’m just curious really. I mean, I don’t care too much, but it’s a bit like learning that the tooth fairy’s real or something.” I shrugged. “I guess I’m sharing a room with a goddess, so bat ponies aren’t too hard to believe.”

“Well We do know that the chemicals the Wide Eyes are researching are the same chemicals that were precursors to the bat ponies,” Luna replied. “In the end, it was Nightmare Moon who figured out how to make it work properly.”

“So what were the chemicals supposed to do anyway?” I turned to her. “I mean, if you made bat ponies, then I guess you were trying to change ponies in some way.”

A sad sigh came from Luna as she rolled onto her back. “It started off as a failsafe plan of sorts. The dragons were getting restless, and with the recent aggression from the changlings, we were afraid our forces would be stretched too thin. In order to stop that, we began experiments into augmentation in an attempt to increase the combat prowess of our little ponies. Somewhere along the line, a seed was planted into our head by a close friend, though we sadly cannot recall her na- Aurora? Thou art certain? Yes... that does sound right though. One night, Aurora commented that she wished to see the night as We did and from that we began parallel research into changing ponies so they could do exactly that.”

I stared at her and frowned. “Aurora wasn’t a friend.”

“She... wasn’t?”

“I... don’t think she was...” I shifted. “I mean, she didn’t feel like a friend.” I frowned and shook my head. “No, I shouldn’t be telling you this.” I stood up and stepped towards the door. “It’s from Nightmare’s head, not mine. I’m gonna go and check on Trixie.”

“Nightmare Moon and We share the same body. We share the same memories. Tell us.”

I shook my head. “No. If Nightmare kept you out of my head, then I’m keeping you out of hers.” I shrugged. “Or at least I’m not telling you what’s in there. If you actually make it inside Nightmare’s head then I can’t stop you.”

Luna glared at me, but truth be told, it was more adorable than anything else. That filly really didn’t scare me anymore.

“Anyway, I have grass to cook. Want anything?” I paused with the door open.

“Whatever is available.”

I closed the door behind me, and set out to find Trixie. Where would she go to cook... the kitchen. Duh. I doubt these brain deads would care if we used it anyway.

I blinked when I entered the common room, and all the gryphons stared at me. They still had the brain dead look in their eyes, but now those eyes were following me.

“What are you retards staring at?” I said aloud.

None of them answered me or responded.

I shook my head and turned away. Creepy, but these retards were too mind fucked to do anything nasty anyway.

I pushed open the door to the kitchen, and entered to find Trixie humming a tune as she moved from location to location, a dozen objects hovering in the air around her. With her back to me, she still hadn’t seen me and her hips swayed with her tune. I had to admit, I was getting a bit distracted by that curvy flank moving back and forth to that tune.

I watched for a moment before I coughed, letting her know I was there.

“Trix.” I said to get her attention.

Again no response.

I rolled my eyes and walked up to her. I tapped her on the shoulder and said in her ear. “Trix!”

“Bwah!” she gasped and all the things she was floating fell to the ground. She turned around and glared at me. “Gilda!”

I smirked. “Surprise.”

“Wh-What are you doing here!? How much did you hear?” He eyes darted to the door. “Is Luna nearby?”

I blinked. “No, Luna’s up in the room. Don’t you remember? You wanted me to learn how to cook grass, right?” Then I paused. “What’s with the song?” She was obviously sensitive about it.

“It was something Trixie’s father used to sing to her,” said Trixie a tad sadly before she brightened back up and planted a kiss on my beak. “And, no Luna means no need to not kiss you every opportunity Trixie gets.”

I smiled. “I can live with that.” I gestured towards the things she’d dropped. “Though we might have to clean that up.”

There was a flash of blue and they were back on the counter. To my surprise, there was a slab of uncooked meat on the table that had not been touched at all. With another peck, this time on my cheek, she turned towards the pot of boiling water, letting her tail brush along my face as she did so.

I blushed at that, but playfully snatched her tail in my beak and gave it a light tug. To my surprise, a shiver ran up her spine and she glanced back at me with half lidded eyes.

I let go of her tail before she got any ideas. Shit, I shouldn’t have done that. I need to stop winding Trixie up like that, especially if things are gonna end soon anyway. I was still pissed with myself for going all soft hearted and not breaking up with her when I had the chance. Damn it, why’d I have to be so damn selfish.

I shook my head and banged a claw on my skull.

Damn it, stupid thoughts. Just enjoy tonight. Let her have this. No feeling bad tonight.

“So what are we cooking?” I asked her.

“Well Trixie managed to find some meat so that you can teach her how to actually cook it and she just put down some pasta to cook. Remember to add salt and oil to the water beforehand,” she said. “Just keep stirring it, and the oil should prevent the pasta from clumping. You will have to take it off from the heat before it goes soggy.”

I nodded. “Alright sounds easy enough.”

“Trixie was planning on cooking a simple tomato flavor, which should be easy enough for you. If you follow Trixie’s instructions, it should be taste fine.” She turned and stared at the meat. “Now, about your meal...”

“Easy, Trix.” I told her. “If you feel like you’re gonna puke, then I’ll cook it and we can try again another night.” Oh please, oh please. Tell me she’s about to throw up.

Though she looked green, she nodded her head and took half a step back. “Perhaps it would be best if you showed Trixie how it was done first?”

I nodded, feeling relieved. “That’s fine. So, what kind of meat do you have here?”

“Trixie isn’t certain,” she replied and I only just caught myself from facepalming. “Why? Is it important?”

I nodded. “Yeah, different meats have different flavors. I wouldn’t cook fish the same way I would cook pork.”

“Oh...” Trixie looked down at the slab of meat. “Alright. Can’t you tell?”

I leaned in and sniffed it. “Well, it’s thigh muscle, so it’s at least as big as a deer.” I cut a piece off and tasted it. “Tastes like venison to me.” I turned back to her and she looked very green. “So, where did you get this from anyway?”

“Did you... did you just eat that raw?” She stuck her tongue out. “If you were looking for more kisses, you are going to have to wash that mouth of yours.”

Interesting. I’ll have to remember that for later. “Cooking it’s just for flavor and being clean. You can eat any meat raw, but all the diseases the animal might have carried will still be there. You cook it, and most of that goes away.”

“You still ate it raw,” said Trixie before her eyes widened. “The pasta!”

She rushed over to the pot and grabbed a single pasta in her magic. Biting down she sighed. “Overdone.” She frowned. “It’s not quite soggy yet, so still passable. Just.”

“You make ‘passable’ sound like someone crapped in it or something”

“Failure is still a failure,” she said as she leveled a mock glare at me. “Trixie hasn’t overcooked pasta since she was a foal, so this is entirely your fault.”

I snorted. “Of course. That totally makes sense.”

“Of course it does. If you weren’t so damn hot, Trixie would actually be able to concentrate on what she was doing,” she replied with a wink.

I froze in surprise. “Well, I think that was the first time in a long time, no wait, make that ever. First time ever someone called me hot who wasn’t sarcastic or had a fetish.” I paused. “Oh wait. Never mind, that’s still never happened.” I elbowed her.

She rolled her eyes as she began pouring out the hot water. “Well as far as Trixie is concerned, you are very hot. Downright delicious even.”

“Yeah well, you’re the first.” I stood next to her. “And it’s not my fault if you’re easily distracted.”

“Or you’re just that sexy. Learn to take a compliment.” Trixie frowned at me. “What about the one you lost your virginity to?”

I blinked and raised an eyebrow. “You really expect me to tell you that story?”

“Trixie is curious. And watch, this is simple, and straightforward. You cut the tomato into thin slices, quarter them, and then mix it in with the rest of the sauce. Depending on what flavor you’re trying to create, you add salt to help sweeten it, and pepper to spice it up a tad. Normally, Trixie would prefer to add some more flavors, like a pinch of rosemary or perhaps cheese or butter, but for your sake we’ll keep it simple.”

I nodded and took up a bit of salt. To be honest, I didn’t have any idea how to make sauce, I mean I, use apples and pepper to spice up my own meat. Doesn’t do much for me nutritionally, but it adds to the flavor. I sprinkled it in lightly and stirred it as Trixie watched.

I talked as I did. “Well, you might be curious, but really it’s more embarrassing and stupid than anything else. Not exactly, a good story either. Just...” I shrugged. “Lame, I guess. It’s a lame story.”

“Well if you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” replied Trixie. “It was a personal question after all and that’s enough salt.”

“Thanks. It’s not one of my bad memories but it’s like... one of those ones when you just wish you could go back and scream at yourself, ‘What the fuck are you doing shithead?’” I dusted the salt off my claws. “Pepper now?”

“Yes. Just a pinch, we don’t want it too spicy.” I felt her hooves wrap themselves around my waist as she hugged me from behind.

I put my claw on her shoulder. “How about you? Got any funny stories? I’m not in the mood for anything heavy right now.”

“Mmmmmm... nope, not really.” She nuzzled my neck lightly. “Though there was this one time Trixie made a bar go completely silent. There was this stallion who just would not take ‘No’ for an answer, so Trixie threw him out the window and into a pond. It was a shame it happened just after one of Trixie’s performance or she would have turned him into a female or something.”

I laughed. “Yeah, I’d probably have broken his nose or something. Funny enough, my way’s actually more subtle than yours.”

“Trixie is a showmare after all.”

I shook my head and chuckled as Trixie threw another pinch of some herbs that I didn’t recognize into the sauce. “Well, speaking of stories, Luna just told me that ‘The Last Shadow in Day’ was actually true.” I shook my head. “Can you believe that?”

“Um... perhaps if Trixie knew what story you were referring to?”

“Haven’t you heard it?” I turned around to face her. “I loved it when I was a cub. Uh... I think in Equestria the closest thing they have to it is called the Curse of the Everfree.”

Trixie blinked. “Really? They tell that to foals in the Gryphon Kingdom?”

I nodded. “Yeah, I freaking idolized Song of Night when I was a kid.”

Trixie stared at me in horror. “Song of Night? You idolized that monster!”

“Hey!” I turned to her. “She wasn’t a monster.”

“She was a half pony bat demon!”

“She wasn’t a demon!” I argued. “She was a freaking legend; all Great Scars respect what she did.”

“She attacked Princess Celestia!” she argued. “She was a monster who butchered her way from one half of Equestria to the other.”

My brow furrowed. “Wait, in your version she attacked Celestia? Hah! That’s so awesome! In the version I heard, she just spat in her eye. Actually attacking her is so much more badass.”

“What?! Trixie may not love Celestia, but that’s just wrong!”

“That’s not the point, dude. She was just one mare who defied her gods. She fought against all odds and turned against the sun itself, and in the end, left both Nightmare and Celestia in tears. It was stupid and reckless, it broke the natural order of equinity. It flew in the face of all reason, and it was pointless too.” I smiled. “I loved that when I was younger.”

“Well Trixie supposes that when you reduce it to that it does sound cool, but...” She suddenly punched me in the back. “But our food is getting cold and you never taught me how to cook that venison.”

Damn. She remembered. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll show you some other time. Enjoy your food while it’s hot and I’ll cook this.”

She gave me a quick kiss on the cheek. “Thanks. Let Trixie set up the table.” She pulled up a table with her magic and laid a tablecloth over it.

I turned away from her and set about cutting the venison into slices. I’d just fry it with some pepper and salt. Not exactly fancy, but quick and easy.

I spoke to her over my shoulder. “Anyway, but the part of that story that I think you might want to know about, is that Slight was actually a bat pony. Luna said there used to be a bunch of bat ponies and she called them nightkin. She also said that Nightmare made them using a more refined version of the chemicals the Wide Eyes are using. Maybe you can figure out if that’s important, but I think it’s at least related.”

“Well these Nightkin had powers right? Maybe a super army of some kind?”

“Luna mentioned that those chemicals are supposed to be some way of creating super ponies.” I glanced back at her. “Maybe that’s why Nightmare wants them? To make herself and Luna powerful again.”

“Maybe?” Though Trixie didn’t sound convinced as she sat down on at the table, patiently waiting for me to finish up.

“Well they want something out of this. Though I really doubt it, Luna could be working for the good of Equestria, but Nightmare definitely wants something out of this.” I served up the meat onto a plate, and borrowed a little of Trixie’s pasta sauce to flavor it a bit. “They’re working together too nicely for them both to not want something.” I sat down across from Trixie and put my plate on the table in front of me. I glanced across at her.

Her nose wrinkled slightly at the smell, but she put her elbows on the table, resting her head on her hooves. Her horn lit up, the lights turned off and a single ball of blue hovered in the air above us. All the while, she gazed at me with those wide eyes of hers as her tail swished in the background. And that was when our cups were filled with red wine. Or rather, hers was, but she had a variety of alcohol for me to choose from. There was everything from hard liquor, to cider, to fine wines.

I grinned at her, and selected a bottle of cognac. “Where did you get all this?” I asked as I poured myself a glass.

“This is an inn, and apparently the only well stocked thing in this entire place is its liquor cabinet.” Trixie held out her glass and I immediately raised mine. “To an end of this Tartarus filled journey.”

“Heh. I’ll drink to that.” We both took a sip at the same time, and I let out a satisfied sigh. “Oh yeah. This is the good stuff.”

“Agreed. Trixie hasn’t had wine this good in a long time.” She took another sip and took a bite of her dish. “Would have been better if the pasta wasn’t overcooked, but it’s still good. Try some.”

“Alright,” I answered and clawed some of the pasta onto my plate.

“Ahem.” I looked up at her in surprise. “We have knives and forks for a reason.” She waved a hoof towards the utensils next to my plate. “Or if you prefer, Trixie can feed you like a little foal.”

I rolled my eyes, and picked them up. “Sorry. I’m just not used to eating on a date. Never had to impress a mare before.”

Trixie chuckled and booped my beak. “And that makes you even more adorable.”

I blinked in surprise. “Okay, I can deal with a lot of things, but I’m not adorable.” I shook my head. “Nuh, you don’t get to call me that.”

“Fine, but only because you’re so hot.” Once more with that wink. “Trixie still finds it difficult to believe you find her hot though.”

“Yeah well-”

The door behind us slammed open, and my head whipped around. The bartender was standing there, staring at us. As he stared at Trixie, he shivered visibly and his pupils dilated. He moaned like he was having an orgasm right there, before he dove across the room right at Trixie.

I didn’t even think as I tackled him away from her and crashed his weight into the wall. He tried to punch me in the face, but I caught his fist and sprained it. I twisted him over my shoulder and threw him into the floor. He started to rise again, but I wrapped my arms around his neck and choked him unconscious. After he collapsed to the floor, I looked up at Trixie who was staring with her eyes wide.

“Trix, are you alright?” I asked her.

“Why would he-” Two more gryphons burst through the door, but before they even got three steps in, the dining table slammed into them far faster than I thought possible, and that was quickly followed by probably every pot in the kitchen. “Is having a nice romantic dinner too much to ask for!?” she yelled at the unconscious gryphons.

I didn’t answer her as I put my fist into the temple of one that started to rise up. He collapsed to the floor again. “Come on, we better wake up Luna.” I peeked out the door, and noticed there were three more waiting in the room outside. They didn’t react as they caught sight of me, so I stepped out of the room slowly. I kept a claw on my knife. “Let’s go, Trix.”

“Alright...” She followed me slowly out the room, her disguise once more firmly in place. Along the way, she made sure to kick the two downed gryphons by the door. The moment she stepped outside the room, the gryphons’ eyes locked onto her, and they gave that retarded sex moan all at the same time.

“Mother fucker.” To my surprise, I wasn’t the one who said that.

They all charged at once. One of them was thrown to the side as Trix smashed a barstool over his head, but the second one tackled her to the ground. I charged at him, but the third gryphon tackled me. Rolling with it, I used our momentum to throw him into the wall. I turned around to help Trixie, but the gryphon she’d hit with a barstool decided to get revenge. No fucking way was I letting him pull that shit.

My fist slammed into his kidney and he arched back in pain. I wrenched his wing out of its socket and broke his hind leg at the joint. He collapsed to the floor, and I turned around just in time to get tackled. His claws wrapped around my throat, but his grip had nothing on Luna’s. With a snarl, I severed his spine, and he collapsed to ground with a scream. I stood up and used the hilt of my knife to knock him out. I turned to help Trixie, only to get a faceful of gryphon as he was flung at me. I fell onto my back, and pushed the unconscious asshole off me.

Trixie was standing there, breathing heavily and holding a hoof to her face. “He licked Trixie, she hissed.

I stood up. “Really?”

She nodded.

I glared at them. “The fuck is wrong with this town?”

We made our way up the stairs to our room. I pushed open the door, and saw Luna collapsed on the bed.

“Luna wake up. Freaky shit is happening.” I shook her to wake her. “Luna get-”

I cut myself off as her eye opened. A slit reptilian eye. It was then I noticed her coat was darker, and I took a step back as she sat up and turned to look at me.

“Ah shit.” I said aloud.

“Hello again,” purred Nightmare as she took a step towards me. “I’ve missed you so.”

I nodded. “Yeah, hello, big reunion or whatever.” I looked over my shoulder. “But we’ve got more important things happening right now.” I showed her my bloody knife. “We got attacked.”

“Well at least neither of you are dead.” She suddenly dropped onto one knee in pain. “Urgh. Those idiots!”

I took a step towards her. “Are you alright?”

“I’ll be alright once I kill whoever is in charge of this shoddy operation.” Her eyes closed and her horn lit up. “While you two were having dinner, Luna and I have managed to figure out what has happened. Or at least, the most probable option.”

“Great.” I told her. “So what the fuck is happening, and why are these guys giving Trixie the rape face?” I glanced over at Trixie. “One of them licked her.”

“They did?” Nightmare looked at us in surprise. “That... was something I was not expecting.”

“Yeah well, it’s fucking weird.”

“She must be giving off the most positive emotions,” replied Nightmare. “What were you thinking or doing at the time?”

“Well Trixie was in the middle of cooking dinner, which is something she enjoys and if either of you spread that around, Trixie will end you.” She straightened her hat. “Trixie does have an image she needs to maintain after all.” Nicely lied Trixie.

“So what’s happening here?” I asked Nightmare. “Should I feel guilty about paralyzing that guy?”

“Well if he still has a mind left, yes. Otherwise he’ll probably be a shell of a gryphon for the rest of his life,” replied Nightmare. “It’s the damn changelings. They’ve managed to escape on their own, and if what you said is true, then it seems as though they’re developing a hive mind separate from that of the Queen’s and knowing the chemical formula used, they’ll probably be mindless monsters bent on only one thing.”

“And that is?” Trixie asked. “Please tell Trixie it is not her.”

“Emotion. They’ll feed on emotions until there’s nothing left, and then keep feeding. Constantly expanding outwards with a desire to consume and nothing else,” said Nightmare as she rubbed her temples. “We need to get out of here soon. I can already feel their mind pressing up against mine, trying to get in.”

“Where are we going?” I asked her. “We’re getting out of this town, right?”

“Yes. We are getting out of here as fast as our hooves can carry us.” Nightmare’s head snapped to the side. “Gotcha!” A sword flew out, embedding itself in the wall opposite me. “You thought you were so smart didn’t you? I am Nightmare Moon, you cannot fool me, you despicable cur. Go tell your Queen I am coming to rid this world of your vile influence.”

I stared at her. “There was a guy behind there right? Tell me you’re not going insane please... Or, you know, insaner.”

“You can’t see him,” She burst out laughing, “Of course you cannot. Hold still my dears, and I shall rid you of their vile influence.”

Her horn lit up and I instinctively jerked away as her magic surrounded my head. “What are-”

Pain flooded my body, forcing me onto my knees as I clutched my head. It was like it was being squeezed to a pulp by a minotaur. Trixie’s cries of pain reached my ears, and for a split second, I managed to get back onto my feet. A second wave of pain doubled me over and back down I went, my eyes squeezed shut. Then, as suddenly as the pain began, it ended.

I pushed myself onto all threes, my claw going to my good dagger as I glared at Nightmare. “The fuck?!” I snarled at her and looked over to see Trixie slowly starting to stand up. I stepped over to put myself between her and Nightmare. “What the fuck is wrong with you?!”

She simply jerked her head in the direction of the sword embedded in the wall and trapped there was a gryphon.

I blinked at it. I just stared for a moment as my mind processed the facts. “So... they were in our heads?” I glanced back at Nightmare. “How long was he there?”

“Long enough,” she replied as she looked out the window. “It seems my fears have been confirmed. The hive mind has infected everyone in this town and there is not a doubt that if we stayed here any longer, we would have been caught under its spell.”

I looked back at Trixie. “Trix, are you okay?” I offered a claw to help her back up.

“Trixie is fine,” she said as she ignored my claw. “But hive mind? Changelings cannot possess others.”

“They can when their innate magical abilities have been amplified.” Nightmare rubbed her temples. “Change of plans, we need to find a log of every gryphon that’s come through this town since this mess began.”

“Give us some warning next time you’re gonna pull shit like that.” I glared at her and shook my head and got back on topic. “Well the guardhouse will be keeping track of everyone that comes through here, assuming no one snuck in.”

“What about the Wide Eyes?” she asked. “We need every name.”

I frowned. “They won’t have kept track of that.” I tapped a claw to my chin. “There’d be a list at the facility in the wastes... and if this is the king’s op he’d have a list of who goes where too... Maybe Grace would know.” I turned to Nightmare. “Beyond that... If we check the registries at the inns in town, maybe we could piece together a list.”

“If they still-” A creek came from the stairs and her sword immediately appeared. “Looks like we’ve got company. We need to find out who’s been here, eliminate all the changelings, and get out of here.”

I nodded. “Alright, so what’s the plan?” I glanced at Trixie. “How are we going to do this?” I kept an eye on the door. I slowly padded up to it, being careful to stay to the right so the light from our lamp wouldn’t cast my shadow under it. My claw touched the doorknob and I looked back at the other two. I mouthed silently, “Keep the conversation going.”

“What Trixie wants to know is, how were the changelings’ magic amplified? The chemicals? And how are we even going to kill them all?” she asked.

“Right, you weren’t present when Luna told Gilda about that. Basically it was the chemicals, we wished to make our ponies stronger so they could better defend Equestria.” Nightmare peeked out the window and scowled. “We’ve got more incoming. And we can kill them all if we find their research facility. If they had all the chemicals that I used then I can perform the ritual.”

Trix scowled at me. “And you only decided to tell me the part about your foalhood legends?”

I shrugged before I drew my other knife and kicked the door. Outside the room were two gryphons who reared back in shock, exposing their ribs to me. I took advantage of that, and buried my knives in their hearts. I let them collapse to the floor before I sheathed my knives and turned around to face the two ponies.

“So we’re still going into the wastes?” I asked Nightmare.

The window shattered and a flaming arrow lodged itself in the wall by my head.

“Well we’re definitely not staying here!” said Trixie as she threw the bed outside, using it as a makeshift barrier to the bolts flying at us.

“Well?” I turned to Nightmare. “Teleport us already.”

“It’s taking all my magic to stop them from infiltrating our minds again,” she said as she gestured at her still glowing horn. “They’re weak, but with so many of them working as one, they are a match for me.”

I grimaced. “So we’re fighting our way out? Fun.”

“Trixie can teleport us,” she muttered as she added a table to the barricade.

“No!” Nightmare cleared her throat. “We cannot risk that. We are fighting our way out.”

“Why? If Trix can zap us out, then isn’t that less risky than fighting our way through a horde of changelings and brain deads?”

“We’ve got a higher chance of dying if Trixie decides to zap us out,” snapped Nightmare as she joined me by the door. With her sword drawn, she watched as the gryphons rushed up the stairs. “Amateurs.”

Me and Nightmare met them head on. She did most of the work, but between the two of us they didn’t stand a chance. There were only four in the first wave, and she fucked them over in a way that was scary fast. More came after that, and I tagged three of them with slashes to the neck and underarm, and Nightmare bagged more than I counted. By the time we were done we’d fought our way down stairs and into the common room, corpses decorating the steps behind us.

“What can’t Trixie just zap us out?” I asked Nightmare. “Trix, you can manage a short hop, right?” I looked back at the very green unicorn.

“She has a-”

“Trixie will tell you later,” she said with a glare at Nightmare. “It’s a private matter.”

The door burst open, and before either of us could react, a chair slammed into the unlucky gryphon’s face. “And Trixie is getting tired of being interrupted every time she tries to speak.”

The ceiling above us groaned and I tackled Trixie to the side as a section of ceiling collapsed in a pile of flaming debris... A section of the ceiling on the other side of the room. Well it would have been awesome if it had been directly on top of her. Right?

I stood up, dusted myself off and coughed into my claw awkwardly. “Sorry.”

Trixie merely rolled her eyes and dusted off her hat before putting it firmly back on her head.

“If you two are done back there, I could seriously use some help!” yelled Nightmare from upfront as an arrow left a cut along her cheek. “I can’t hold off all these arrows, stop the gryphons from getting in and keep their stupid hive mind at bay all at the same time!”

“Please, the Great and Powerful Trixie could do all that and more.” The showmare stood up and with a flourish, the cabinets were ripped from the wall, forming a barrier outside to block the incoming arrows.

“I’ll take out the archers if you can distract them.” I said to Trixie. “Like a firework or something?”

“A firework? You mock Trixie. Why have one, when you can have-” A horde of bright lights appeared around her, shooting through the window and exploding in a variety of colors. “-over two dozen?”

I rolled my eyes and dived through the hole. I came to my feet and spotted three archers on the roof across the street. Shit. I was thinking they’d be on the ground.

They got over their shock at the fireworks and lined up their shots on me as I took to the air, heading straight at them. I did a perfect barrel roll just as they all fired, and none of them hit me before I was among them. I tackled one to the roof and rolled to all fours with fresh blood on my knife. One of them went to notch and arrow, but I threw my blade into his throat. He fell gurgling as I rushed the other two with my hatchet. These were hunters not soldiers, and it was only a few moves before one of them was dead with my hatchet in the back of his skull and the other had his neck broken. I stopped long enough to get my weapons back and snatch up a bow and a quiver full of arrows.

I flapped across the street and landed on the ground in front of the bar. “They’re gone!” I called out. “Come on, we need to move!” I glanced over my shoulder as more gryphons landed just down the street. “Come on!”

Silence.

“Mother fucker!” I cursed and turned around. Shit, there was like ten gryphons, and some of them were wearing guard armor. It only took me a moment’s hesitation before I threw myself back through the window into the common room. “What the fuck are you doing?” I asked as I rolled to my feet.

Shit.

Trix was on the ground with a knife in her side, and Nightmare was fighting two gryphons that were coming at her with short swords. With one on each side, she was forced to constantly turn and move to meet their blades, and more than once, a sword snaked past her guard to land a glancing blow. I grit my beak as I realized they were wearing light armor without any kind of a marking. They were either soldiers without clan markings, or Wide Eyes, and I knew soldiers weren’t trained to fight in that style.

I notched an arrow and took aim. Shit, I hadn’t fired an arrow since I was twelve, and with the way they constantly danced around each other, there was no way I’d be able to get a decent shot in. Add on the smoke and it was an impossible shot.

“Make sure Trixie’s fine!” yelled Nightmare as yet another strike managed to land on her exposed flank. “Oh, you want to play do you!?”

Stepping forward, the blade went straight through her shoulder and for a brief second, the world around me wavered and all I saw was the perfect little inn with Trix standing before me with a seductive smile on her face. A second later, it snapped back to reality and I watched as Nightmare smashed her hoof into the first gryphon’s face. Before they could even react to her suicidal move, the sword was ripped out of her body, and soon both of them were missing their heads.

“I hate doing that,” growled Nightmare as she limped over to me. “Putting my body in harm’s way to kill the enemy is not the right way of fighting at all.”

I turned away from her and bent down next to Trixie. “Those were Wide Eyes.” I said, as I examined Trixie’s wound. “Check their bodies, if they’ve got rank they might have info and we won’t have to go inn to inn for your list.”

The knife hadn’t hit anything important, but even though I knew how to pull a body apart, I had no idea how to put one together. After a moment, I pulled the knife out, and Trixie stiffened and gasped, the pain pulling her out of unconsciousness.

I grabbed her head, and looked into her slightly dilated eyes. “Trix, you alright?”

She nodded mutely as she breathed in short, shallow breaths. All of a sudden, her eyes widened and a splintered piece of wood shot past my head. I was immediately on my feet with knife drawn, but the gryphon behind me collapsed in a bloody heap on the ground, the wooden splinter sticking out of his chest despite the armor in the way.

“Fuck!” I swore. That was Trixie’s first kill, something I’d been hoping would never happen. I turned around and helped pull the unicorn to her hooves. “Trix, get up. Focus on the pain.” I told her. That last thing we needed was her freaking out right now. “Think about how we’re gonna get out of here.”

Her eyes stayed on the corpse though.

I slapped her across the face. “Trix! Stay with me. You’re supposed to be Great and Powerful, so why the fuck am I the one doing all the work here!”

“Y-Yes. Of course.” She shook her head and that steely determination was back. “Trixie is great and powerful!” She took a step forward only to collapse forward. Before she hit the ground, I managed to catch her.

“Keep your weight on me.” I ordered. “Even a shithead like you can manage that, right?” I needed to keep her pride up. If she was angry at me, then that was even better. You can do surprising things running on just emotion. “Where’s your fucking spine, bloody filly.”

A quick glance back showed me Nightmare was still busy searching the bodies even as the building continued to go up in flames. The acidic smoke was already making my eyes water and Trixie was starting to cough as well.

“Come on, we need to get out of here now!” I yelled at Nightmare and she nodded even as more of the roof collapsed in on our heads.

“Very well.” Nightmare was immediately by our side. “Quickly, to the guard tower. We managed to find some fabric as well to act as makeshift bandages.”

“Great.” I replied distractedly and took the cloth off her. We stepped outside and I found my breath caught in my throat. “Shit.”

The guards from earlier had managed to create a barricade in the street in front of us. A perfect half circle with arrows, some bombs of some kind and a lot of gryphons with swords. This was not going to end well. To my surprise, I felt Trixie shift her weight off me.

“Trix?”

Once more those fireworks appeared around her. “Anything you can do, Trixie can do better.”

I blinked in surprise. What t-

They exploded in all directions and I was forced to cover my eyes, but I could still hear, and all I hear were screams. By the time my vision returned, all I saw was a pile of dead gryphons as Nightmare stood there with her sword impaled between the hind legs of one particularly unlucky male.

“Hurry!” Nightmare yelled as she raced down the street.

I glanced over at Trix who was panting with exertion. “Are you okay?” I asked her.

“Of course. Trixie is great and po-” Her eyes rolled back and she fainted right there.

“Shit.” I knew I wasn’t waking her up anytime soon. I bent down, and picked her up. Carrying her on my back as I ran through town to the guard post, I heard a fuck ton of gryphons roaring. “Shit, shit, shit.” I muttered.

No way I could fight them wile carrying Trixie, I’d have to put her down. Thankfully, Nightmare left a handy trail of dead bodies and as we all know, dead bodies can’t attack. I ran up the stairs and into the guard post, just in time to see Nightmare pull a sword out of another gryphon.

“Get the log!” I shouted at her as I put Trixie down on the floor and began bandaging her wound.

“Where?” she asked as threw all the furniture against the door.

“In a desk or something!” I shouted at her. “How the fuck should I know? I don’t work here!”

I growled and turned back to the unicorn. The cut was pretty damn deep, but now that I had a proper look, I was certain it missed all the important stuff. Some of her muscles were cut, so she’d be limping for a while.

“Hey Nightmare, find anything to clean the wound with?”

“Nothing! This is a guard tower, so maybe they have some stuff lying around,” she replied as she tore through all the paper. “I think I saw a first aid kit over in the corner by the window.”

I spotted the kit, ran over and yanked it open. Inside was some disinfectant and proper bandages. I snatched them out and flapped my wings for a boost of speed as I dashed back to Trixie. I fell to my knees in front of her, and rubbed the disinfectant into her wounds. I poured some of it onto the bandages and wrapped those around her. I fucking hate that I don’t know shit about medicine. First time I’ve ever had to worry about it, and it was someone else that was getting hurt.

My fist slammed into the ground. “Fucking damn it!” I snarled and stood up. “Goddess damn brain dead animals!” I screamed. How dare they touch her! How fucking dare they touch MY Trixie! “I don’t want them cured, I want these fuckers dead! All of them!” I snatched up a chair and smashed it against a wall. “I’m gonna end every last one of them! Those filthy fucking mindless cunts are gonna burn!” I jabbed my claw at Nightmare. “You hear me?! No one hurts my friends!”

My chest heaving, I stood there staring at Nightmare with my wings were flared. I was on my hind legs, my knife drawn and pointed straight at her.

“Please, a cure doesn’t exist, and together, their hive mind is too dangerous. Once we get the necessary materials, I plan on destroying their minds,” replied Nightmare as she stared lustfully at me. “But your way sounds so much more fun.”

I grit my beak as I glared at her. “As long as they’re dead, I don’t care. Get your log, and let’s hunt these pricks down.”

“We should leave the dead weight somewhere safe,” said Nightmare as she grinned at me.

I stared at her. “As long as she’s safe.” I looked back towards Trixie. If we were going to a secret Wide Eyes facility filled with mutant changelings, there was no way I wanted her coming. “If we can find somewhere she’ll be okay on her own, then yeah. Otherwise she’s coming with us.”

“We could go out the window and barricade it up behind us,” she said. “Might want to sedate her or tie her up though.”

I shook my head. “How the fuck is that safe? The changelings will just get in her head and turn her into a brain-dead like those fuckers out there.”

“Hence the sedation and tying up,” sighed Nightmare. “And she’ll be safer like that than coming with us. Unless you plan protecting her while the army comes down on top of our heads.”

I looked at her, then back at Trixie. “So, if she’s unconscious they won’t be able to get in her head? They’ll just ignore her?”

“If she’s sedated then she can’t wake up, and if she’s tied down it’ll at least slow her down,” replied Nightmare as she glanced out the window. “And hurry, they’re getting closer. It’s only a matter of time before they search this place. Plus, if we’re out there causing a ruckus, there’ll be less reason for them to come after her.”

I grit my beak. I hated the idea of leaving her here like this, but I hated the idea of dragging her wounded through the desert with a horde of angry monsters on our tail even more. I stalked over to the first aid box and snatched out a syringe and a sleeping potion. I walked back over to Trixie and read the instructions on the back of the bottle before I filled the syringe up to half full and injected that into her veins. I felt so fucking dirty as I tied her up, leaving her helpless for those sick fuckers out there. I almost changed my mind, but I knew that it wouldn’t be right to take her with us. This was more practical, and it was better for Trixie this way. If we died, then she wouldn’t die with us.

“Stay safe, Trix,” I muttered as I stood up from her. I turned to Nightmare. “Okay, let’s barricade this place and go.”

Nightmare threw open the window and managed to slip out, no doubt deliberately shoving her flank in my direction. “Get out and I can weld the window shut. With all that furniture against the wall, there is no way anybody will be getting in or out.”

Goddesses, a couple of days alone in the desert with Nightmare and Luna? Only a few things came to mind that could be worse, and even those were a close run. I jumped out the window after her, and I kept an eye out for more gryphons as she sealed it.

“Come, if we can find a Wide Eyes, I should be able to read his mind.” She then tossed me a small notebook of sorts. “Go through that and tell me if any of those names are important.”

I flipped it open, my finger running down the tables as I checked the names. “Yeah, there a couple of Black Eyes in here that should be fairly high up in this.”

“Right. Note down when they came into town.” Nightmare veered off to the right and landed on the roof of some fancy place. “If it was after this mess, we’ll probably need to kill them.”

I closed the book and flew up to land next to her. “Leandro of the Black Eyes is the only decently ranked one to be through here since we left the palace.” I looked around the roof. “So, what are we doing up here? Shouldn’t we be going?”

“We need a Wide Eyes. Now focus on all that hate and anger and draw those idiots to us,” said Nightmare as she scanned the area around us. “And pass over that bow and those arrows. I’ll thin them out from up here.”

I passed her the bow like she asked. “I’m rusty as heck with it anyway.” Focus on my hate and anger? Yeah. I can do that.

The first thought that came to my mind was that bitch Luna. She was the bloody whore that dragged me and Trix into this mess, and she was the one that convinced Trixie to come here. So she was the first one I blamed for Trixie getting knifed.

It was a minuted till I noticed I was pacing back and forth along the roof top. I hadn’t even realized that I’d started.

Then there were all these stupid brain dead pieces of shit in this town who were too retarded to notice what was happening to them, and who were the ones that actually hurt Trix. My Trixie. No one got away with that, there was no justification that I cared about. I don’t care if they’re possessed and it’s not their fault, those fuckers are gonna pay damn it!

I might have been growling. I’m not sure, but whatever the sound I was making made Nightmare look at me.

And of course there was fucking Twilight Goddess-damn Sparkle! The unicorn from Ponyville who’d showed up Trixie and run her out of town. What fucking right did she have? It was because of her that Trixie was on the run in the first place.

I looked around and paused to listen as I heard the sound of gryphons taking to the air. I might have smiled a little as they landed. They were here? Good.

And then there was me. The shit-brained, violent, alcoholic, thug that dragged her into this mess in the first place. The walking feathered sack of baggage and anger that broke everything she touched. Oh, goddesses, I hated that beaked bitch with her swearing and her drinking and her brawling and a thousand bad habits who somehow managed to make that unicorn fall for her. Who didn’t stop her as she got more and more attached and led her on despite having nothing to give back. That useless fucked up whore of a gryphon that when it came down to it, had failed to keep the one promise she’d made. To protect her. To protect Trixie. The one thing, that one thing she’d sworn to herself she’d do before anything else, and she failed.

There was a heavy thud beside me as Nightmare went tumbling along the roof with a gryphon on top of her. There was a brief tussle, but soon he was tied up in magical chains. “Okay, we’ve got one. Now cut out the anger and run!”

I glanced over the edge of the building and my eyes widened in surprise. It seemed like the whole town was out to get us. I glanced at the rooftop behind me, and noticed at least twenty gryphon corpses. Some of them with arrows piercing them, some with slashe marks, but at least half were down bleeding from arteries and crippled with shattered bones.

I looked at my claw in surprise and noticed I was clutching a bloody knife, and my arms were coated in the drying, browning, coppery substance. I dimly recalled fighting them, moving between their clumsy strikes and cutting their bodies at the seams. Slashing and clawing and grabbing and breaking them like the useless animals they were. Weak, pathetic, feeble minded fools who had the goddess damn audacity to damage the Great and Powerful.

A small chuckle escaped my beak. And to think, there were still so many more left for me to punish.

I looked over at Nightmare, who was busy dragging our hopeless prisoner along. “We need a defendable position so that we can read his mind without being disturbed!”

I walked over next to her, and picked the guy up with her help. “Got anywhere in mind?” I asked. I might have been grinning, but I’m not sure.

“No clue.” Her eyes scanned our surroundings. “Archers on the wall!”

I dropped the prisoner, and flew towards the gryphons she’d mentioned. I didn’t even think as I pulled off the flying maneuvers that me and Dash had practiced so much. The arrows were all too far off, and far too slow to touch me. The braindeads were doomed the moment I touched down next to them, and I was disappointed to see just two. It wasn’t enough as I broke one’s wings and threw him off the roof. I wasn’t happy as I pushed the others own arrow through his mouth and out the back of his throat. Just two of them? I wanted more than that. I wanted them all! They all needed to burn for what they’d done.

With another quiver of arrows and a new bow, I caught up with Nightmare again. High above, Nightmare began cutting them down again. Then, out the corner of my eye, I saw the Northern guard tower and I tapped Nightmare on shoulder and jerked my head over. As one, we began veering off towards it.

We landed, and I pulled open the door leading downstairs. “In here?” I asked Nightmare. “Is this good enough? I can hold them as they come down the stairs, and you can do your shit.”

“Very well.” She threw the gryphon into the wall and chained him down before approaching with her horn glowing. “Now hold still my dear, this may hurt a bit. Oh, who am I kidding? This will hurt a lot.”

The resulting screams made me smile. Good. If that brain dead was suffering, than that was what he deserved.

I pulled the door to the roof shut, and aimed my bow at it as it began to rattle in its hinges. I nocked an arrow, and drew it to my cheek as someone heavy pounded into the door.

“Come on.” I muttered impatiently as another minute passed. “Hurry up.” I ordered as the lock shifted and bent. “Just do it already!”

Finally the lock gave way in a flurry of splinters, and in the door stood a massive male with arms as thick as a minotaur’ss. A heavy blacksmith’s hammer in his claw and a roar directed at me that cut off as an arrow pushed the brains out of place inside his skull. He fell to the ground, and another gryphon behind him rushed over his corpse. A female this one, with a feminine shape to her hips and a pretty face. The stupid over-sexualised, cattle, whore, brain-dead died with a gurgle as an arrow punched through her lung. She didn’t finish her death noise as she was flung aside by a male in his early forties. His red tinged colors marked him as a local to the waste borders, and I managed to put one arrow in his shoulder before he was too close to aim properly.

I dodged his blow, and my bow string cut off his breath as I pulled it against his neck. It was satisfying, but strangling was too slow so I jammed a knife between his ribs. I tossed him down the stairs behind me with the bow still wrapped around his neck and turned to face the next gryphon.

I didn’t have time to notice his features, because sooner than I liked he was dying, gurgling and clutching his throat and I’d moved on to the next fucker that deserved what was coming. Finally, there were enough of them. An endless supply of deserving monsters who had no right to scream in pain as I ended them. Not that I didn’t want them to scream. They didn’t stop. More and more piled through the door and joined their friends at the bottom of the stairs, losing blood and breath as the light in their eyes dimmed.

I laughed, and it wasn’t my usual chuckle or smirk. It was a laugh of joy and satisfaction as I realized they weren’t going to stop. These bastards were just going to keep coming, and coming, throwing themselves at me without any thought for survival or escape. I was unable to stop laughing after I started, and the wide smile on my face stayed with me for the minutes that felt like seconds as I ended brain-dead, after brain-dead, after brain-dead. I don’t know how long I was fighting for, but I didn’t care either as I lost myself to the moment.

My knife came to halt as it was blocked by the edge of a short sword. Unblinking eyes, surrounded by wrinkles and age gazed back at me, but devoid of life and intelligence. The fist that caught my face and threw me down the stairs stopped my laugh, but another chuckle slipped out my throat as I pushed myself back up to look at the gryphon that was standing there. His unadorned light armor made him a Wide Eyes, and the tiny burn scars on his face marked his experiences in Zebrica. His colors had him from Aviana, or around that region, and the red tips of his crown feathers made me guess Red Ends.

None of that mattered as I threw myself at him and our blades clashed. Other gryphons might have tried to help him defeat me, but they lasted bare seconds before they fell to the floor and left me alone with him again. His short sword was designed to kill, and he had the edge as he deftly parried my blows and used his reach as best he could. But we were indoors, and a lack of room to maneuver the larger blade was an edge I had over him with my shorter knives.

I had finally found what I wanted, the douche I could punish that would not be ended in just a second. Frustration and joy filled me as I came so close to ending him like I should, and him ending me like he should, but each time we saved ourselves with a dodge or a parry. I didn’t know whether to growl in annoyance at him for being such a goddess damn tease and letting me get so close, or smile at him for drawing it out for so long. It was fucking perfect, completely and utterly perfect for a while there, as we both stood on the edge of getting our fair end. None of the others had come close to giving me what I gave them, but this Wide Eyes was just a slip up and a half-second away from mixing my blood with those I’d punished. It was so fucking close when his sword grazed my arm and his fist caught my ribs. It was just a razor’s edge between me and him, as at the same time my knife cut the veins in his over stretched arm.

After that it was over too soon. The bastard died so damn quick once the blood loss slowed him down, and I felt like he’d cheated me as he dropped the sword and fell with a knife in his heart. That, goddess damn asshole. He was so close! SO DAMN CLOSE!

I looked up the stairs, hoping for another Wide Eyes or maybe two, but instead all I saw was an empty doorway and bloody staircase. There were no more brain-deads coming down.

I turned around to check on Nightmare, and found her staring at me in lust as she licked her lips, her eyes running along my body as though I was some meat up on display.

I grit my beak, and my heavy breathing and drum pounding heart made it too hard for me to say anything. After a moment to catch my breath I spoke. “Have you got what we need?” My voice was level, except for the exhausted edge.

“Mostly,” she replied. “The hive mind decided to wipe out his mind while I was searching through it. However, since they’re all linked, I followed the trail around and got some information out of that poor gryphon you just executed.”

I blinked. “Executed?” I asked.

“Term of endearment,” she replied with a smile. “Now come, I know the location of the mine and it has everything we need to end it once and for all.”

I nodded. “Good. And you’re sure Trix will be okay?”

“Of course,” she replied sweetly. I couldn’t hear a lie in her voice, and for some reason I felt like I could trust her. I don’t know why, but I felt like I could rely on her more than I could Luna.

“Then let’s go now.” I glanced at the Wide Eyes corpse. “Why didn’t you help?” I asked her. “You were just staring at the end.”

“Oh, we weren’t just staring,” she replied with a wink as she sauntered past, her tail brushing my cheek.

I blinked, my mind still pounding with too much adrenaline to put that sentence together. After a second I followed her up the stairs, and glanced down the stairs at the pile of dead. I didn’t count them, but I knew there was at least as many here as I’d killed in my entire life up to this point, not counting this night. I swallowed. This was why I couldn’t be with Trixie. This right here.

I was not a good person. I didn’t deserve her, and she had no place being chained to an animal like me. It wasn’t fair to her, and I hated Luna for pushing her towards me. She had to know how much that would hurt her. Fuck Luna for messing with us like that. Fuck her for encouraging Trixie along the path that would only end like everything with me ended. Next time I saw Luna, we were going to have words.

No one hurts my Trixie. No one.

I followed Nightmare out the door, and flapped after her as we took off into the night.

Chapter 14

I watched from our vantage point, as the guards milled about the entrance aimlessly. I frowned in annoyance, what the fuck were they doing? Their patrols were scattered and there was barely a real pattern to it. It looked more like they were just... following a routine than actually keeping an eye out for danger.

We were just a full day’s flight from White Peak, and I was worried about Trixie. I know I should have been trying to watch my thoughts, but it was impossible for me to keep them from the blue unicorn for long. I wanted to get this done as soon as we could, and get back there and make sure she was okay.

At my shoulder, Nightmare glanced over at me and ducked back down behind the pile of rocks. “Be careful. Changeling’s are masters at disguise and this may just be another trick. These ones are probably expendable, with the important soldiers inside.”

I nodded and shuffled back down out of view. “So what’s the plan? Burst in and kill a bunch of guys until we get what you need?”

“With that many all linked by a hive mind? They know we’re coming, and though they are not yet proficient at this type of mind reading, they are learning rapidly. Going in now would be suicidal. We must sneak our way in.”

I nodded. “Alright then.” I peeked back over the rock. “So what are we after? Is it just something we can snatch and run, or is this gonna be a scavenger hunt for all the obscure shit you need?”

“I don’t know.” The sword was raised into the air, letting her catch a glimpse of what was happening at the entrance. “They have the materials, but I doubt they know what to do with them so they may be in the main room with everything else or in some random room elsewhere.”

I rolled my eyes. “Great. Chalk another one up for useless goddess damn intel.” I thought about it carefully. “So what is it we’re here for anyway? We need something to make a ritual for you to break their hive mind or whatever. What is it we need?”

“Mainly crystals to focus the magic. Some blood, stuff like that,” replied Nightmare.

“Blood?” I asked her. “What kind of blood? I mean, are we gonna have to bleed some gryphon out for it?”

“Maybe. Most importantly is changeling blood.” Her eyes snapped to the right. “And on that note, keep an eye out for changelings. We should have seen them by now, but...”

“If they’re a hive mind, wouldn’t they be acting like a queen and leaving the gryphon dupes wandering about as drones?” I asked her. “Wouldn’t they be staying hidden and just letting the gryphons take the blows for them?”

“Normal changeling’s can’t even control other species. I have no clue how these function, and I’d rather not make any assumptions.” She held her sword close to her side as her ears twitched. “Assumptions get ponies killed.”

I glanced over at her, and put a claw to my knife. “Nightmare, I have to ask. Have you been reading my mind at all lately? I mean, you haven’t reacted at all to a few things now.” I turned around, listening out for whatever it was that had her on edge.

“We... have not...” Was- was she blushing!? “There are two reasons to not read another’s mind: either their thoughts are too annoying or you... enjoy... their company too much.”

I stared at her. Please, oh please tell me it’s the annoyance. “Glad to know it.” I turned away. At least she wouldn’t learn about me and Trixie from my head. “So how’s Luna holding up?” Not that I gave the slightest of shits, but it was a good way to change the conversation.

Nightmare smirked. “She’s keeping an eye out for magical attacks directed at us. Highly unlikely, but she likes to check everything at least three times.”

I nodded. “So, is what she said about sharing her power with you even half true? Why is it that she won’t tell me where her powers have gone?”

“Because she’s a fool.” A grin appeared. “The simple fact is, she cannot use her magic if I do not give permission and the opposite is also true. To a degree of course, we have a bit of magic to call our own, but nothing too broad. That means all those big spells I’ve cast, I’ve had her permission to do so. Bringing down the temple, blowing up the lab...”

I blinked. “So she was telling the truth then...” I facepalmed. “Fuck. I can see why she tried to hide that. The bitch is every bit as bad as you are! She’s just hiding behind you and saying it’s not her fault.” I shook my head in frustration. “Filthy fucking whore.”

“I keep telling her we’re not so different, but she keeps denying it,” chuckled Nightmare. “And as fun as it is to destroy Luna’s image, we need to get in.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” I waved a claw at her. “We need to get down there and get in without hurting the drones. Once we’re inside, there shouldn’t be as many guards and getting around will be easier.” I frowned. “Assuming the changelings aren’t using Wide Eyes techniques, and judging by those guards down there, they’re not.” It pissed me off to see gryphons like that. Mindless cattle being trudged around like a skin and feather puppet. Bad enough when it was just the females, but the males too? “If I ever get possessed like that, I hope you kill me.” I told her.

Nightmare simply looked at me curiously before cocking her head to the side. “Ah, there we go. I suppose that would work.”

I blinked. “What?” I shook my head. “What would work?”

“If we can grab a changeling, then We can infect the hive mind with our own illusionary world. It’ll be difficult, but we’d be invisible to everything.”

“Oh.” I hate it when you’re not part of a conversation. “Alright, so where do we get an infected changeling from? I haven’t even seen what one looks like yet.”

“Probably inside,” muttered Nightmare.

“Well then you still need me to get you in.” I peeked back over the rock. “And we still need to do it without killing the guards.”

“Or getting spotted.”

“That goes without saying.” I told her. “Alright, follow me, and don’t pull any of that shit you did at the temple. Seriously, I can get us in without you burning everything down.”

“Unlikely. One entrance and exit.” A feral grin suddenly appeared. “Though I do have an idea.”

I sighed. “You’re probably wrong. This is a mine, and the first thing they’d do was make a second exit in case of a cave in.” I might be able to get us in the front door without getting spotted, but our chances aren't great. “Though I don’t know where it is...” I frowned. “Whatever. What’s your idea then?” I really didn’t like the way she was smiling.

“Even if there was a secondary entrance, this is meant to look like a mine rather than be a mine. A second entrance means another place to guard, which means more guards, and higher probability of being spotted. They probably do have a ‘second entrance’ which is in fact a trap or outright fake.” Nightmare looked at me as though I was an idiot. “And our plan involved a simple construct. We blow a second entrance and send them through. While the guards are distracted, we, slip through the main entrance and take the main shaft down to their main chamber.”

I sighed. Yeah, again as much as I hated to admit it, her plan to get in was better than my vague idea of ‘find a back entrance’. “Alright then. I’m following your lead on this one. Let’s just get this finished as quickly as possible.”

“Agreed.” She placed her hoof on the dirt, and without so much as a little glow from her horn, it began rising off the ground. Within seconds, it had molded itself into perfect replicas of Nightmare and I. She gazed at them for a second before cutting her hoof on her sword and drawing crazy symbols all over the two statues. Then, she touched her horn to their foreheads in turn, and color rippled outwards. At first I thought she was just messing with me, then I saw one of the statues blink.

“The fuck?” You’d think after a week I’d be used to all this magic shit. Well I wasn’t. I’m a simple gryphon who’s caught off guard by any magic higher than levitation. Shit. Maybe Luna was right and I should take the time to learn more about unicorns. “You called these things constructs?”

“Constructs. Golems. It matters not. They are simple minded thing, only able to do one act at a time, requiring lots of magic and blood. The blood aspects makes it forbidden magic sadly, otherwise Equestria would be ruling the world with golems doing all the fighting and menial tasks.” Nightmare stepped forward and my eyes widened as she started kissing her own construct-thingie. I swear there was tongue! And then, she turned to mine and repeated the process. Except this time with lots of moaning and wing shudders.

“Okay, the bloody fuck are you doing?” I asked, and my voice might have been a little high pitched. “Seriously, just what the fuck?!”

She pulled back and looked at me with half lidded eyes. “If you wanted to join in, you just had to ask.”

I shook my head. “No! I mean what the fuck are you doing that for?!” I looked at the golem, construct, whatever the hell it was and back at her. “I mean, fuck dude. You’re kissing a statue! How desperate are you?”

“We spent a thousand years on the moon. We had to do something to occupy our time up there,” snickered Nightmare. “There is a reason why We didn’t drag the entire guard battalion into our chambers on our return. Ha! It’s a shame you can’t feel Luna blushing up a storm in here. Love you too Lulu.”

I stared at her for a second before I shuddered. “Oh goddesses. I did not need the image of Luna fucking half a thousand statues.”

“Male statues. They do not actually have anatomy so females are no fun. Males on the otherhoof? All they-”

“No!” I shrieked and covered my ears. “No, sweet goddesses no!” I shivered. “Shut the fuck up! I do not need to know this.”

Nightmare used her sword to look over our hiding place. “Looks like that yell got their attention. Just so you know, Luna bet me another hour out here saying that there was no way you’d be dumb enough to believe that. Looks like I won. Now my little pretties, time to gallop off into the night and draw their attention.” With a sweep of her horn, the two statues turned and began running away.

I stared off after them. “Really? You’d think Luna’d have figured out by now that there’s nothing I’d put past her.”

“Apparently so,” she replied. “Though that is an interesting idea. They’d never tire and they’d be as large as I wanted them to be. Do you know how hard it is to find an alicorn sized stallion? Extremely.”

I scrunched up my eyes and put a palm to my forehead. “Let’s just go. For goddesses sake, let’s just get this done.”

“Have patience. It’ll take them awhile to get the chase underway.” Shadows passed overhead. “And there go the gryphons. Any more coming?”

I peaked over. “Doesn’t look like it, but it’s hard to tell much from out here.” I thought about it for a second. “And please tell me that kissing those construct things was part of that spell.” Though I knew she put way too much effort into kissing mine, so there wasn’t much comfort to be had from that.

“If that will make you feel better,” she replied as she looked over the boulder. “And there’s one guard left by the entrance. Hidden behind that slight slope.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t have night vision like you do.” I replied to her, feeling a bit stung that I’d missed that. “I’m not a bat, what do you want from me?”

“You know, you could be. I was successful in making the ritual work in the end, so you could become more... powerful? I suppose is the closest word I can come up with. You know, powers like the ones Slight had.” Even as she said this, she was moving along the edges, keeping close to the shadows as she went.

I followed her just as quietly, and using the same stealth she had. “No thanks,” I muttered. “I’d rather not let you or Luna have any more tags on me then you’ve already got.”

“You make it sound like We would own you or something. That we’d be taking away your free will. Do not be so silly.” She slipped down into a ditch and notched an arrow.

I snorted. “Slight was fanatically devoted to you, even after you were banished. As much as I like the idea that that was real loyalty, I’ve met both of you, and I gotta say, I would not do the things she did for your sake. I’m not taking the chance that becoming a bat-gryphon would leave my brain untouched.” I frowned. “What the Tartarus would a bat-gryphon even look like?”

“Ridiculous no doubt.” Nightmare loosed the arrow and it hit the cliff face to the left of the guard. Two more quickly followed, each one stationed a bit further along and soon the guard was wandering away like the brainless idiot he was. “Quickly now.”

I jumped down ahead of her, and stuck to the shadows as I dashed to the door. I peeked inside long enough to make sure the room was clear, before diving through the door and padding down the hallway. I heard Nightmare come through behind me, and she followed me to cover on the right side of the room.

The room we were in was a simple storage room like what I’d expect to see in any mine. Tunnels were cut in all directions, and crates were stacked up against the wall. A quick peek in told me nothing else as well. Some new lamps, picks, helmets, the usual stuff.

“This way,” said Nightmare as she took the leftmost path. “I’ll take front, you take rear.”

I nodded and followed behind her as she led us further in. In hindsight, it might have been better for me to take lead, seeing as I had actual experience and training, but I let it slide. She seemed to know what she was doing.

“As tempting as it is,” I said over my shoulder to her as I kept an eye out behind us. “And by that I mean not tempting at all, but no thanks. I have no interest in taking whatever chemical those things in the tubes were fucked over with.” I shuddered, imagining myself twisted and mutated beyond recognition like those... things had been. More talons on my claws, a twisted horn growing out of my head and my wings molting and turning into leather. “Yeah, definitely not interested.”

“Merely offering was all,” replied Nightmare with a shrug. “Powerful, majestic, downright hot like Slight. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity you know.”

Soft footsteps reached our ears and we immediately slipped back into the shadows, dousing the torches around us as we went. After a couple of seconds when nothing could be heard, we stepped out once more and Nightmare lit the torches again.

I shook my head. “Well, that’s a once in a lifetime opportunity that I won’t experience in my lifetime. Thanks, but no thanks.” I told her as we continued through the facility.

Once more we came to a junction and once more Nightmare led me down another tunnel. She opened her mouth to say something only for her ears to twitch. “Someone’s coming.”

“Well? Hide!” I hissed at her and we took cover in smaller maintenance tunnel to the side of the main one.

Hidden behind some crates, we watched as the guards walked past before coming down the tunnel straight for us. I drew my dagger, but a head shake from Nightmare stopped me and her horn glowed. They walked right past us, stopped five steps before me and every fibre of my being screamed at me to kill both of them before they could notice, but after a minute of them just standing there, they left again.

I breathed out a sigh of relief as they left. Once they were gone we stepped back into the main tunnel and kept walking. “Why even offer?” I asked her. “You can’t have thought I’d say yes, and I’m not even sure why you’d want that for me.” I frowned. “Other than making me hotter or whatever.” Not that I wanted to be hotter. I mean heck, I’m ugly as fuck and I already have two more ponies than I want falling for me.

“As We said, We were merely offering,” replied Nightmare. Another chamber, another crossroads. “And we figured that since you enjoyed the Slight’s tale so much, you’d want to have fun with her powers as well.”

I snorted. “Yeah, well offers of power never really interested anyone other than Daring Doo and Con Mane villains.” I snorted. “Great Scars have another saying. ‘When dealing with draconequus, count your talons when done.’ The meaning varies on context, but in this case I’m going with ‘when offered power by an ancient evil, tell it to fuck off’.”

“Pretty stupid advice,” replied Nightmare as we turned another corner. “Beyond this corridor is a chamber with the main shaft going down. There should be about a dozen Wide Eyes present at all times guarding it.”

I nodded. “Well, I doubt we could fight half of that, so we need to get them out of there or sneak past without being spotted. And if they’re Wide Eyes and haven’t had their brains completely melted, it’s gonna be hard slipping past them.” I hated the idea of Wide Eyes being taken like that. All those years of training and hard work made irrelevant by some bullshit mind magic. No fucking wonder the shit has the reputation it does.

“I am just glad they are not yet proficient with their hive mind, otherwise they could link all the Wide Eyes together so they all share the same knowledge and experience, and potentially link that to all the other residents and make them all as strong as the Wide Eyes.”

“Yeah well, thank fuck for small favors.”

“Small favors like those win wars,” replied Nightmare. “Though I’d take a dumb enemy any day. So how do you want to play this?”

I shrugged. “The hive mind knows we’re here by now, so the only reason to stay quiet is stopping all the gryphons from coming at us at once. We need to get down the elevator shaft, and we can both fly. We don’t need the actual elevator. If we could lure them in there with an illusion, then cut the cable once most of them are inside we can take the ones that are left out and just fly down. Though we’d have to get out of here quick before reinforcements show up.”

“They know we’re here, but not here. In fact, as long as they haven’t caught up to my constructs, they may still think we’re outside.”

I nodded. “I know, that’s what I said, but unless you can teleport all twelve of them out of the room at the same time without them knowing it, I still say elevator is the best and easiest way to do it.” I frowned. “The air vents around here could take us into the shaft, and if we’re quiet we could just fly down that, but moving through air vents is not quiet. Seriously, with two of us there’s no way we could get through it silently and not have someone notice.”

“How about an accident then?” asked Nightmare as we rounded the last corner. Almost immediately we slinked back out of sight and hunkered down.

“What sort of an accident?” I asked her. “A cave in or something? Some explosives they were retarded enough to leave around just going off and killing them? I can’t think of anything we could realistically fake.”

“The rope holding up the elevator snaps, causing it to come crashing down and just happens to land on the majority of them.” Nightmare smirked.

“Well they’d have to be standing underneath it for some retarded reason, and there’s no way they wouldn’t be quick enough to just dive out from under it when they hear it start to fall.”

“Assuming they hear it fall at all,” replied Nightmare. “And as long as they’re distracted for long enough, we should be able to slip past and get down.”

“Right, that invisibility spell...” I shrugged. “Well, if the elevator has them distracted for long enough, I don’t see why not. But then, I know shit all about magic, so there might be some rule I don’t know about.” I really needed to take the time to learn about magic from Trixie.

“The rules tend to be either ‘Don’t do this because it’s an abuse of power’ or ‘Do this and horrible things will happen to your soul’. Only idiots dabble in the second one and we are not idiots.”

With our hiding place in the shadows, Nightmare peeked out before ducking back down. “Seems like there are a dozen guards. No changeling's either so they’re probably elsewhere.”

“What about that time you turned ponies into monsters and split your soul into two parts?” I asked her in a whisper. “Sounds like you already broke that second one.” I was waiting on her to get started. I didn’t know if she expected me to cut the cable or not, but I knew most of this plan was waiting on her.

“We’ll continue this conversation once we’re in a safer location,” she growled back as her horn began glowing. “On three. Got it? Elevator will hit to the top right of the room where most of them are gathered, and there are some crates I’ll be aiming for for some added chaos.”

I nodded. “Waiting on you.” I replied and fluffed out my wings for flap. I’d want a quick dash across the room without any excess noise. It’d be okay, but the sound of a gryphon in flight was pretty distinct. Just a quick push at the start was all I’d use.

“Three.” She opened her wings.

“Two.” The elevator shifted slightly as one of the cables was snapped, tilting it ever so slightly to the top right, but none of the Wide Eyes seemed to notice.

“One.” The cable snapped and the entire steel cage swung across like a pendulum. All eyes followed it, most were forced to dodge out of the way and we took off. Keeping low to the ground, I could feel the stone skimming my belly fur as we used the elevator for cover. There was a louder snap and this time, the final rope holding it up was cut and the entire thing crashed, kicking up dust in all directions. Eyes trained on Nightmare’s tail, I managed to follow her down and into the shaft as yelling reached my ears.

We dropped down like stones, and I couldn’t help but remember the way me and Dash used to play chicken with. Sometimes I won, most times she did, but I couldn’t help but wonder if she’d be stupid enough to dare me to do it in elevator shaft if she got the chance. I know if I dared her she’d totally go for it, but would she start the idiocy or would I? Or would we both be too scared?

Ahead of me, I noticed Nightmare extend her wings and pull up out of her dive. I held on a bit before I did so too. I landed to the ground with a muted whump and a puff of dust, where Nightmare landed with a delicate flutter.

I smirked. “You pulled up first.”

“Your silly games are of no concern to me. And keep an eye out, there may be changelings and Wide Eyes down here.”

“Tell yourself that.” I told her, but kept low to the ground as I padded forward into the dark. It was getting a bit hard to see.

“This way.” She turned around and within seconds she was lost to the darkness.

“Nightmare?” I whispered after her and headed in the direction she’d gone in. “Shit, Nightmare I can’t see you.” Ahead of me was nothing but the thick dark of the underground. “Mother fucker.” I cursed as I tripped over a stone. “Son of a goddess damn bitch,” I muttered as pushed myself back to all fours.

I stopped my talking and continued silently into the shadows, barely able to see anything. Where the fuck was Nightmare? She knew I couldn’t see down here. Stupid bloody goddesses...

I felt my way ahead of myself with a claw, not touching anything. I couldn’t even see my bloody talons! Where the fuck was Nightmare! I touched something warm and fury, and my breath caught as I realized I might have just grabbed a gryphon. My knife was already drawn before Nightmare’s voice stopped me.

“Really, if you wanted to touch my flank you could have just asked,” she chuckled. “I’d even let you lick it if you asked nicely.”

I jumped back with a curse. “Fuck, you scared the shit out of me.” I sheathed my knife. “I can’t see a bloody thing, so I don’t know if that was your ass or your face.”

“Oh, is that so?” She stepped back, pressing her flank against me. “To think this could have been avoided if you just accepted my offer.”

I shoved her away. “Just give me a fucking light.”

“And risk revealing our position? Foalishness. Come, grab a hold of my tail and I shall lead you.”

I grimaced. “No thanks.” I remembered the way Trixie had shuddered at me when I tugged her tail. Was that like a sex thing for ponies? “I’ll just wait here.”

“And get killed by changelings. You are an idiot.” She moved around behind me and started shoving me along. “Come on.”

“Stop fucking shoving me!” I hissed at her as I stumbled forwards and almost fell over as my claw bumped something. “Fine, I’ll hold your goddess damn tail.” Why did I even come down here in the first place?

A second later, I felt her tail smack me in the face. I grabbed onto it, and tried not to tug on it much as she led us into the dark. It felt like goddess damn hours, but it had to be less than a minute before I saw some light up ahead and I could walk along by myself. I let go of her tail and slunk into the dark as we approached. As we got closer, I saw rock and sand give way to white tiles and bright lighting.

Gryphon architecture. Darkness before light. Shock and awe. It was so fucking dumb it hurt my head just thinking about it.

“They’re here,” whispered Nightmare Moon. “They know we’re here. Hurry!” She spun around, horn glowing, and the tunnel behind us closed as rocks rained down from above. “That’ll hold them for a bit, but not long. Come on!”

I ran along behind her, as she ran into the more brightly lit rooms. We burst into the light, and I had to blink to clear my eyes as I found us in a laboratory complex. It was obviously the same layout as the one in the palace, but this one had been overrun by changelings. Sacks of green goo, and honey comb hives on the wall with larval changelings inside. Test tubes and beakers shattered over the floor, and Bunsen burners tipped over. There were a couple of corpses set in into a wall, decomposing slowly as their nutrients broke down to be turned into thick sludge to feed the hive.

“Never been in a changeling nest before,” I said to no one in particular as we passed through the hallways. For some reason, they kept all the connecting areas clear, but all the lab rooms and glass windows let us see more and more changeling biology. It was gross to see a gryphon in a white lab coat strung to the roof as thick green honey dripped out his mouth and eye holes onto some skittering young ones below, but it was also kinda cool.

“So what do we need for you to do your thing?” I asked Nightmare. “Now seems like the time to start looking.”

“Crystals. Thirteen identically cut diamonds, some changeling blood, a vial of moonflower nectar and some salt.”

“Do the diamonds need to be very big?” I asked her. I took out the gold hoof band I found in the temples from my pockets and tapped her on the shoulder. “Because if not, then this is set with a bunch of them.” I held it out to her.

“Those shoul-” Her head snapped back to the ring and her eyes widened. With something that could only be described as tenderness, she held it in her magic as she cradled it close to her chest. To my shock, tears were leaking down her cheek. “Oh, Aurora...”

I stared at her. “Nightmare?” I... had absolutely no idea what to do here. I can’t handle it when normal sane ponies cry, but Nightmare...? After a second I put a claw on her shoulder. “Are you okay?” I asked hesitantly.

For a second, I thought she hadn’t heard what I said, then she turned to me with tears in her eyes. “I am alright. We are alright. We shall mourn later, for now is not the time. These will do, but we would prefer larger crystals.” Her horn began glowing. “Go. Find the salt and moonflower nectar, we shall find the crystals.”

“Uh... okay.” I turned away from her, heading off to find a supply closet. I glanced over my shoulder at her before I left. “If I see a changeling want me to grab some blood?”

“The more the merrier,” she replied. “But there seems to be enough in the nursery down there.”

I nodded, and went to walk away, but hesitated again. “Are you sure you’ll be okay?” The moment I said it, I felt like an idiot for asking. But... I dunno. Nightmare hadn’t ever really done anything to hurt me, and she’d even helped me a few times. We weren’t friends, and I wished she’d just forget about sleeping with me, but it didn’t feel right just to walk away after she broke down like that.

“I will be fine, and I have Luna keeping an eye on things for me. Now hurry!”

I turned away and made my way through the corridors. Moonflower nectar and salt.... Where the fuck would I find that? Salt’d be in the kitchen or a supply closet somewhere, but moonflower nectar? I had no fucking clue what a moonflower was, let alone where I’d get it’s nectar or how much I’d need.

I’ve always had a good sense of direction, so the mental map I built was more than enough to handle the mazelike tunnels. At one point I saw a changeling down a corridor with its back turned to me. Its head was low and it was snuffling the ground. It didn’t look like the pictures of changelings I saw. It was less insect-like; some of its armor plates were missing, exposing muscles and its insides. Its insect wings were big and looked like they were crooked and damaged. I didn’t see its head, but its body seemed... underdeveloped. Like it was damaged and shriveled. One thing I knew for certain though, was it was way bigger than a changeling was supposed to be. This was at least as big as a mare.

I thought about killing it, before deciding against it and slipped away down another corridor. It wasn’t long until I found what seemed like a kitchen, and after stepping around the changeling goop on the floor, I opened the pantry. Inside was a pound of salt, along with a bunch of other spices. I pocketed the salt, and hesitated for a second before I grabbed all the spices that seemed undamaged and pocketed those too. Maybe Trixie would like them.

Now for the moonflower nectar... Well, two places came to mind where I might find that. One was with chemical supplies, but those would be under lock and key. The other would be in a lab somewhere, being used for an experiment. Assuming that was what the moon flower nectar was for.

I looked back at the pile of changling goop, and noticed a gryphon corpse underneath it. I was about to walk past it when I noticed a name tag on its chest.

“Flora biology research, department head,” I read aloud. There was a name, but I didn’t want to know the dead prick’s name. He was one of the guys whose work had hurt Trixie. As far as I was concerned, there was a poetic justice to him getting killed here. But then I know exactly fuck all about poetry, so I was probably wrong. Whatever though, flora was flowers and plants and shit, right? So if he was head of the department of flora, that meant his job was probably related to what I was after.

With a sigh, I took a deep breathe and began to drag his jelly soaked body out of the goop. Despite not trying to breath, I found myself out of air and had to take a breath. Oh, ugh. This shit smelled like honey and jam mixed with bad corpse. Or maybe the smell of corpse was the dead guy. Either way, it was a retarded combination of nice flavors and rot that seemed perfectly prepared to make anyone puke. I was glad Trixie wasn’t here. No way she’d be okay with this. Ugh, I wasn’t okay with this. Fucking Tartarus.

With a final wet slap, I dropped the dead guy onto the floor and patted down his pockets. I found a wallet and pocketed the sticky crowns in it, but more importantly, I found a ring of keys.

Yes. Now to find a chemical supply closet, assuming there was night flower nectar in it. It took me a while, but I found a map of the place in the drawer of some desk. After that it was pretty simple to find the floral research supply room, though I had to dodge a few patrols of brain deads, and I saw two more changelings vomiting green goo over a wall.

I tried the keys in the lock one by one, and of course the last one unlocked the door. The room was lit by its own zeb powder globe, and I browsed for a while until I found a big gallon bottle with ‘moonflower nectar’ written on its side. It was too big to pocket, and I didn’t know how much Nightmare needed, so I grabbed two bottles of the stuff and carried them in my claws. Walking on my hind legs, I made my way back to where I’d left Nightmare, being careful to avoid all the things that I’d seen on my way here.

Eventually I got back, and found Nightmare standing in a circle of red and green blood full of intricate crisscrossing lines and symbols. Floating in midair were the crystals, arrayed in three circles at varying heights and sizes.

“This is enough, right?” I asked her as I dropped the bottles to the floor and flexed my claws. Those things were heavy, and I’d lost feeling as I’d carried them. I took out the pound of salt from one of my pouches and showed it to her. “This was all they had.”

She glanced over at me and I blinked in surprise at the ring on her horn. “That is enough. Close the door and barricade it. As soon as I drop this spell, they’re going to know I’ve killed their young for the blood.”

I nodded and threw the salt to her as I pulled the door shut. I locked it with the keys I’d found, and pressed the desks up against it. There was no window to the room, so I just set about placing all the furniture against the door until it was pressed against the back wall of the room. Maybe a bit excessive, but it’d be easy to undo from the inside and damn hard from the outside.

“Alright, waiting on you.”

“Be prepared to fight them off.” With a flap of her wings, she hovered in the air above the circle. It was only then that I noticed that there was a second circle on the roof above her head. “And try not to look into the light.”

Her eyes closed and her horn lit up like the sun, making me raise an arm to shield my eyes. The diamonds around her glowed, and lines began forming between the circles. Though I knew absolutely nothing about magic, the hum was enough to set my teeth on edge and I could feel a pressure on my mind.

The door suddenly rattled as something slammed into it. I took out my bow, and aimed it at the door, the light behind me casting my long shadow across the red painted door as it rattled again, and again.

I didn’t feel quite like I had last night. I was tired, there were bags under my eyes and I’d been up for at least a full day straight. I hadn’t stopped to rest, because I knew the longer I was gone, the greater the chance of something bad happening to Trixie. My arms were coated in dried blood, and hunger gnawed at my stomach. Yeah, no. I doubt I’d be able to slip into that... I have no idea what it was that had me last night. But I just didn’t have it in me to get back to that place where me dying seemed so right, and killing them felt as heart pounding and badass as getting kissed by Trixie had.

The anger I had was there, but it was simmering under the surface, kicking back in a deck chair with its buddy hate and knocking back some beer. Last night they’d been at the front, possessing my thoughts, holding me and dancing through my head like Dash after she won a race, showing off to the whole world. But tonight they were calm, and relaxed. Still in control, but not partying through my skull like they had before.

I don’t know if that made me more deadly, or less, but I know how tired I was and how hungry I was. If a Wide Eye came in, I doubt I could take him.

The door lock finally broke open, but the door itself was held in place by the barricade I’d set up. I saw a flash of feathers and fur through the crack, so I let out an arrow and heard someone shout in pain as the flechette disappeared from sight. I notched another arrow and fired again. I was rewarded with another shout, this time from a deeper voice.

Suddenly the pounding stopped, and I heard the sound of magic before the door shattered completely. In an explosion of green it flew apart, and in the doorway I saw a changeling with its horn glowing. Its blue eyes fixed on me, and I realized it had three horns. One big crooked one, and two smaller ones behind that with a more bent hook shape.

My arrow fired and went through its big eye, and it shrieked, pulling back and falling to the floor as it chittered and twitched, its legs waving in the air. A gryphon talon grabbed its leg and pulled it away before I could shoot it again, and a second later I saw a gryphon face in the door.

His lab coat made shit armor, and the arrow I put through his breast was enough to end him. More and more scientists were appearing, and dimly I realized these were the drones of this hive. They were worker class, where the Wide Eyes and soldiers were the warriors who protected the hive’s entrance. I was disappointed because I realized there was no one who’d be here in time that could really fight me. No one who could even push me close to the edge, let alone over it. I ran out of arrows after a while, and took out two knives as I waited for them to finally break through the desks and actually close with me.

The fight was... short. Really short. I mean, these guys were even easier to take down than the villagers and townsfolk had been. The working class of the gryphon kingdom far out stripped the working class of a changeling hive. Even as tired as I was, fighting them felt so... cheap. The thrill I got from ending them was dull and muted, and they didn’t come at me in the swarm they had the first time around. When they died it was almost like Dash was saying in my ear ‘well, duh. What did you think was gonna happen?’ The tiny thrill of adrenaline was there, but it felt like jerking off compared to sex. Just so cheap, crappy, and almost dirty. A grimace was plastered on my face, and all I could think of was ‘that’s it?’

“Fucking fight you pussies!” I shouted in disgust as another slid to the floor, l looked to the door hoping for more, or maybe something more exciting than these decomposers and walking sacks of nutrients.

I almost wished I’d held my tongue as I saw a warrior standing there. He wasn’t a Wide Eyes, I could see that straight away. His heavy plate armor and the two Black Eyes circles on his chest made him a soldier first. But the scars on his beak, and the long sword in his claws proved his strength and veterancy to me. The combat stance he took as he approached was the classic war-fighter’s. This one was trained to kill first. He never learned anything about stealth or intelligence work. No, he was being drilled from dusk till dawn in every martial style imaginable. Open combat, a straight ahead one on one fight was where he had the edge. Which might explain why he was kicking my ass so bad.

The only advantage I had was the tight confines of the room, limiting what attacks he could use. Other than that, I was completely out classed. The sword’s superior reach made it impossible for me to close in with my knives, and he didn’t give me the time to throw any of them. I could barely block his heavy attacks, and so, more often than not, I was forced to dodge without the chance to counter. I realiszed that this was the guy. He wasn’t just pressing up to the edge, he was shoving me over it. I honestly could not beat him. I was about to die.

I was smiling as the hilt of his sword smashed into my face and threw me back. His follow up punch almost winded me, but I breathed the air out of my lungs to stop that. The next slash from his sword left a deep cut in my arm, and the counter attack I gave wasn’t even enough to scratch his armor, let alone hurt him. I only just ducked under his sweeping sideways strike, and the follow up from his armored fist blackened my eye as I was thrown into the barricade of desks I’d set up.

I cackled as I slowly sat back up. Man, I was so fucked.

I looked up at him, and noticed the cut on his cheek. Huh, had I don’t that? A look at the knife in my claw proved I had. My tail snagged around a chair, and I tossed that at him before I dived straight at the bastard. If only I could give him what he gave me. I realized this wasn’t fair on him. In this fight, I was the letdown. The dissappointment. He was barely having to work for this. It just wasn’t right to him.

Anger uncoiled in my mind, and hatred sat up and took notice. They were slow at first, hung over and a little drowsy from the beer, but as I settled into it, they started to party in my head again. How the fuck was this fair?! Why couldn’t I give him what he gave me?! No! I’m a lot of things, but I’m not a fucking pushover! I return my favors, and pay my debts. I don’t scooch beer from friends, I don’t sleep on your couch without paying for it somehow, and I do not get pushed to the very edge of my life, and not! Push! BACK!

I slumped to the ground and panted in exhaustion, heavy breaths escaping my beak as I stared at the dead warrior. My knife was in his eye, and for the life of me I had no idea how I put it there. As the hate and anger fled my mind, exhaustion overcame me and I realized I was so tired I could barely hold my knife. There was blood on the floor where I’d been lying as I pushed myself back to all fours. I wearily walked over to him, yanked the knife out of his head and put it in its sheath. I looked from his bloody sword down to the slash on my chest. I’d been scarred before, but this was a new one. A long deep one that was bigger than any I’d ever had before. I looked down at the warrior, and knew that he’d earned it. He’d earned the right to leave his signature on me like that.

And I’d earned a trophy.

With clumsy claws, I unbuckled his sheath and strapped it over my back. I didn’t want his sword, that was his. I wanted his sheath. I turned around to see if Nightmare was done, and exhaustion made me stumble. Before I knew it, I was on the ground. With a growl of frustration I pushed myself back up and took a deep drink of water from my canteen. I looked back over to Nightmare who was still busy with her ritual. The bright flickering lights brought sunspots to my eyes, so I looked back at the door in time to see two more scientist drones charging in.

I was too exhausted to do much other than stagger towards them and unsteadily draw my knife. I was tackled to the ground and I felt claws wrap around my throat. My vision started to blacken and a dull ring filled my head as my brain screamed for more oxygen. I was doing the best I could, clumsily stabbing him in the back repeatedly, not caring for vital points or important parts, just stab stab stab. Eventually his strangle hold on me was forgotten, and he collapsed on top of me with blood spewing from his mouth over my face. I gasped in air and choked on his fluids as I threw him off. Coughing and gagging I pushed myself back up to see that the other gryphon was staring at Nightmare’s ritual, seemingly trying to figure out what it did. He took a tentative step forward to interrupt her, before I slid a knife between his ribs and punctured his lung.

He let out a wheezing gasp and he reared back onto his hind legs before toppling over onto me. I gasped in pain as my back hit the ground, and lay there for a few seconds before I pushed him off me. With a groan of effort I stood myself back up, still feeling woozy from the almost strangling.

I looked back to the door and... I wasn’t sure if I was relieved or disappointed that there was no one there. And that was when the larval sacs lining the walls opened, and white wormy things dropped out. White wormy things with very large and very sharp teeth. Dagger in claw, I ripped one in half without a second thought and stumbled back as another took a chunk out of the ground I was standing on. Hobbling back, I took a swipe here and there, but they stayed just out of reach as they slowly surrounded me. A quick glance over my shoulder and I swore. Though it hurt like a bitch to flap, I raced back towards Nightmare, talon sinking into one as it leapt for the alicorn. It exploded in a shower of guts and blood as I slammed it into the wall. Spinning around, my dagger sliced another open before my vision swam and I collapsed onto one knee.

Never stop moving.

I rolled to the side as a white blur shot past. Stumbling back onto my paws, I slowly moved back until Nightmare was behind me and they had us all surrounded. Two, maybe three dozen of the slimy, writhing bastards, and with each breath I took, my vision blurred more. Out the corner of my eye, I noticed some were feeding on the corpses of those I had killed. One bite. One bite and the bodies ended up missing an entire arm or leg. Shit. What the fuck were these things?

And that’s when my legs gave out from under me. The daggers fell with a dull clutter, and though I tried, I couldn’t get back up. Figures. I wouldn’t be killed in some duel or some epic fight. No, I’d be eaten alive by some squishy meatbags. Fuck. Worst death ever.

The larvae leapt as one, descending on my prone body even as I struggled to lift a claw in some form of defense. I could see the individual teeth. I could see that the rightmost grub was missing a tooth and that the one to the left of it had some fabric stuck between its teeth. The first one bit down on my forearm sending a bolt of adrenaline through my body. Somewhere, somehow, I managed to find the energy to fling it off my body, leaving a perfect half circle on my arm. Then I collapsed back down, panting heavily as my entire body refused to move. After a couple of seconds, they closed in once more, and this time, I couldn’t even summon the energy to care. Out the side of my eye, I watched some approach Nightmare.

Fuck, who ever knew my life would end like this? It was almost as funny as dad choking on his own puke. I wonder what they’ll put on my grave? Or, you know, if I had a grave. Dying down here, I’d just be turned into more nutrients for the next generation of mutant changelings. Maybe that generation would be a pack of bitchy alcoholics. The idea would have made me chuckle if I wasn’t so exhausted. I knew there was no way in hell that would make any kind of sense. Ah well, there goes my life before my eyes. I’d like to say it was fun while it lasted, but it wasn’t.

One of the grubs finally reached me, and though I tried to lift my arm, nothing happened. Mouth wide open, it hovered there above my leg for a second before descending. There was no pain, no light at the end the tunnel and no sudden flashback of memories. Nothing. After a tense minute, my eyes slowly cracked open and I was staring at the ceiling. I looked to the right and saw a bunch of grubs writhing on the ground. A wave of dark blue rolled out and a high pitched screech filled the air as the closest one fell over dead. With each wave, more and more died until they all lay prone on the ground. Even the unhatched larvae had stopped moving.

“Well now, that took longer than expected.” Nightmare swayed dangerously on her hooves as she looked down at me with unfocused eyes. “And you look rather beat up. Give me a second and I’ll patch you right now. If you die on me, I shall be most displeased.”

Only thing more disappointing than dying from changeling larvae, was thinking you were gonna die from changeling larvae and not.

I opened my mouth to say something snarky back to her, but all I managed was an unsteady gasping, “Fuck.” I was gonna say ‘you’, but I just returned to heavy breathing.

“You look like it,” she replied as she half collapsed onto her knees beside me. “Now this will feel weird, but it’ll stop you from dying on me.” Her horn began glowing and I felt some strength returning to me. Not enough to take on a manticore, but enough to actually get back to Trix. My cuts and bruises also faded a bit. The blood on my chest and arm dried and the wounds scabbed over.

I slowly climbed back to standing, and I only stumbled slightly as I took my first step. After that one though, walking got easier as Nightmare’s magic wiped the exhaustion and pain away.

“So the spell worked?” I asked her. “We can get back to White Peak now?”

“Without dying? As long as we don’t find a wyvern or something,” she replied wearily.

I nodded, still breathing heavily. “So... are we done?” I asked her. “I mean, can I go back to Equestria now?”

She hesitated for a brief second before nodding. “Yes. That was the deal after all.”

I stared at her for a moment. “Please don’t tell me you're lying. I swear to all the fucking elders and goddesses that if you or Luna drag me and Trixie off again, I’m just gonna... Shit I don’t know. But it’ll be violent.” I wonder how seriously anyone could take a threat like that.

“We said, a deal is a deal,” growled Nightmare as she took a couple shaky steps. “You and Trixie are free to go back to Equestria.”

I nodded as I said, “Good,” and stepped out the door into the hallway. “Can you teleport us to White Peak, or are we flying?”

“Ha! We’re walking. I’d rather not pass out midflight and crash.”

“Walking could take days.” I frowned. “Could we like... find somewhere to sleep for a bit, and then fly back to White Peak in the morning?” I looked around. “I mean, as nasty as this place is, if all the changelings are dead, isn’t it safe now?”

“Unless the researchers wake up and are not brain dead, in which case we’ve got to deal with the Wide Eyes,” she replied with a shrug. “I am not happy about this either.”

I nodded. “Alright, let’s just go. Uh... Let’s just go outside and find a place to rest the night. And in the morning, if you’ve recovered enough, you can teleport to White Peak, right?”

“That works.” She nudged one of the dead changling’s. “They look even worse than I remembered.”

“I don’t think they’re normal changelings. In the pictures of them I saw, they didn’t look like that.” We made our way back into the darkness of the cave leading to the elevator shaft. “Uh... I’m gonna have to hold your tail again.” I told her. “I still can’t see shit.”

“Very well. And no tugging.” We walked on in silence. “Oh. Right. I caused a cave in to block the only entrance and exit.”

I paused as I remembered that. “You suck.” I frowned. “So, now our only way out of here is teleporting.”

“We can just barricade ourselves in somewhere,” she replied. “Come, to the kitchen! We are feeling rather ravenous.”

“Uh... alright.” I followed her back into the labs, and took the lead as I led her to the kitchen I’d found. On the way we saw some dead changelings and unconscious gryphons. I unlocked the door with the keys I had and let her in. “Mind the corpse.” I told her as I was hit by the smell from earlier.

“Lock the door and let us barricade this place. I shall cook for both of us, as I doubt you know any vegetarian dishes.”

I snorted, remembering the recipe Trixie showed me. “You’d be surprised.” I told her and then paused for thought. “Wait, you eat meat?” I asked.

“Of course not!” Her wings flared open. “Do not suggest such things.”

“Then... how do you know how to cook it?” I frowned. “Unless you were planning on me eating a salad or something.”

“We learn skills. We have diplomatic ties to both dragons and gryphons. They do not eat purely vegetarian dishes.” She leveled a glare at me. “Now get to work!”

I sighed and set about barricading the door. I heaved the dead guy out of the room, before locking and closing it. I shoved the tables against the door, and barred it shut as best I could with just what was available. I leaned some desks up against the window, but honestly, if someone wanted to break that in, there wasn’t much I could do. I suppose with the curtains drawn they might not know we’re in here. When I was done, I fell to a clean part of the floor and closed my eyes. The food was forgotten as exhaustion caught up on me, and before I knew it, I was out like a light.

Chapter 15

Teleportation hit me like it always does, and I stumbled and would’ve thrown up if it wasn’t for my empty stomach. Even then I gave it my best shot as I dry heaved nothing onto the soil.

“Fucking magic.” I cursed as I wiped the bit of bile from my beak and looked over at Nightmare. “Seriously, you’re a god. Why the fuck would you give each race a unique magic, and only give unicorns one that has any real use?” I was talking out my ass, but I do that a lot, so whatever.

“Because we enjoy your whining so much,” she replied sweetly.

I looked around White Peak as I stood up, trying to get my bearings. This place looked different in the day, or maybe that was the building that had burned down. Or the corpses in the streets.

No, wait. That one wasn’t a corpse.

I stared at the gryphon female that had collapsed to the ground. Dumb, unblinking eyes stared out at the world and drool leaked down her beak. Every now and then, she let out a short moan or groan, and I felt disgusted. Part of me wanted to put it down, another part commented on how little difference it would actually make to most male gryphons whether she was retarded or not.

Yeah, okay maybe that’s a little harsh, but whatever. I hate my culture.

I shook my head and turned away. “Let’s just go find Trixie.”

I took to the air and made my way back to the guard house. This was maybe the fourth day since my last meal, but I’d had sleep and water so I wasn’t feeling too bad. You can last a month before dying of starvation anyway. I hadn’t eaten any of the food Nightmare cooked, because despite what she said, ponies cannot cook meat. Seriously, she left it out over night thinking it’d just be okay for me in the morning. I was not touching that half burnt, half raw and all rotten junk.

I landed outside the guard house and made my way to the side. I turned around as Nightmare landed. “Get the window open.” I ordered and fidgeted uncomfortably.

Trixie had been here four days, and it didn’t look like anything had broken in, but I was feeling a bit restless as I thought about Trixie. I just wanted her safe. The monsters were dead now, and we could go back to Equestria and be done with this.

“Do not order us around,” snapped Nightmare, but she did as I told her. The barricade was lifted and the window was tossed open.

I shouldered past her and dove in. “Trix? Are you okay?” I looked around. “Trix where-” My breath caught in my throat as I saw her. She just sat there, empty bottles of alcohol around her as she stared up at a noose that hung from the ceiling. Every so often she’d take a swig, but not once did her eyes or body move.

“Trixie!” I shouted and snatched the noose down from the roof. “What the fuck are you doing?!” I waved a claw at all the empty alcohol bottles.

Unfocused eyes turned to me. A blink. Two blinks. Next thing I knew, I was being tackled to the ground in a hug as she sobbed into my chest. Though she was speaking, the words were too muddled by her tears to make any sense and all I could do was awkwardly stroke her mane in a vain attempt to get her to calm down.

“Trixie, just... what?” I asked her in my most level tone, though I think there might have been an emotional edge to it.

“I-I-I thought,” she sniffed as she buried her face in my chest. “I thought you left me here. To die o-or... I thought you’d left me.”

“You thought that I’d abandoned you to die here?” She was speaking in the first person. Oh this was bad.

Trixie looked up at me teary eyed before her gaze dropped down and ran along the scar across my chest. “I-I thought you had left to kill yourself,” she said in a whisper. “I thought you were going to leave me alone for good. I th-thought that...”

I pulled her closer. “Why would you think I’d do that?” I asked her, though there was an edge of panic to my voice. Oh goddesses, please tell me that she won’t kill herself for me. Please. I don’t deserve that. She’s too good for that. “I just went with Nightmare to deal with the changelings. You were hurt, and I wanted you to be safe.” My mind immediately went to the way I’d been fighting for the last two days. The suicidal edge that I’d been flirting with and loving every second of. Oh sweet Celestia, no. How could you do this to Trixie? “I just want you to be safe.”

“Y-You hate yourself and you’re so reckless an-an-and.” She broke down once more, pounding my chest with her hooves. Despite the pain it caused, I still held her close and let her hurt me. After all, I deserved it.

“Trixie...” A tear formed in my eye and I didn’t rub it away. “You can’t kill yourself for me. I’m not worth it.” I swallowed, and the crushing guilt I felt was so... oh goddesses. What had I done to her? “You’re too good to die for me.”

She shook her head and looked up at me with those tear stained eyes of hers. “You’re worth it.” It was a little thing, a light caress of my cheek with her hoof, but it felt like she needed me to be here. Needed me to be real. “You’re worth it and I never want you to say otherwise. Alright?”

I felt anger hit my head like a thunderbolt, but hate was playing it cool at the moment and waiting around to niggle me. “No!” I shouted and grabbed her face so she couldn’t look away. “No Trixie! You cannot die for me. You’ve been through too much, and are just... so much better than I am, damn it! No! I’m not letting you fucking end yourself like this, no matter what happens.” I pulled her closer. “Fuck... Trixie... no. Just no. If I die, then you need to keep going.” I swallowed. “You deserve so much more than what I can give you. You deserve so much better than me.”

“Trixie isn’t as great as you think she is. In fact, I’ll let you in on a little secret.” She leaned up to whisper in my ear, “Trixie isn’t really that great and powerful.” A quick nip of my ear and she snuggled back down into my chest. “And I don’t want better. I want you. Is that so hard to understand?”

I realized then, that to Trixie, I really did matter. That I wasn’t just some fling or some cheap little emotional bond to enjoy from time to time. She was relying on me. I couldn’t just treat this like I had been up to this point. Acting like some... small part of her life to be forgotten and replaced. This was a real relationship now, and she really expected this to go all the way.

I closed my eyes and tears leaked down my face. Goddesses help my poor little Trixie. “It is Trixie. I don’t know why you don’t get it yet, but... It really is hard for me to understand.”

“Well then I’ll just have to keep this up won’t I?” A light, tender kiss on the tip of my beak. “It’ll get through that thick skull of yours eventually.”

I laughed. Celestia save her from me, please. “I dunno. I can be pretty stubborn.” I looked up at the door and saw Nightmare staring at us, her face expressionless. Oh shit. I tapped the unicorn on the shoulder. “Trixie...”

“Fuck her,” she whispered in my ear as she glared at the alicorn. “You’re mine and I am not letting you go.”

I stared up at Nightmare. I grit my beak and glared at her. My gaze settled into a threat I don’t think I could ever voice effectively. I matched her reptilian eyes, and warned her for all I was worth.

If you ever touch her...

For a second, it looked as though she was going to say something then her head snapped to the side before stalking out of the room.

I leaned in and just hugged Trixie tighter to me. “I got some spices for you,” I mumbled. “I don’t know what they are, but I thought you might like them.”

Her smile was probably the brightest thing I had seen all week. “And you say you’re bad...” Before I had a chance to react, I was on my back with her hooves on either side of my face as she leaned down till her lips touched my beak. “You’re just a big softie under all that fur, aren’t you?”

I smirked. “Oh yeah, you got me. The mass murdering sociopath with the heart of gold. Cause that’s where it counts.”

“Mmmmm...” I felt her lips press themselves against my beak in a hungry kiss and despite the awful hunger I had, I felt my pulse rise and my cheeks flush.

The moment would have been perfect, if at that exact moment my stomach didn’t rumble loudly. Like, really loud and for like, half a minute. Or at least it felt that long.

Trixie simply stared at me with this expression that was halfway between amusement and exasperation. In the end she gave me a lick on my beak and got onto her hooves. “Well Trixie supposes the fastest way to someone’s heart is through their stomach. Come, and bring those spices of yours. Trixie shall prepare a meal fit for royalty!”

“Great. I haven’t eaten since we cooked together.” I paused and thought about it. “No, wait. I didn’t even get to eat that before those brain-deads came at us.” I looked over at Trixie, before I paused to sniff myself. “And I haven’t had a bath since then either.” My arms were coated in dried blood and I was soaked in sweat, not to mention the changeling goop and corpses I’d been hanging around all day. I’m surprised Trixie could even stand to be in the same room as me. “Yeah, it’s been a rough couple of days.”

Trixie smiled and nodded, swaying slightly on her feet as she rubbed up against me. “Perhaps you would like a shower first thing? Trixie is willing to help scrub your back...”

“As awesome as that sounds, I’m really hungry. I would utterly fucking love you if you cooked me something up while I take a shower.” I looked over at her. “Seriously, please. I’ll eat anything that’s not raw or charcoal.”

“Since you asked so nicely,” she replied with a smirk. Then she turned away, letting her tail trail up my chest and over my beak as she sauntered away, her hips swaying more than usual and in a manner that made it impossible to not stop and stare.

After a moment, I shook my head and helped her clear away the barricade from the door. I stepped out, and after a parting kissing from Trixie, we went our separate ways, the spices I had floating away with her. I broke into an inn and found a brain-dead drooling onto the counter. I shuddered and thought about killing him, but I’d had enough of blood for now and just made my way around to the bathroom in back. There wasn’t a shower, but a tub full of hot water was good enough for me.

The water stained itself a ruddy brown shortly after I got in, and I drained it and filled the tub again with fresh clean water. As I rubbed shampoo into my coat it turned dark again, and so I changed the water again. By the fifth change of water there wasn’t enough blood and grime in my coat to change the water’s color anymore, and I heaved a sigh of relief as I relaxed in the warmth of it. After another minute of soaking, I set about preening my feathers. After I was done with that, I was done with the tub. As nice as the water was, I was damn hungry.

After draining the water I went to put my equipment and cloak back on, but I realized it was stained with blood and grime too, so I wrapped it up in paper and carried it with me as I set out to find Trixie. I’d need to clean it soon, but fuck that. I was hungry.

The smell of sizzling meat drew me inside an empty house, and I found Trixie at the stove humming to herself. To my surprise Nightmare was there too, but not saying anything as she stared at me. I realized I’d probably been a bit harsh earlier when she saw me and Trixie. Actually, I know I wasn’t too harsh, but whatever. I shrugged and gave her a silent apology as I passed.

Trixie must have noticed me because she turned to me with a bright smile, all put jumping into my arms. I had to admit, she looked good in an apron. “You smell delicious and look just as good,” she whispered in my ear.

“And to think, you just want to get me dirty all over again,” I replied in lowered tones. “Isn’t that just bloody typical.”

“Well that depends on the type of dirty you’re going after,” she said with a wink before turning back to the meat. “So? What do you think? Trixie is improving her skills.”

I blinked in surprise as I looked at it. “Well it’s not burnt.” I picked up the flipper thingy, and stirred the meat slices in the pan. “And you even added the right spices,” I told her with a smile. “Smells good, what did you put in it?”

Her cheeks turned purple at the compliment. “Salt and pepper mainly like it said in the cookbook, but I also added some of those spices you brought back. Nightmare helped Trixie identify a few that weren’t labeled.”

I nodded. “Yeah? That was nice of her.”

My mind went back on how I thought Nightmare would react when she found about me and Trixie, and I realized how... petty that was. Fucking hell, I’m just me. Honestly, how cut up could she be that I was taken? It was stupid of me to think she viewed me as anything more than a sex toy. And I’d completely forgotten about that Aurora mare who she was still hung up on. I was nothing to her, just a distraction. I mean, she got off on blood right? I guess I was just the first thing she’d seen in a while that could scratch that particular itch.

“It smells really good actually.” I took a deep whiff. “Is there wine in here or something?”

“Uh... no, but I could add it if you like.”

“No, it’s fine.” I told her. “And I think it’s about ready too.” I took it off the heat and dropped a large serving into a bowl. I took a spoon from the top draw and went to sit down. “Hey, why is it that spoons and knives and forks and stuff are always in the top draw?” I asked as I settled into the seat.

“They are? When Trixie used to live with her parents, they were always in the second drawer.” She sat down opposite me with a dish of pasta. “Sure that’s not a gryphon thing?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. I remember most of the houses I’ve been to having it top draw.”

After that I gave up on conversation as I dug into the food. Aww, dude. It actually tasted good. I mean, it wasn’t the best I’d ever eaten, but it was still really nice, and I was so fucking hungry. After I finished that bowl I got myself a second and third helping. Even after I was full I wanted to eat more, but I left the bowl on the table.

“Another Great Scars saying is ‘hunger is the greatest seasoning.’ I think that one’s pretty true.” I smiled at her. “Thanks Trix.”

Once more with that wide smile. “You’re welcome!”

After a second I glanced over at Nightmare. “And uh... thanks, Nightmare.” Wow it felt weird thanking her, but I guess she’d helped Trixie with the cooking.

“You are welcome,” she replied with a smile.

I frowned at her smile. It seemed really... genuine. I stood up from the table. “So anyway, as nice as the creepy ghost town full of brain-deads is... what next?” I looked between Trixie and Nightmare.

“As promised, you two are free to go. Unfortunately, we still have business to attend to in the kingdom.” She cracked her neck. “Some vermin left to exterminate if you will.”

“Oh yeah, that list of gryphons who’d been through town, right?” I asked her.

“Exactly. We found a more extensive list back in the laboratory and we are afraid that they may be infected with the hive mind. It doesn’t help that when we read their mind, we managed to sense more of them in the direction of the capital. Too far to get a location, but they are there. If they managed to get into the mind of high ranking officials, the outfall would be disastrous.”

I shrugged. “Great. Have fun.” I turned to Trixie. “We’re leaving, right? No more of this, we’re just going back to Equestria?”

“As long as you’re certain. After all, this is your home; if you’re fine with leaving when there is still danger...”

I snorted. “Fuck that. The Kingdom’s not my home. In case you haven’t noticed, I really don’t belong here.”

“Trixie has noticed that, yes.” She pressed herself up against me. “Back to Equestria it is then.”

I sighed with relief. “Great. Finally.” I looked at Nightmare. “Well... goodbye?”

“Apparently so,” she replied with a nod. “With luck these gryphons should return to normal in time.”

I shrugged. “Whatever. Uh... come on Trix. Let’s go then.” I turned away and picked up my disgusting package of weapons and bloody cloaks. Me and Trixie made our way to the door, and I paused for a moment. “See you around then.”

“Likewise.”

We stepped out and I closed the door. After a moment I wrapped Trixie in my arms and flew into the air with a shout of, “Fuck yes!”

With her hooves wrapped around my neck, Trixie joined in on my laughter. “Finally free. Let us never repeat that experience ever again.”

“Oh, fuck yeah!” I flew away over the wall and laughed for all I was worth. “It’s over! All this shit is finally over!” I did a barrel roll and swooped low over the grass. Low enough that Trixie’s hooves touched the taller flowers. “We can go home!”

All the while, Trixie screamed in a mixture of fear and exhilaration and more than once, I felt her press her face into my neck. Not once did she tell me to stop though and more than once, she joined in my yells with some of her own, though it was impossible to hear what she was saying above the whistling wind.

I flew a little higher as I felt my wings getting oddly tired. After another minute’s flying I landed because I wasn’t sure it was good for both of us to be flying if I was feeling tired. I guess I was more worn out by the last few days then I thought.

“Come on Trix. Let’s get the fuck out of this goddess forsaken place.” I smirked. “I’ve had more than enough of the ‘divines’ to last a lifetime.”

“Well at least Trixie got you out of all of this so she can say it was worth it.”

I nodded. “Yeah, meeting you was the one part of all this that I don’t regret.” Meeting Trixie was great. Yeah it could have turned out better, but even then, as much as I hated how she needed me of all gryphons, I was glad she wanted me with her. Damn it, I’m so selfish it hurts sometimes. “Tonight, I say we celebrate.”

“Celebrate?”

“Yeah. I say we find ourselves a nice camp, and we turn in early. Break out the alcohol, cook the best food we can, and just have as much fun as we can on the roadside in the middle of nowhere.”

She suddenly grinned at me as she trailed a hoof down my chest. “Oh, I’m sure we can have a lot of fun tonight then...”

I smirked. “Not what I had in mind, but if you want to do it in the dirt I won’t stop you.” I sighed. “And to think, this is the first time I’ve been clean and preened all week.”

Trixie burst out laughing. “What was it you said earlier about me only wanting to get you dirty again?”

I chuckled. “Oh, well if that’s the case I’ll never clean myself again. If you just want to get down and nasty what’s the point?”

She stuck her tongue out at me. “Then expect to never get laid.”

“Oh, the horror.” I answered her. “How did I ever live without getting laid by you?” I frowned. “Oh wait, that still hasn’t happened.” I nudged her with my elbow.

“And once you have had the pleasure of being with Trixie, you shall not be able to live without it ever again!” she announced.

“Yeah, no doubt. If you’re as good at sex as you are at everything else...” I paused for a moment as if gauging her worth. “Hmmm... above-average’ish.”

“What.”

I smirked at her. “Don’t worry about it. I was just kidding.” Then I caught the look in her eyes and noticed the slightly dangerous glint.

“The Great and Powerful and Trixie... ‘above average’.” She took a step towards me. “The Great and Powerful Trixie, will not settle for ‘above average’. The Great and Powerful Trixie excels at all things!” She jabbed her hoof into my chest. “Do you hear me gryphon? You will be screaming Trixie’s name! You will ride waves of ecstasy like nopony has ever imagined! By the time Trixie is done with you, you will be unable to think of anything other than another taste of Trixie’s grace! You will be putty in her hooves, and you will not know anything that could ever compare to how Trixie will make you feel!” She shoved me and I fell back onto my haunches. “You understand me gryphon? Do you?!”

I swallowed nervously, before I smirked. “Only one way to prove it.”

“Oh yes. Yes there is.” Then she gave me the mother of all kisses. I mean, talk about smoking hot! Like... shit I’m out of words. I’ll sum it up this way:

HELL THE FUCK YES!

What had to be an hour, or maybe a month, later we broke apart, and I wasn’t the only one panting hard.

I smiled as I gasped. “Alright. Yeah. Awesome.” I spoke slowly, pausing for breath between each word.

Trixie smirked. “Told you.”

I nodded. “Yeah well...” I took in another deep breath. “There’s always room to improve.” I nudged her shoulder. “If you’re up to it, we can practice.”

“Way ahead of you birdie.” This time she pushed me over and pinned me down as she kissed me.

The sun started to set and the red pink light washed over us as we made out. We were both getting into it, and I only paused long enough to throw away the package I was carrying. I was getting sick of playing bottom, so I rolled over and let Trixie have a rest as I held up my own weight. She growled playfully, and tried to roll me over again, but I was stronger and held her down. Suddenly, I felt my arm shaking, and before I knew it, Trixie pushed me over.

“What’s the matter bird brain?” She asked as she nipped my cheek. “Getting tired?”

“The day I get overpowered by a unicorn is the day I stop being a gryphon.” I growled back and shoved her over again. Or I tried to. I frowned as I couldn’t budge her arms despite using all my strength. “What the fuck?” I asked aloud.

“Is this is it?” she asked sounding amused. “You’re not as strong as you look.”

I grit my beak as I tried to push her again, and suddenly both my arms cramped with pain. I cried out in shock and surprise as the muscle contracted.

“Gilda? This isn’t funny.”

I panted heavily, and it wasn’t from the kissing. “Trix, let me up.” I swallowed. “Get off me.”

She immediately scrambled onto her hooves and pulled me up onto my feet. Swaying dangerously, I would have collapsed again if she hadn’t been there to prop me up.

“I don’t...” I blinked and noticed tears in my eyes. “I don’t feel very good...” I felt a snake squirming around in my stomach, crawling up my throat and into my skull. “I need- I need...” I arched my back in pain and rose on my hind legs with wings flared. I screamed as that snake did fucked up things to my spine. I fell over onto my back, writhing in pain.

“G-Gilda!” She was immediately on her knees beside me, looking around frantically as she tried to restrain me with her magic. “Stop thrashing, you’ll make whatever’s wrong worse!”

I tried to listen to her, but my muscles weren’t listening to me as they twitched and spasmed out of my control. As soon as the snake started fucking with my back, it stopped and I blinked in surprise. Tears formed in my eyes, and Trixie gasped as she stared at me.

“What?” I asked her and rubbed the tear from my eye. “What’s wrong?” Then I noticed there was blood on my talon. With growing dread I wiped away another tear from my eye, and my claw came away bloody.

“B-blood. There’s blood coming out of your eyes.” She swallowed.

I stared at her in shock, and opened my beak to speak, but just as I did something happened inside my chest and I screamed in pain and arched my back. Something was in my chest, and it was rearranging my organs. I could feel my heart squirming and trying to strangle my lungs while my stomach had my kidneys in a headlock. I screamed. That was all I could do. I arched my back and writhed in pain as I shouted myself hoarse. One of my flailing arms hit Trixie in the face, and she was flung away from me. Within seconds she was back by my side with her magic glowing even brighter, and I found my limbs chained down to the ground. But even that didn’t stop my body from doing what it wanted.

“There’s something inside me!” I screeched. “There’s something in me!” I would have screamed in pain as it found my brain and started messing with that too, but I was already out of air. “Get it out! Get it out of me!” I shouted desperately.

“I-I don’t know! Where? Where is th-”

“You know, I would advise against such actions.” Out the corner of my eye, I saw Nightmare admiring the night sky. “I can definitively tell you there is nothing in you. Though I’m surprised you’re having such a strong reaction. The first batch, and the most unrefined, failed to get this reaction from me. Perhaps a difference in pony and gryphon biology? How curious.”

“What the fuck did you do to me?!” I shouted, and tried to stand up. Though my stomach muscles cramping stopped that.

“Oh, you know, a bit of something I picked up in the lab.” She threw an empty vial at my feet. “One of the ‘spices’ no doubt.”

“Why?!” I gasped and my claw went to my knife. “What the fuck are you doing?!”

“Congratulations, We found you worthy to be the first of the nightkin. You should be proud of yourself. Of course there may be some added benefits to turning you. Such as having such an... athletic toy to play with.” She took a step forward, but Trixie immediately stood between the two of us. “What’s this? Protecting your dear lover? How pathetic. Get out of my way showmare. If you truly love her, you’ll let me perform the ritual on her. Without it, she’ll turn into a mindless raving beast.”

“No.” Trixie’s eyes narrowed and her horn flared to life. “I will not let you harm her.”

“You think you can stop a goddess?”

“You’re no goddess!” The bolt of magic was deflected with a simple flick of Nightmare’s sword.

“Tsk, let me show you true magic.” Dark balls of energy gathered around Trixie, charring the ground and singing her fur.

“Stop!” I shouted. “I said I didn’t want this!” I spasmodically drew my knife, trying to get between Nightmare and Trixie.

“Stay out of this,” snapped Trixie as I was flung back and pinned down. I could only watch helplessly as those balls of death collapsed in on her resulting in an explosion so massive I was thrown back like a doll.

“No!” I shouted and tried to stand up, but magic still held me down, and every muscle in my body was contracting. Just speaking was taking a lot of effort.

“How dull. And here I was hoping for a bit of action.” Nightmare teleported beside me and rolled me over with a hoof. “Don’t worry, this won’t hurt a bit. Then again, the original potion shouldn’t have hurt either, so who knows?”

I only just managed to spit blood in her eye, before my neck muscles cramping so hard I couldn’t even look around. I was coughing and gagging, and something crawled up my throat. A chunk of something bloody slipped into my beak. I tilted my head for what looked like a red chunk of meat to drop out of my mouth and onto the ground with a plop of blood.

“Look at that, such a shame you had to suffer like this. This would have been so much easier if you just accepted my advances, you know. Then I wouldn’t have to re-”

A bolt of blue magic threw her across my field of vision and then there was a bright flash of light. There stood Trixie, cape not even damaged as she stood above me in a defensive stance.

“I will not let you hurt her!” she screamed as more bolts of blue magic rained out. “Anything you can do, I can do better! That applies even to you, Nightmare Moon. I’m not called the Great and Powerful for nothing!”

“Well now, color me surprised. The unicorn has some bite after all.” Dark laughter echoed through the plains as Nightmare swooped around the attacks.

Another spasm racked my body, and my hind legs kicked the air as I felt the claws in my back paws flex out of my control. My fur was standing on end, and I felt a strange... numbness spreading from my stomach to the rest of me.

I looked up again and saw a white lance descending, but Trixie merely did a sweep of her horn, shattering the entire thing. She ran at a full gallop, weaving between blows while launching her own counterattacks. Then she flickered and vanished, only for twelve Trixies to appear, each launching their own attacks and running in different directions. Nightmare merely created a shield and spread her wings wide. Even from my position I could feel the magic radiating off her, it was like a pressure on the back of my mind, pinning me down. One by one the illusions shattered until only the real Trixie was left.

“This is foalish. Look at her! She is dying without the ritual. All you are doing is causing needless suffering.” Tears streamed down Nightmare’s cheeks. “Why must you disobey your goddess!?”

“Fuck! You!” screamed Trixie as her horn lit up brighter than the midday sun. Sparks flew off in all directions, her cape whipped around her as she rose off the ground while a blue aura surrounded her entire body.

“You- You wouldn’t! You’ll destroy this entire place you foal!” For the first time in my life, I heard fear in Nightmare’s voice.

“Better than letting Gilda be your pet.” Though it was a whisper, it carried with it a tone of finality and serenity.

With a sound like existence shattering, a blue shock wave radiated out from Trixie. Dust filled the air and blotted out the moon and all I could see was bright blue light. Around me I could hear nothing but a dull ringing in my ears. Was I dead? Had Trixie killed me? As the light faded, I found myself staring into darkness. Then I realized that was the dark midnight blue of Nightmare’s magic. Her aura sparkled around us. She was sheltering me protectively with her wings and body. Blood dripping from her nose, and her horn burning with enough magic to make the darkness of her aura seem impossibly bright.

“Stupid foal, casting such magics with a cracked horn,” she muttered as she stood up. “However, that takes care of that little issue. Now hang on and you’ll be fine in a minute.”

She took to the sky and I noticed a deep gash along her side. Out of her saddlebags came the ingredients I’d gathered for her back in the mine, and within seconds, the runes were redrawn, the crystals placed, and I was levitated into the air beside her. Just behind her, I could see a smoking crater and a prone body in the center of it all.

“Trix...” I croaked, trying to reach for her. My talons twitched and I couldn’t keep my arm steady. That was it. That was all I managed to do before my energy left me and I was done. I slumped in the air, gravity dragging me down, not even fighting the spasms that rocked my entire body.

Trixie. My... Trixie... died to protect me. Bloody tears leaked from my eyes. There was nothing right about that. No part of the sentence that was whole or natural.

Nightmare’s horn began glowing and against my will, I found my eyes drawn to hers. The spasms I was experiencing died down, and a haze filled my mind, blocking out the pain. My eyes started to dim, as if the all light in the world was dying slowly. Even as I slowly blacked out, I glared into Nightmare’s eyes. I couldn’t recognize the look she was giving me, but I knew I was only staring hate into her soul. Then the world dimmed completely, and even though I couldn’t see anything I could feel my eyes slowly close.

My Trix...

When my eyes opened, there was no more pain. I didn’t feel any lingering weakness or hangover or like everything that could've hurt did. If I hadn’t been there myself, I wouldn’t have known that last night was the most pain I’d ever experienced.

My vision was perfect, and I pushed myself to all fours. At first I thought it was daytime, but then I noticed the moon in the sky and saw the pink lines of dawn on the horizon. I frowned. I never remember it being this bright before dawn. I took a step forward, and I felt... different when I did. It didn’t hurt, and it didn’t feel like something was wrong. I don’t know why it felt different.

I wasn’t dead. I knew I wasn’t that lucky. Trixie though... If she was dead then... I felt anger and hate shifting in the back of my mind. Getting ready to deal with Nightmare. I looked around, and spotted the alicorn watching me. The moment I laid eyes on her, Hate and Anger stilled, against my will they quietly slunk to the back of mind. I tried to draw them out again, but they ignored me and watched.

“What have you done?” That was my voice, but speaking felt like walking did. Like something had changed, and I wasn’t the same as I was.

“I have made you mine,” she replied with a seductive whisper. “Now why don’t you be a good pet and come tend to your mistress.”

I raised my claw to take a step towards her, but I froze, realizing what I was about to do. I wanted to make her happy. I wanted Nightmare’s approval and affection. A little part of told me to just do it. To earn her smile and favor. I gagged that part of me and crushed it as best I could.

“Fuck you.” I said aloud and took a deliberate step back. “Where’s Trixie?”

She frowned. “I said, ‘attend your mistress’”

I was halfway to her before I stopped myself mid-walk, and began to slowly reverse. “Why?” I asked.

“Is it not obvious? We want you, and now We have you. So come.” She pattered the grass by her side.

I went to take another step before I growled and stopped myself. The way she frowned at me hurt. I felt sad as I realized I was making her unhappy.

“Why the fuck would you want me?” I asked, and slowly drew my knife. “Why would anyone want me!? Why did Trixie have to die for me?!” I shouted at her.

“She was in the way.” Her hoof ran along my cheek and I immediately stumbled back out of range. Since when had I been next to her? “Come on dear, let me wipe all those memories away for you.”

I took another step towards her again, when I caught myself. I screamed in frustration and turned to run only for her to appear out of the shadows before me.

“How are you resisting me!?” she snarled as she tackled me to the ground. “How can a gryphon like you resist me? Tell me!”

With all my might I heaved and tossed her off me. I rose on my hind legs with a roar. “I don’t want you!” I shouted. “I never wanted you, and I have no fucking clue why you’d want me!” As the words left my beak, I felt despair fill my chest. I knew how much that must have hurt my mistress. I needed to tell her I’m sorry. Beg and crawl at her hooves and-

“Mother fucker! I won’t be your cattle! I’ll never be that again!” I cursed as I jammed a knife into my arm, but at the last second, a blue glow stopped me. “T-Trix?”

“Unfortunately not.” My eyes snapped up and for a brief moment, Nightmare’s eyes weren’t reptilian. Then her eyes went all evil again, the glow vanished and the dagger narrowly missed my arm.

“Luna! Damn you, Luna, what did you do? What the fuck did you do to my ritual!?” screamed Nightmare as her head swung from side to side.

Before I knew what I’d done, my fist was in her face. “Get the fuck away from me!” My knife came around to stab her, but I couldn’t do it. Hate and Anger slithered away from me, and in their place, a need to see Nightmare happy remained. I couldn’t draw her blood like that without them. I snarled in frustration and turned to fly again, tears staining my face.

“Wait!” Once more it was Luna’s voice, but it sounded strained.

Instinctively I stopped for The Night’s call, and I stumbled forwards and fell to the ground. I pushed myself up slowly. “Why didn’t you stop her?!” I turned around and shouted. “How the fuck could you let her poison me, and change me?!”

She looked up at me one eye closed in a wince as her entire body shook. “W-We disrupted her ritual. Made her, made her forget a couple of symbols. It was all we could do. You can resist her call, you have free will.” For a split second her fur turned dark and Nightmare attempted to get away, but Luna came back in full force. “Take some of our blood. There is some leftover moonflower nectar in the bag. F-Find some salt and go!”

With a scream of pain she collapsed on the ground. “T-Trixie is alive. Barely. We’ve been sustaining her. Y-You must go. Quickly. Can’t hold her off for long.” All of a sudden she leaned up, pressing her horn against my forehead and a series of images flashed through my mind. Symbols and circles and all sorts of information.

I hesitated for a second before I snatched the moonflower nectar out of her pack, and slashed her throat with my knife. Part of me shrieked in rage at what I was doing, but Luna had ordered me to take her blood, so it wasn’t too hard to shut that part of me up. I dribbled her blood into my canteen, and to me it smelled... delicious. Seriously, I had to stop myself right then and there from just suckling the wound. It was like a deep rich wine, and I was worried for a second that nightkin were some kind of vampire.

I screwed the lid back on my canteen and turned to run, before I paused and looked back at her. I went to ask where Trixie was, but then I realized I knew that thanks to the information she’d just given me. Trixie was back in White Peak. Without another word I took to the air, and prayed to never see the alicorn again. Though I knew that wasn’t likely. There’s no way that I could be that lucky.

I flew as fast as I could to White Peak, and went to touch my natural gryphon magic to speed my flight. When I did though, rather than my pulse rising and my drag reducing, or any of the other signs of my natural magic, I felt my senses heighten and the landscape became clearer to me. The shadows became obvious, and something screamed at me to fly to them, but I ignored that part and focused on my desperate need to save Trixie.

As the quartz mountain top that White Peak got its name from came into view, so did the town itself and I landed in the streets with a whump. Without thinking about it, I dived into the door of the house and found Trixie on the floor in the middle of the room.

“Trixie!” I shouted and fell to the floor next to her. The first thing I noticed was her cape and hat were gone, but then I noticed something worse that made me freeze. Her horn was cracked. A deep fissure ran along the side of her almost all the way to tip. “Oh sweet fucking Celestia.” I breathed. “What did you do?”

I shook her. “Trixie?” I tried to raise her head by decided against it. “Come on, wake up.”

No response.

Oh shit. I had no idea what to do now. How the heck was I supposed to heal Trixie? “Oh goddesses damn it! I’m so useless when it actually matters!” I shouted to the empty house. I didn’t know whether I should move her, or leave her or...

Damn it. Part of me still wanted to fly out that door and find Nightmare and... just ask her to tell me what to do. To give me commands and...

With a snarl, I yanked the moonflower and blood out. I ran into the kitchen and snatched a salt shaker off the table. I sat on the ground and began drawing up the circles and runes and lines and all the magical shit that I had no clue about. Fuck. For all I know, this ritual would only make things worse.

As the last of Nightmare’s blood stained the floor, I tapped into the natural magic I had and the runes lit up. Except it wasn’t my magic anymore. It was... whatever the fuck sort of magic Nightmare had shoved into me. The runes deepened and darkened, and spread like black ink across the floor until the entire circle looked like a pockmark in the middle of the room.

I opened my beak against my will, and a retarded crooning made its way out of my throat. I sat there, singing like some fucking monster bird for almost half a minute before it died down in my throat, and the ink on the floor receded back to the edge of the circle. The ingredients to the ritual were gone, and in their place was just a dark ash.

I stood up, and I felt oddly numb and cold. I wondered what that ritual had done. I still felt... different. Like there was something different in me, but my head was clearer. I didn’t have that nagging voice telling me I needed to go find Nightmare and beg her for forgiveness.

Whatever. I could figure it out later. Right now I had to figure out how to help Trixie. I took a step forward and stumbled. I felt my eyes fluttering shut as I collapsed to the floor. I wasn’t tired, but... I needed to sleep. I needed, to... to...

My head hit the floor and I blacked out again.

Slowly, I woke up. It was full day now, and the light streamed in through the windows. My eyesight adjusted instantly, but for some reason I didn’t like the light. It put me in a bad mood. I rose to all fours and looked around, my head spinning slightly.

“Trixie?” I asked, noticing that I couldn’t see her. Then I realized I was on a bed and my eyes widened. Nightmare! “Trixie!” I shouted and ran out of the room.

I paused when I heard the sound of a shower and humming. I followed the noise and pushed open the bathroom door. I breathed a sigh of relief as I saw Trixie bathing in the hot water.

“Oh thank fuck,” I said aloud.

Apparently Trixie didn’t notice because she turned around so her back was to me and began soaping up her back and rump, while shampooing her tail. Her humming broke into a full out song as she began dancing in the confined space, making it look more like she was shaking her plot at me than anything.

As much as I would have loved to just watch, we had more important things to worry about. “Trixie!” I said loudly and walked towards her. “Come on, we need to go.”

She turned to me and blinked in surprise. “You’re awake!” Once more with the flying hug tackling thingie that she loved doing so much.

But this time I didn’t get knocked over by it. I braced for impact, and she smacked into me with a solid whump. I wrapped my arms around her and said, “I thought you were dead.”

“I thought you were going to die,” she whispered back.

“Your horn, Nightmare cracked it.” I growled as I patted her on the back, and hate and anger finally answered me. “I’m gonna murder that bitch.”

“My horn?” She touched it and shrugged. “Oh that. It must have re-cracked during the fight.”

I blinked at her. “Re-cracked?” I frowned. “What do you mean re-cracked?”

“Old wound.” From the way she said it, it was clear she didn’t want to talk about it. “And what happened to your eyes?”

I frowned at her. “What’s wrong with my eyes?”

“Um...” She pointed at the mirror. “They’re kinda like Nightmare’s...”

I turned and looked, before I balked back in surprise. “The fuck!” My eyes were... “They’ve gone slitty!” I shouted. “My eyes are cat’s slits!” I growled. “What the hell did that bitch do to me?!”

“Trixie doesn’t know...” She looked down and off to the side.

“I can’t believe I trusted her.” I shattered the mirror with my fist. It wasn’t just my eyes that had changed, but my coat was darker too, and the white on my chest had turned a light grey. “How could I think she’d wouldn’t do... something?!”

“Anypony could have made that mistake.”

“How? She’s Nightmare Moon! The Nightmare Moon.” I turned around and hugged Trixie again. “I thought she’d go after you. Damn it, I really thought she’d kill you.”

“Well... um... still a mistake anypony could have made,” she said lamely as she snuggled into my hug. “And she didn’t kill me. That’s the important thing.”

I nodded. “As long as you’re okay.” I repeated. After a moment of that I pulled away. “Come on, we need to get out of here. Before Nightmare or the Wide Eyes show up or... freaking Celestia decides she wants to fuck me too.”

“Or me?” whispered Trixie seductively.

“Not right now,” I told her. “Seriously, let’s just get the fuck out of here before something else goes wrong.”

“Very well,” she pouted. “Let Trixie dry herself off and we can be on our way.”

I nodded and stepped away from her. I was shifting uncomfortably, and I kept an eye out in case some more shit happened. Another eye was on Trixie as she slowly dried herself. I’ll admit I liked watching. She must have noticed because she started making sure I had the best angle for everything.

“As much as I’m enjoying the show, we really need to get going,” I said.

“What show?” She looked at me innocently and when I return it with a flat look, she sighed. “Very well.” And within seconds she was done. “Where to?”

“South, the border, Equestria.” I pushed the door open and we walked through it onto the street. “I don’t know, anywhere that’s not the kingdom.”

“Equestria sounds lovely.”

“You are a foal. There was no need for you to interfere,” snapped Nightmare.

“That was exactly what We thought. We thought that if thou loved the gryphon then thou wouldst not continue in thy line of action, but sadly, We were wrong.” I stood up on shaky limbs as We watched the gryphon recede into the distance. “Though that does not surprise us in the least.”

“Love? Don’t make me laugh. I loved once, and she is the only creature I shall ever love,” said Nightmare as I began walking, highly conscious of the ring atop my horn. “No, I lusted after the gryphon and had such delicious plans once she was my pet.”

With a mighty flap, I took to the skies, letting the thermals do the work for me. While Nightmare’s methods were flawed, I had to admit that Gilda would have made a fine addition to the nightkin ranks, if she had been willing.

“Though I have to admit, that was very well played. Sacrificing both of them to get the knowledge you seek was a sound move.” Nightmare’s laughter echoed through my mind. “To think you’d go to such lengths to learn the steps in the ritual. You and I are not so different after all it seems.”

“Silence!” My voice echoed through the silent sky. “We are nothing like thou!”

“Once you knew what I was doing, you could have stopped me anytime you wanted. Cut off my magic, or taken the body back forcibly, or any number of other tactics, but you didn’t. You waited and subtly nudged my hoof here and there.” Her words were like a venom, trying to burn me from the inside out. “You decided to gamble with their lives. To take things to the end, so you could find out the one piece of information you have always lusted after. They could have died, and Trixie almost did.”

“But they didn’t,” I muttered under my breath. “I did what was necessary.”

Even as I said those words, I could see Gilda’s face in my mind as she accused me of making excuses and hiding behind justifications. There was little doubt in my mind that if she found out the truth, she would very happily slit my throat multiple times and wear my skin like a cloak.

A sigh escaped. Since when did the lives of some toys matter to me? They would all die eventually, and I would be left alone once more. I had seen the pain my sister went through, yet time after time she’d pick a favored student to nurture and love with all her being. And time after time, that student would die and she would go into mourning. She’d cry her heart out, drown her sorrows in bottles of wine, and then pick another student. Going through that once was more than enough for me, so why did I bother saving those two? They were going to die anyway. Whether it was now or in a thousand years, it mattered not. Dead was dead was dead was dead.

“Looks like someone’s getting sentimental in their old age.”

I ignored Nightmare and turned my gaze towards the rising sun. The thing was, I knew why I cared so much. Touching Gilda’s mind, seeing and experiencing her past had changed me. It was impossible to go back and view them as toys. As pieces on a board in the eternal game. As beings with no feelings or emotions or desires or dreams. They were beings like Celly and I, perhaps not as long lived, but no less important. They were pawns, and yet, not pawns at the same time. Lesser than alicorns, but so much more.

“Oh, bleah. That’s disgusting! What happened to the sociopathic little filly I used to know?”

“She’s dead,” I replied before saying out loud, “and she’s not coming back.”

I removed the ring from my horn, and held it up to the light of the rising sun. Aurora... It was still so difficult to remember anything about you, but...

Tears leaked down my cheek as I kissed the central diamond lightly before putting it back in place. In the back of my mind, I could feel Nightmare crying alongside me. Perhaps getting attached to these frail mortal creatures wasn’t such a bad thing after all. Perhaps, all this time, Celly had been right.

Regardless, I had a mission before me, and if there was one thing I knew, it was how to accomplish a mission. And maybe, just maybe, Equestria would be better off if I vanished. To be never seen again or heard again.

A thousand years of peace, and all it took was for the meddling little sister to disappear.

Chapter 16

Shadows are everywhere. They see all, know all, hear all. From within the shadows, I am as close to omnipotent as possible, and from within the shadows, all is mine. Celly has the light and I have the dark. Two sides of the same coin.

From within the shadows, I watched a certain feminine gryphon do his work. Every movement, every word spoken or written, every single last breath he took was seen by me, and I remembered. I am eternal after all. So I sat back and watched, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Though I could feel time ticking along, flowing past far faster than I liked, I waited. Soon, night fell and he retired to his chambers.

And still I waited. I watched as his servants retired for the night and as he did some late night reading. It was only once the entire household was deathly still that I emerged from the darkness. Though it was a new moon, it might as well have been day for me. I walked through the empty halls, easily slipping past the feeble defenses he had set up, and slipped into his room without any trouble. There he lay, snoring softly as he lay on his front, curled up in a ball.

With a touch of magic, he was shackled down and a quick search with my magic removed all the hidden weapons and zebra powder he had nearby. All it took was a bit more magic to seal the doors and windows with an enchantment only Celly would be able to break.

Then, plucking a feather from my wing, I trailed it under his nose. For a couple of seconds, there was no reaction, then he sneezed once, eyes snapping open as he did so. There was the usual struggling, muffled oaths, surprise, curses, and colorful language, before he finally settled down and growled at me. Even after a thousand years, things had not changed so much.

“No doubt thou art wondering why We are here,” I said as I sat down on the edge of his bed. “We could tell you lies, but the truth would be much simpler. No? The question to thou is, wilt thou listen, or wilt thou continue thy useless struggles?”

He raised his eyebrow as he stared back at me. After a moment he said something through the gag that I couldn’t quite make out. With a sigh, I removed the gag and gazed down at him curiously.

“Honestly, the chains are unnecessary.” He shifted. “If you wished to talk, there are ways to do so that are less risky, and do not involve breaking into my home. Really, I’d be much happier to talk to you anonymously in a cafe or something.” He rolled his eyes. “Regardless, yes. I shall listen. Would you undo the chains? Truly, they are not needed.”

“Why? You look so delectable in them,” said Nightmare through my mouth before I could stop her. I applied my hoof to my face and said, “Please ignore that. Nightmare has recently tried to rape thy sister, and now she has her eyes on thee. The chains are a mere precaution until we can settle matters and-”

A beam of magic hit Grace dead center of the chest. After a second of nothing happening, I breathed a sigh of relief. “And thou hath not been corrupted yet. That is a relief. Tell Us, have any of thy comrades acted strange lately? Perhaps strangely absent or ill before returning.Or even seeming a bit lifeless.”

“Yes. Of course I noticed the agents returning from their assignments weeks before they’re due and the extreme changes in their disposition.” He gave me a flat look. “They’ve been isolated, and are under watch until we can get back into contact with the laboratory.”

“Do not bother. At least not yet. The mutant changelings managed to escape, but we took care of the issue. We are afraid thy citizens may not recover from their ordeal.” I tossed the list of names onto his chest. “What about these gryphons?”

“I would be happy to review the list, but unfortunately I lack function in my claws to position the paper.” He shook his head. “But to be truthful, right now I’m slightly more concerned about the claim that Nightmare wished to bed my sister, and is now considering doing so to me.” He shook his arms and jangled the magical bonds. “The chains, please.”

They shattered and he immediately rubbed his wrists before pouring over the page. “Well some haven’t returned yet, others failed to report in when they entered the city.” He frowned. “Some of these aren’t even Wide Eyes, but senior military personnel. Where did you get this?” He looked at me. “Did Gilda give it to you?”

“From the laboratory turned hive at White Peak.” I jerked his head back to the paper. “Is this a full list of all the important personnel that have been there in the last month?”

He considered the list for a moment. “It is, yes. It’s missing my name, but other than that, it’s complete.” He looked to me. “Why? Are the chemicals somehow affecting their thoughts? They were not supposed to be test subjects.”

“The chemicals thou hast been using enhance magic. Now answer me this, what magic do changelings have and if they were amplified, which direction are they most likely to take?” Before the words had even finished leaving my mouth, I saw understanding in his eyes. “Mind magic. We have been there and We have experienced it firsthoof. A hive mind capable of integrating gryphons and ponies alike into it. A hive mind that has the potential to learn at an exponential rate.”

He looked at me, considering my words. “This is assuming you speak the truth. If you are, then yes, I will pursue the matter and stop the spread of the hive as best I can. Not that I don’t believe you, but I need evidence in order to chase up the issue. I cannot marshal the king’s resources without proof.”

“Then come with us. We seek purge this land of this taint, and unfortunately, there are too many of them for us to destroy using the ritual like We had planned. Their collective mind is stronger than We had anticipated.” I held out my hoof. “We do not know this city, nor its inhabitants, as well as thee.”

“Why wouldn’t Gilda help you?” He stood up. “If all you require is a guide to the city and an extra knife hand, I assure you, she is adequate.” He paused to glare at me, “Unless something has happened to her.”

“Except We are probably on thy most wanted list, the layout has no doubt changed since she was last here, thou hast access to resources she does not, and thou does not annoy us nearly as much.” I examined my hoof in the moonlight. “And something has happened to her. She decided to... ‘hook up’ with the showmare. She desires to take Trixie back to safety.”

He stared at me for a second before he sighed. “Honestly, the fact that she’s queer surprises me less than her heading away from danger.” After a moment he sighed. “I’m willing to help you, but really, I do require evidence. You destroyed an entire laboratory and attacked palace staff. For all I know, you’re the cause of the affliction and the reason we have not received word from White Peak.”

“Correction, Nightmare Moon destroyed a government facility and attacked palace staff. The same Nightmare Moon that attacked Equestrian Royalty.” I smirked at him. “We cannot be held responsible for the acts of our mad other half. In fact, as a representative of Equestria, We would have to pledge our help in ending her once and for all.”

“I have no interest in trying to punish a goddess for her crimes. Even without your political immunity, the sheer power you wield is enough to make such an idea stupid. Again, if you want my aid, I will need evidence. Or word from White Peak. Anything to confirm the existence of an infectious changeling hive mind.”

“White Peak won’t help in that regard then. I killed all the changelings there.” I began pacing around his room. “Have there been any recent or sudden earthworks or constructions? Any gryphons going missing?”

He nodded, “There’s always gryphons going missing. Sentient trafficking is a popular trade, and gryphon females are worth a lot.” He paused for thought. “Though, a surprising number of male gryphons, even from military backgrounds, have been disappearing.”

“Where?” I pulled out the map of the city I had picked up earlier. “Mark them out on the map.”

He took up the map. “Mostly in and along the city edge, but a few towns closer to city limits have been reporting high rates of unusual disappearances, as well as cases of hallucination in areas without a significant drug trade.” He looked to me after he was done circling several areas. “Would the issues be related?”

“Perhaps. What sort of hallucinations are we talking about?”

He shrugged. “That was not mentioned in the report. I can only relay the information that is relayed to me.”

“Very well.Any reports of disappearances or hallucinations or lifelessness from within this city?”

“Only along the edge,” he told me. “We have yet to see it occur closer to any major political hubs.”

“Just the edge? Nowhere else? No hallucinations or anything within the city center? Thou art certain about this?”

“Yes. Primarily, industrial and working class locations, with some more middle class areas also afflicted. But as someone who keeps track of most of the city’s movements, I assure you that the lower class isn’t as removed from the palace as many would like to believe.”

“That is most concerning.” I picked up the red marker and began drawing on the map. “When we were at White Peaks, the highest concentration of changelings was in this direction. A-”

“‘This direction?’” He repeated. “I’m afraid that’s not information I can really work with.”

“If thou wouldst let us finish. The epicenter of these disappearances and hallucinations seems to be out here in the countryside just outside the city walls. Though the spread is rather massive, it is linear and if thou draw a line straight down the center, it is a perfect line from White Peak to the city. Dost thou have information regarding when these reports were made?”

“Of course,” he scoffed. “What use is information if you don’t have a time frame?”

“Then thou can tell us and We can organize these reports. If our suspicions are correct, then we shall see a pattern moving from the north-east to south-west.”

He nodded, and began listing off dates to match each location that had been circled. Within the minute, everything had been color coded and we gazed at the map. Just as expected, there was a very clear pattern of drift as the changelings moved towards the city.

“Well... that is quite concerning,” he stated flatly.

“Nah, really?” mocked Nightmare.

“It doesn’t seem as though they have been moving forward though,” I commented. “They seemed to have stopped out in the farmland and are slowly creeping outwards in all directions. That is not good at all. If they manage to put the chemicals into the water or food...”

His frowned and rubbed his eyes. “This is a nightmare. If half of what you claim is true, or any aspect of it all, then the entire Kingdom is at risk. Without the Kingdom’s security, Equestria’s safety is not guaranteed either.” He breathed out. “I can’t go to the king with this. I believe you, but the king’s an... emotional thinker at times. Your attack on the laboratory and massacre of innocents has permanently placed you in his general purview of ‘enemy’. I’ll help how I can, but honestly, there is only so much I can do. I have some resources at my disposal, but...” He grit his beak. “We’re in trouble.”

“Agreed.” I frowned at the map. “There have not been any reports in the central city so they probably have not poisoned the water as of yet. We can provide some buffer to the insanity, but if an outbreak occurs, We will not be able to save everygryphon. Not with the power we have available right now. We have to shut this down before it starts.”

“Oh, Elders.” He sighed. “We need all the help we can get. I need all the information you can give me on the changelings and how to combat them, and...” He turned and paced away. “This is going to take a while. I need coffee and parchment. There’s no time to waste. Go to my study, I’ll be there shortly and we can plan how to deal with this.” He frowned and looked back at me. “And then we need to discuss my sister.”

“Very well.” I stepped back into the shadows and when I stepped forward once more, I found myself in his study. “Not bad, not bad at all.”

A while later, the gryphon entered the room with a steaming beverage and several rolls of parchment. “Okay, so I believe the area that presents the greatest risk is Ashguard.” He sat at the table and unrolled a map of the region. “The area is directly in the way of the spread, and has one of the highest rates of unusual occurrences. It has a full bastion of soldiers, the entire Thirteenth Legion in fact, so if the area were to fall, there would be a hostile army on gryphon soil already. The river leading from it heads straight to Aviana, and the river has been dammed here, so it spreads into numerous smaller streams that affect most towns between here and the Great Spine ridge.” He paused for thought. “Oh, Elders. That’s fifteen percent of the Kingdom’s population along that one water source.”

“They do not seem to have acted yet, so we still have time.” I paused and Nightmare suddenly spoke out of my mouth, “How opposed are you to blowing up the castle?”

He gave a laugh. “If it’s truly an option. Just earlier this evening I would have scoffed at the suggestion, but now anything that’s a solution is an option.” He paused. “How do you propose we destroy the fortress, and what would that accomplish? We still don’t know if the Thirteenth is corrupt yet, so I’d rather not.”

“We need to enter and verify our beliefs, but to do so We need to shield everyone from the mind altering magic and as soon as the hive mind detects that, We fear they will act.” I rubbed my temples. “Could thou send some kind of order and see if they react to it? Neigh, if we do that it may tip them off.”

“This whole situation is a nightmare.” He grit his beak. “We should never have excavated the temple in the first place, it’s brought us nothing but pain. Um... okay. We need to confirm the extent of the damage. We can’t send operatives on their own, or they may be corrupted too... Is there any way you can shield someone that we send?” He tapped the map. “Ashguard isn’t even the only place at risk. We’re going to need eyes on the ground in... urgh. At least half a dozen regions. In total that’s... more operatives than I can provide.”

“Get us changeling blood. We can perform a ritual to wipe them all out provided We catch them off guard. There may be too many of them for us to take in a direct confrontation like we did back at White Peak.” I sat down and stared at the map.

He snorted. “So, our only option is to enter the region with limited intelligence, a limited number of knife hands, and put our trust in the Plague of Divinity herself. And that’s assuming we can locate and kill a changeling without alerting the hive.” He chuckled and sculled his mug. “This is a horrible plan.”

“We never said kill. All we need is blood. Though the hivemind makes it dangerous.” We sat in silence as we mulled it over. “The king’s crown, is there a way to duplicate the mind blocking properties of it?”

“I’m a gryphon, how would I know?” He asked irritably. “What I know of magic is limited to the use zebra powders and the capabilities of unicorns in combat.”

“Can thou make any more of the chemicals?”

“More of them?” He frowned at me. “Why would we want to synthesize more of the spirits damned stuff? We can, but... I just want to burn all knowledge of this and be done with it. Forget the king’s ambitions, as glorious as they are.”

“You were missing a piece of vital information,” explained Nightmare. “There was a ritual I concocted after I took control over Luna that allows me to... stabilize... the transformation.”

“Though we would not recommend it to thee if Nightmare performs it,” I snapped as I glared in the mirror. “She added an extra step that allows her to control the one who transformed. We barely managed to save Gilda from being her permanent pet, so unless We perform it, do not take her up on the offer.”

Grace just stared at me. “What was that about my sister? I’ve held off on asking because of more pressing concerns, but... tell me. What has happened to her?”

“She has become the first of the nightkin. A very prestigious position, but it was against her will. Nightmare transformed her in an attempt to make Gilda her sexual slave, but Trixie and I managed to stop her. She still has free will and should be moving towards the border with Trixie as we speak.”

Grace’s jaw tightened. “Tell me then, what exactly is a nightkin, and why would it benefit her and us to become one?”

“Slight. Song of Night.Curse. She was nightkin. One of many, We might add, and definitely not the most powerful or well trained.”

He stared at me. “So, you propose to turn me and my operatives into a legend told to cubs, and not only that, but you’ve already transformed my sister into some kind of... bat pony gryphon?”

“Please, she does not have bat wings, the potion thou has been brewing enhances magic and does not give bat wings.” I rolled my eyes. “She has slitted pupils, dark coloration, and some extra magic. If we do the same now, then we may be able to move fast enough and have enough strength to not get overwhelmed before we can perform the ritual.”

“So... you’re telling me this is real? That the fictional character my sister idolizes was real, and you genuinely plan to spread the power to dissolve into shadow at will to us?”

“Thou would not be able to replicate it anyways,” I replied with a smirk. “And we have read thy mind and thy sister resides in Equestria. Thou wouldst not act against Equestria even if thou wished to.”

He seemed to have a hard time understanding the implications of this. “How can I trust that you won’t use Nightmare’s mind controlling extra step? My sister trusted you as much as she would a manticore with a youngling, and judging by what you’ve told me, she was right to.”

“We have done nothing but help her. Nightmare is the one thou should be concerned about,” I snapped.

He frowned at me. “You’re lying. I can read ponies as well as anyone. What are you not telling me?”

“Nothing.”

“To quote my sister, ‘bullshit’. What are you leaving out?”

“We distracted Nightmare while she did her ritual so her control over Gilda was incomplete. There is no reason to believe she would refrain from doing the same to us while we worked.” I sighed. “More than that, we hath become... closer.”

“Closer?” he repeated. “Is that intended to comfort me?”

“It is not supposed to,” I replied. “But it may be a necessary risk. If she has limited control over thee, then we too, have limited control over thee and should be able to break it easily enough.”

“And yet that requires me to trust you. Again, we arrive at an impasse. How can I in good conscious, put the lives of agents of the kingdom and host to national secrets in your hooves?” He frowned. “You have not proven yourself remotely trustworthy in the past. You even failed to protect my sister, and that’s assuming your tale is true.”

“If thou prefers we can try storming the castle with an undersized force.”

He sighed again. “Yes, I really don’t have a choice do I?” He sat back in his chair and massaged his temples. “This is a nightmare.” After a moment he sat up. “Very well. I can get us a dozen good operatives by morning, and another thirty by the end of the week. And I’m afraid that’s the most I can offer without official backing from the king or the Wide Eyes.”

“Morning. We leave in the morning. Who knows how long they have been in position?” I began slamming my head against the desk. “We can try to free some of the gryphons there as we go, but We need to save our energy for the ritual.”

“A complete nightmare.” He sighed and stood up. “Very well. You have a ritual to prepare, and I have a dozen soldiers and intelligence operatives on leave that I need to dredge up from whatever hole they’ve drunk themselves to stupor in.” He gave me a small bow. “A good evening to you. Meet me here in the morning.”

“You make it sound as though we are leaving,” I chuckled. “All we require is moonflower nectar, but we are sure thou art able to find some. Oh, and salt.”

“Excellent. So now I have to acquire restricted magical supplies without alerting any authorities to its absence.” He sighed. “I have to go. You can get salt from my pantry.”

“A vial. We do not need much,” I called after him as he half ran out the door.

“Just don’t damage my house while I’m absent!” He shouted back.

“Well now, that went easier than I expected,” remarked Nightmare.

“Agreed. He is far more rational than his sister. The question now becomes, will our plan work?”

“We can only hope.”

“Hope is not a plan.”

The worst thing about the shit Nightmare did to me, was the eyes. We were traveling along the Changeling Wastes, so the first time I stepped into town they took one look and tried to kill me. After that Trixie started having to cast some illusion magic on me anytime we came close to anyone. That only lasted till the towns started getting common, and the desolate wilderness gave way to farmland. Basically, Trixie had to cast the spell constantly and it was wearing her out.

So now I have to wear sunglasses. Doesn’t sound so bad? Well, it wouldn’t be if they were aviators or wrap-arounds or those thick black ones Dash liked. No, I have shiny pink ones. Why? Because that was the only pair they had at the gift shop.

“What the fuck are you looking at?” I snarled at the pretty and preened females who were smirking at me. “I swear I will end both of you, and it’ll look like a fucking accident!” Okay, so maybe this was getting me a bit ticked off.

“Look on the bright side, they complement your crown feathers,” chuckled Trixie.

I just growled at her as the two females moved away, still looking over their shoulders at me. I wish they were afraid, but it’s impossible to be scary while wearing pink sunglasses.

“I don’t care what they do and don’t match. They’re pink. Goddess damned pink.”

“You-” Trixie poked me in the chest. “-have an irrational hatred of the color pink.”

“No I don’t.” I pushed her hoof away from me. “I just hate anything that’s pink. Because it sucks,” and after a second I added, “dicks.”

My only reply was a facehoof from Trixie. “Irrational hatred indeed.”

I just rolled my eyes, not that she could see it. We walked in silence for a while until I spoke up. “I’ve been meaning to ask, would you mind teaching me a bit about unicorn magic?”

“Unicorn magic? Why would you want to learn about that?” asked Trixie.

“Well, not just unicorn magic I guess, but magic in general.” I scratched the back of my head.

I’m not sure I wanted to tell her about the way my magic was... changed. I needed to figure out what had happened and how this new... shadowy magic stuff worked. I felt different now. Restless at night, constantly uncomfortable during the day. I got less tired too. Things that used to wear me out fast, like weapon practice and exercise, took a bit longer now. And every time I flew, there was this... I don’t know how to describe it. It was just different, like flying was only the half of it.

“Back when I was going through the facility with Nightmare, I was caught off-guard by a few magical things. I don’t want that to happen again, not when all this weird shit keeps happening to us.” I looked over at her.

“So Trixie assumes you wish to know how to fight against magic?” she asked.

I shrugged. “Yeah, there’s that. But I was also talking about like... magical theory and how the different kinds of magic work, and what happens when they mix.”

“Alright...” She looked at me curiously. “Is there something you’re not telling Trixie?”

“Oh, hey, look at that.” I pointed ahead to a road sign. “Anibal Canyon.”

“You’re deflecting. If you don’t want to tell Trixie, just say so,” she muttered.

“No, Anibal Canyon’s where I grew up.” I smiled back at her. “Shit. It’s been so long since I’ve been near this part of the Kingdom.” I snorted. “I forgot it was out here.”

“Then come!” Without waiting for my reaction, she walking in the direction the sign pointed in.

“Hey!” I shouted and caught up to her. “I thought we were going back to the border.”

“Come on, a slight detour wouldn’t hurt. Plus, Trixie wants to see the place you grew up in, and surely you want to see it too.” Her tail smacked me in the face playfully as she broke out into gallop. “If you want to stop Trixie, you’re gonna have to catch her!”

I snorted. Way too easy. With a flap of my wings for a boost of speed, I sprinted alongside her and moved to tackle her to the ground. At the last second, she vanished in a blue pop and appeared a couple feet down the road. With a backwards look, she blew a raspberry at me before really picking up the pace. I had to admit, the girl was fast.

Still, I was a gryphon, she was a unicorn. Nature gave me a bit of an edge.

I jumped into the air and let my wings take over. Flying fast enough to catch up, but not too fast and overshooting, I landed on the ground in front of her and came to a complete stop. Instead of stopping like I expected, she ran right into me and... passed through me? Laughter came from behind me so I looked over my shoulder and there was Trixie, fading into view as she dropped her invisibility.

“Cheater!” I shouted and took off towards her again.

There was an explosion of smoke, obscuring everything from view and by the time it was gone there were five Trixies, all running along the dirt road. Clever girl.

Instinctively I tapped into my gryphon magic with the idea of kicking up a dust storm. Instead, I found myself in the retarded shadow view thing, and suddenly all the shade between the trees heightened. At the same time though, everything looked clearer, and even with the lame ass pink sunglasses, I could make out every grain of wood and spot of dirt.

Then I noticed something off about the five Trixies. Actually, make that four of them. Only one of the Trixies had a shadow. I mean a real shadow. The other ones had... fake shadows? I have no idea what the difference between a real shadow and a fake shadow is, but apparently I could tell them apart now.

“Gotcha!” I shouted as I grabbed the real Trixie and pulled her into the air.

She gave out a sudden shriek, before settling down and wrapping her forehooves around my neck. I could hear her soft panting as she buried her face in my neck, nuzzling me lightly. “How did you know it was me?”

“Lucky guess?” I answered and flew in low to land. With a quick gust, I had her settled on the ground, and still hugging me.

“And here Trixie was thinking you were going to take me for another flight,” she pouted.

“Well, if you want.”

I took off again and spun in the air as I did, Trixie’s mane blowing out wildly. I leveled out and slowly rose up higher with the thermals. It was a great view from up here. Peaceful, serene, comfortable with her in my arms, and boring as fuck. I dropped into a dive suddenly and she shrieked right until I leveled out and started to rise again. Normally I could only keep this up for half an hour or more before I got tired, but now I felt way less drained. Not saying I could carry her all day, but for a whole hour, maybe an hour and a half.

“This what you wanted?” I asked her as I settled into a steady glide again.

“Well Trixie was going to comment on how beautiful it was before you did that dive.” A mock glare was directed at me before she kissed me on the cheek. “Though it was absolutely boring up there. More tricks! Trixie demands more tricks!”

I looked at her for a second, before I simply let go. I dropped her, and she plummeted towards the earth with a squeal, me right next to her with my wings folded. My grin was as wide as a mile by the time I caught her and spread my wings again to level out. Maybe I calculated that a little wrong, because my claw touched dirt as we flattened out again, but the momentum helped me carry her upwards again and I barrel rolled as I did.

“How’s that?” I questioned as I rose up again, getting ready for another trick.

She was panting heavily and her cheeks were red. With both hooves wrapped firmly around my neck she stared me straight in the eyes. “Trixie shall assume you meant to leave it that close to the ground and it was all planned.” Then she decided to kiss me on the mouth with tongue and all. After a couple seconds I was forced to pull back so we didn’t plummet to the ground.

“Trix, don’t kiss me while I’m flying, I’d rather not crash.”

“Fine,” she huffed before she began kissing along my neck and nibbling at it playfully.

“Ohhhkaaay!” I shook us in the air and broke her concentration. “Looks like someone gets excited by flying. I think it’s about time to land.” I went to fly down, but then I spotted something just to our right. “Hey, look. Anibal Canyon.”

My old home looked just like I remembered it. Great big granite cliffs tapering off. Wooden cabins all along one rim of the canyon, and stairs chipped into the stone, leading to the canyon floor. Caves littered the walls, reminders of the tribal days, and all along the bottom of the canyon was hundreds and hundreds of houses. It wasn’t a city, but a fair sized town at least. The pinewood forests on the other side of the canyon were a nice deep green compared to the grassy plains behind us. I forgot how goddess damn pretty this place was.

“Well, it’s pretty at least,” she said as she followed my gaze. “Looks boring though. Considering the way you are, Trixie was expecting something more... exciting.”

I laughed. “Yeah well, I wasn’t always fucked up. I only lived here with my mum and dad till I moved out. That was when my life got... you know, interesting.”

“Do you regret it?” she suddenly asked. “All the, er, interesting stuff that made you leave. Do you regret any of it? If you could somehow change the past, would you?”

“Heck no. Fuck that,” I spat. “No way in Tartarus was I ever gonna go back to being... some fucking... wallflower after I started training. Shit dude, even with everything that’s happened, the idea of growing up some ugly, beefy female to get pawned off to a husband with a decent military career. Watching as Grace and my little brother actually get to do something, while I get to stay at home till my dad decided to marry me off to a nice boy... I mean, if that isn’t fucking awful enough, if I hadn’t met Calisto and the other girls, I’d never have gone to that summer flight camp, I’d never have met Dash, never have met you.” I looked at Trixie. “Even before...you know, what happened, I never fit in. I was never going to be happy with that life they’d lined up for me.”

“Yeah... boring town alright.Boring life.” Trixie suddenly smirked at me. “And Trixie cannot imagine you in a dress.”

I snorted. “I don’t know about boring. Like I said, I found a way. But yeah, you’re right. Me in a dress? Hah. Fuck that noise. Have I ever told you about the time dad put me in a suit and Grace in a dress while his brother was in town?” I chuckled. “He was so embarrassed that he had such a pretty son and handsome daughter, that he tried to convince my uncle I was the handsome son and Grace was the pretty daughter.”

I suddenly found myself under intense scrutiny. “Actually, you would look really hot in a suit.”

I rolled my eyes. “Anyway, you’ve seen my hometown. Let’s turn around and get back on the road.”

“That’s a bad idea,” said Trixie as she looked up at the sky. “Those clouds do not look friendly at all. It may be best to find a place to stay for the day.”

I glanced at the thick black storm clouds being moved into place. “Yeah you’re right, but we don’t have many bits. We can’t exactly afford an inn.”

“Perhaps Trixie can perform a show in the town square?” The unicorn rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Or maybe an old friend of yours would be willing to take us in for the night?”

“We’re wanted, remember? It’s not a great idea to be doing a show in town.” I landed on the path outside town, and turned to her. “And I haven’t seen anyone from here for like... six years at least. Bloody Tartarus, the only one that’d still remember me is mum.”

“Then let us find your mother!” said Trixie as she began walking towards the town.

I followed after her. “Uh... Trix I don’t know. She hasn’t heard from me in years and she never knew what happened or why I left. And, you know, with my eyes and...” I looked at Trixie. “Well, I doubt she’ll be happy when she learns I’ve got a marefriend.”

“Who said anything about telling her we were dating?” Her body shimmered and a gryphoness stood before me. A damn hot one might I add. “And you’re forgetting about the disguises and you have sunglasses to protect your eyes. Come on, what other choice do we have?”

“A box in a back alley?” I said, and I was only half joking. “Might be less awkward.”

“Well you can stay in a box in the back alley and Trixie can use the remaining money to stay in an inn then.”

I snorted. “Alright I guess... I mean, if we’re only talking about one night...” I shrugged. “I suppose I should see her again.”

“Good. Now lead the way, Trixie is unfamiliar with this place.”

“I haven’t been here in years. I’m not sure I know this place.” I walked ahead of her. “Uh... pretty sure it’s this way.”

Even having been gone for years, my sense of direction was as strong as ever, and it wasn’t hard to find my way along the canyon rim to one of the log huts. Nostalgia smacked me in the face when I saw it, and I had to fight the urge to shout Grace and throw rocks at his window. He used to hate it when I called him Grace, said it was a girl’s name. So of course it was the only thing I ever called him.

The house actually looked good, like it was well repaired and stuff. It wasn’t run down and it didn’t have plants overgrowing everything. Either mum had help, or she had already married again.

I noticed that I’d paused at the path leading to the door. After a moment I shook my head clear and walked towards it. We stepped up onto the porch, and I hesitated before knocking. I waited, but when I didn’t hear anything for a moment I shrugged.

“Guess she’s not home. We better go find somewhere else.” I turned around to walk away when I noticed someone walking up the path behind us.

I recognized her straight away. Her purple crown feathers, the graceful way she walked. The beautiful feminine hips and flank. Her white wings, as soft as silk. Shit. Mum was even more beautiful now than she had been. Age had treated her well, and despite being older than thirty she was youthful.

She came to a halt as she spotted us, and a small smile touched her beak. “Can I help you dears?”

I went to answer her, when I realized she didn’t recognize me and the words caught in my throat.

“Gilda, you didn’t tell me your mother was beautiful enough to be a model,” whispered Trixie in awe. “She could be larger than Fleur in the fashion industry.”

“Grace had to get it from somewhere.” I mumbled before I stepped forward. I had to swallow before I said, “Hi... mum. Uh... it’s me... Gilda.”

Mum stared for a second until recognition flashed through her eyes and she rushed forward and hugged me. “Gilda!” She said aloud. “Where have you been? What happened- and I need to send a letter to Graciano and- your father! And...” She pulled back, and her gaze settled into a glare. “What have you done with your coat?”

I stared at her for a second, before I blinked and laughed. First time she’s seen me in years, and she’s most worried about my coat.

“It’s nothing mum. It just darkened on its own.” I looked over my shoulder. “Uh... mum, this is Tr- Adelina, and Adelina this is my mother... also named Adelina.”

Trixie just stared at me for a second before bursting out laughing. “You named me after your mother?” She turned back to my mother and did a sweeping bow. “A pleasure to make your acquaintance ma’am.”

Mum smiled and tilted her head, before giving me a curious look about Trixie’s way too low bow.

I shook my head to tell her not to worry about it.

“Well come in, come in.” She herded us towards the door and pulled it open. “We have so much to talk about. Sit down and I’ll get us something to drink.”

We were shepherded towards the couch and it wasn’t long till we were sitting down with hot drinks and a plate of dried meat between us.

“You have to tell me where you’ve been all these years,” and she paused before reaching across towards me. “And please, take those off. You’re inside, Gilda.”

I fought her hand off, and made sure the sunglasses stayed on. “They’re fine mum, no one’s gonna care. I’ve just been living in Equestria.”

“Gilda,” said Trixie, “take them off, it’s rude to keep them on indoors you know.”

I glanced at her, before shrugging and taking them off. I guess she was just gonna use her illusion spell or something.

“Thank you.” My mother smiled at Trixie. “Honestly, she can be so difficult.”

I just rolled my eyes.

“After meeting you, I have to wonder where Gilda gets her attitude from.” Trixie nudged me playfully.

“I wonder that too,” my mother gave me a frown. “Her father’s side, maybe?”

I just shook my head. “Anyway, so. How have you been mum?”

“Fine, fine.” She paused. “Well, your father passed away.”

I nodded. “Yeah, I heard.”

“You weren’t at his funeral.”

I sighed. “I know, I was in Equestria.”

“Your brother who was stationed in Zebrica made it back in time.”

I grit my beak. “Well I hadn’t even heard that he died till the week before last.”

“And whose fault is that?” My mother asked pointedly.

I glared at her. “Probably best that I didn’t go anyway. When you said he ‘lived life to the fullest’ I pr-”

“Gilda,” said Trixie.

“Whatever.” I crossed my arms and we sat in awkward silence for a moment.

“So,” my mum oh-so fucking pleasantly tried to restart the conversation. “What do you do?” She asked. “Are you married yet?”

I rolled my eyes. “No mum. I’m not married. I live in Equestria, who the heck am I gonna marry there?” Out the corner of my eye, I saw Trixie giving me a ‘subtle’ glare.

The real Adelina sighed tiredly. “I’m sure there are some nice gryphon boys.”

I snorted and laughed. “Yeah... no.” I looked her in the eye. “Unless you want me to screw a stallion.”

Trixie began coughing and pounded her chest several times before she sounded as though she wasn’t going to die on us.

“Gilda!” Mum chided. “There’s no need to be so crude.”

I rolled my eyes. “How about you mum? Any luck getting another husband now that dad’s.” I drew a finger across my throat.

Next thing I knew, my face was making contact with the table. Hard.

“I’m so very sorry about that ma’am. I have been trying to teach Gilda some manners, but it seems my lessons still have far to go.” Trixie glared down at me. “Now apologize to your mother.”

I glared back at her, before I brushed her hoof off the back of my head and sat up. “Sorry.” I said flatly.

“Now do that again as though you actually mean it.”

I snorted and glared at her, before turning back to mum and catching the hurt look in her eye. I hesitated and said, “Yeah, that was out of line. Sorry.”

Mum glanced between Trixie and me, looking quite confused. She turned to Trixie. “So, who are you? Are you one of the other girls?”

“No, she’s not.” I answered for Trixie. “Adelina’s my friend.”

“Please, Gilda. Let her speak for herself.” She smiled at Trixie. “You were saying dear?”

“We’re friends,” replied Trixie. “I’m a stage magician and Gilda helps me with all the non-magic stuff.”

Mother smiled at her. “Two females traveling alone can be dangerous. I trust you have security.”

“We normally do shows in Equestria so it’s a lot safer for travel, but yes, we hire security when travelling and when that’s impossible, we find a merchant train to travel with.” An all too sweet smile was plastered all over Trixie’s face.

“Well, a beautiful gryphoness like yourself, I’m sure you break hearts in every town you pass through.”

“More like bones,” I mumbled and rubbed my head where I’d been slammed into the table.

“I’m spoken for,” replied Trixie flatly.

“Ah.” My mother said. “And where does he live? Is he really fine with you traveling the world alone?” There was that oh-so subtle ring of judgment that all mothers have to have mastered in some bloody mandatory school of being a pain in the ass.

“She.” From the way Trixie’s eyes twitched, there was little doubt she was going to explode if the judgment kept coming.

My mother blinked, before her gaze turned to me very obviously.

“A female pony.” Each word was spoken with venom as if daring mother to comment on it.

She smiled pleasantly. “Well, I’m sure many fine suitors were heartbroken to hear that.”

“They were.” And then Trixie got that smile. The one that meant either me getting jumped or very bad things about to go down. “That’s why they have bachelorette parties.”

“Bachelorette?” My mother repeated sounding confused.

I spoke up to explain. “In gryphon society, the females are married young, so the idea of you know, actually deciding who you do and don’t want to fuck, isn’t really up to you. No bachelorettes.”

“Or as I like to explain it, gather up some girls, hire some hot guys, have a night of fun,” smirked Trixie. “I could tell your some really wild stories parties if you prefer. Both Gilda and I have worked such parties before, and let me tell you, it’s real fun. In fact, next time I get an offer, I’ll bring it to you, help pull that silver spoon out of your ass.”

Both me and mum stared at her in shock, before I barked out a laugh.

“You know, I was actually excited to meet Gilda’s mother to see if there was some dirt I could dig up on her and tease her with, but actually, you’re just a bitch. I have no clue why we bothered coming here at all.”

After a moment I nodded. “Yeah, this was a bad idea. Come on, let’s go.” I stood up. “For what it’s worth,” I picked up a piece of the dried meat and put in my beak. “You still make the best jerky.”

“Gilda, we can’t leave yet,” purred Trixie in my ear. “I’ve still got one final gift for your mother.”

Without warning, Trixie took me in her arms and gave me a solid kiss on the beak. There was tongue, roaming claws and maybe a bit of moaning. Okay, a lot. Damn she learns fast. After a minute or an hour, Trixie pulled back, shot one last parting look at mother and walked out the door. All I could do was stand there and stare at her swaying hips.

After a moment I shook my head and glanced over my shoulder. “Later. Or, you know, never.”

I went to close the door when my mother said, “So that’s it?”

I pulled the door shut and walked down the steps. A moment later the door burst open and my mother strode onto the porch with her eyes wet with tears.

“So that’s it!” she shrieked. “The first time I’ve seen you since you ran away six years ago, and all I get is insults and no answers!”

I looked back at her. “Well, what do you want?” I jerked a thumb at Trixie. “She’s my girlfriend whether you like it or not.”

“I don’t give a shit about that!” She screeched.

I stared at her in shock. That was the first time I ever heard her swear.

“I want my daughter back!” She strolled down the stairs and stood right in front of me. “I don’t care if she’s with a minotaur or a transvestite goat! I want to know what happened to you. I want you to tell me why you ran away, and what you’ve been doing all these years. I want to know why you walk like a hunter, and why you lived in Equestria for so long. And I want to know why you have knife scars!” She jabbed a claw at my chest, before she fell to the ground sobbing. “I want my daughter back.” She choked.

I glanced around, expecting all eyes to be staring at us. Instead everygryph walked past as though nothing had happened.

“Come on, let’s get her inside,” whispered Trixie and I blinked in surprise at her lack of disguise. “Trixie may be great and powerful, but even she can’t keep up all these spells simultaneously.”

I bent down, and helped pick my mother up. We led her trembling and sobbing back inside and helped her back down on the couch.

“Please, Gilda.” She looked up at me, and I felt as guilty as the time I tried to break up with Trixie. “Just... don’t walk away again.”

I sat down across from her, and tried to find words.

“I know we never saw eye to eye. I know that you and I are so different that I can scarcely believe you’re my daughter at times. But you are my daughter. I love you, and I only want what’s best for you.” She looked across at a picture of my dad. “Please, I’ve already lost your father this year. I don’t want to lose you too.”

I opened my beak to speak, but smooth talker I am I had jack shit to say. Finally I choked a word out. “Shit...”

Trixie looked at me then at my mother then back at me. Then her disguise reappeared and she walked out the door. “Trixie will be back later once this emotional stuff is over and done with.”

I gave her a smile of thanks before I turned back to my mother. “Uh... I’m, er, sorry...?”

My mother just looked at me. “I don’t want your apology. I want the truth... please. Why did you go? Why are you here now?”

“Well... we’re here because I needed a place to stay.” I scratched the back of my head. “But, maybe it’d be better if-”

“No!” She interrupted me. “You can stay, just please... I’m your mother. Talk to me.”

I stared at her for a moment before I collapsed back onto the couch. “Oh, bloody goddesses. Um... Shit, I don’t even know where to start.”

“Why did you leave?” She begged me. “Was it your father, or me, or-”

“No!” I interrupted. “Fuck no, it wasn’t anything you did. I mean, yeah, I wasn’t exactly happy and we weren’t getting along very well, but I left because...” I trailed off. “Crap... I’ve never told anyone why I left... Look mum, it wasn’t your fault, okay?”

“But what about you? What have you been doing all these years, and why didn’t you try to speak to us again? Even if you don’t want to talk about everything, you have to tell me something.”

“I didn’t try write or whatever because I was twelve mum. I was alone and scared and I didn’t know if sending a letter would get you guys in trouble or not... or fucking Tartarus, mum. It’s not your fault that I left. I mean, yeah I was pissed at you, and that might have been part of the reason I never tried to see you again, but I swear it wasn’t your fault.”

“But where have you been? Why do you live in Equestria?”

“Er... Well I’m sort of a wanted fugitive in the Kingdom.”

She stared at me. “How? What did you do?” Her feathers bristled. “Is it Calisto?! I knew he was trouble. Did he drag you into this?”

“No!” I shouted. “This isn’t Calisto’s fault. I mean, yeah he has something to do with it, but it was my decision. Uh... look, you don’t need me to tell you that even when I was twelve, I wasn’t like other females.”

She just stared at me.

“I mean, look at me, mum. How could I ever be a happy wife? I had reasons to leave, but really I stayed away because it was the only way for me to be happy.” I paused. “I hate this awful fucking culture. I can’t stand it when someone talks down to me. Even if things hadn’t happened like they had, it was only a matter of time till I left anyway.”

“But your scars, and...”

“Let me put it this way. I earned my scars.” I stared into her eyes. “I know you don’t get it, but even with all the pain I’ve been through and all the goddess awful crap that happened I wouldn't change anything. I’m me, and the decisions I’ve made are my own. I wouldn’t have ever been happy with the life you had.”

She just stared at me before she wrapped her arms and pulled me into a hug. I hesitated before I awkwardly hugged her back.

“I just want you safe.” I blinked at how familiar those words were, and how I wasn’t the one saying them.

“Mum... I can’t stay here with you. I can’t just be ‘safe’. It’s too late for that, and... I don’t want to be safe. Shit, the idea of just spending the rest of my life in a quiet house is... I don’t even get it. I’m not even sure if I could do that.” I sighed and let go of her. Goddesses, I really did have nothing I could give Trixie. “From now on, I’ll try to stay in contact, but I can’t stay here, and I could never have been the gryphon you wanted me to be.”

“I-I just...” Mother sighed sadly. “I just want you to be hap-”

“Happy!?” My fist hit the table causing her to jump. “Sorry, it’s just, do you realize how judgmental you are? You drove Trixie up the wall and out the door, and considering how long she’s been around me, that’s fucking impressive.”

“Trixie?”

Oh. Shit.

I rubbed the back of my neck. “Well you see my friend is actually a pony named Trixie.” Her eye twitched and I could see her claws curl up into fists, but she didn’t say anything. “Yeah, I’m dating a pony, you got a problem with that?”

A deep breath later, she looked me calmly in the eyes. “And you love this Trixie?”

“L-Love!” If I had been drinking something at the time, it would have been the most epic spit take in history, but as it was, I just choked on my own spit. “Hey, that’s a bit strong don’t you think? We’re only dating you know.”

“Well, have you two had sex yet?”

“No, but... honestly if Nightmare hadn’t stepped in we would have.” I scratched the back of my head. “And with the way things are going, I really doubt Trixie will stay a virgin for long.”

“But you are happy with her, correct?”

“Uh, yeah definitely. It’s just... I’m worried about her.”

Once more with the deep breathing, and this time, I could see her entire body shaking slightly. “Alright dear, as long as you’re happy. But a pony...” Before I could yell at her, a smile was back on her face. “I suppose grandcubs are too much to ask for?”

I snorted. “Honestly, given how crazy these last few weeks have been, it wouldn’t be too hard to convince me there was a way to make interspecies babies. But yeah, don’t get your hopes up.” I frowned. “And we’re sure as fuck not doing that, find a guy to get you pregnant thing.” I glared at her. “Don’t even suggest it.”

“I was more thinking adoption,” she replied.

“Oh.” I shifted uncomfortably. “Well, maybe? I mean, I’d be a freaking terrible mother. That kid would be so messed up.”

“You’re the more father type.” Mother let out a happy gasp. “You must wear a suit for the wedding and I know the perfect one!”

“Wait, what?” I looked over at her. “You’re okay with this?” Then I paused and frowned. “And seriously, what is it with me and getting put in suits? Trixie wants to do it, dad did it, now you?”

“Well... no, but you never listened to me, and at least you’re happy. I was hoping to marry you off to a handsome gryphon and have little grandcubs to teach bad habits to.” She chuckled as she looked out the window. “And that idea was mine actually. I’ve always said you’d look handsome in a suit and apparently your... er... marefriend? Agrees.”

I stared at her before I shrugged. “Well, if you’re... willing to live with it, then I won’t argue against it.” I shifted. “But really? That was your idea? You completely humiliated Grace! He couldn’t even look anyone in the eye for like a month.”

“No, my idea was to put you in a suit. Doing that to Grace was your father’s idea, though you have to admit, he could be a very high paid female model if he wanted to.”

I rolled my eyes. “Seriously, that was just damn mean. I mean, it’s not Grace’s fault he looks like you.” I frowned. “Heck, the gender inverse in this family is retarded. How did that happen anyway?”

“Does it matter?”

I shrugged. “Fair point.” I looked out the window and saw the clouding over sky. “I better go find Trixie.” I stood up and turned back to face mum. “I’ll see if I can get her to apologize for, you know, freaking out like that, but she’s pretty stubborn and you’ll have to apologize first.”

“If I must. Perhaps you should go out and find her while I prepare dinner then,” she said out loud.

“Yeah, cool.” I paused. “Actually, Trixie’s a pony so... do you know any vegetarian recipes?”

“Um...”

I rubbed my temples and glanced out the window. “Alright, you know how to cook pasta right? Cook some pasta while I grab Trixie, and when I get back, I’ll slice up some vegetables and- What?”

Mom just kept staring at me with those wide, teary eyes of hers. “You know how to cook?”

“Um... yeah...?” I took half a step back, half wondering if it was too late to find an inn.

“And you know how to cook vegetarian.”

“Yes...?”

She let out one of those dreamy sighs that teenage gryphonesses got when daydreaming about some hot guy. “Oh, Gilda.”

“What the heck is that supposed to mean?” I frowned. “What is it with females and saying shit that’s like, just one or two words, but there’s like a goddess damn novel packed in just those two words. I mean, fuck, is ‘oh’ even a word?”

She flicked my beak and I flinched back. “No cursing in this house unless it’s during sex. Got that?”

I scrunched my eyes up. “Oh, ew, fu-” I caught myself when I noticed mum’s glare. “I did not need to hear that.” I stuck my tongue out, and I swear there was a bad taste on it. “Whatever was between you and dad was between you and dad. I do not need to know about anything about that.”

“If you want, I think I’ve still got some of my old toys that you can borrow if-”

“No!” I interrupted her. “Oh, goddesses please! Do not end that sentence.” I turned around, before I hesitated. “And you’re not talking about this with Trixie either! She’s not getting any ideas from you, and this shit is awkward enough as it is.”

“Oh? So Trixie would actually take me up on my offer?”

“No!” I shouted. “She wouldn’t!” Oh, please I hope not. “And you shouldn’t bring this up again. To anyone.Ever.” I stepped out of the living as her laughter followed me. Even when I was out of the house I could still hear her laughing at my expense. Surely she wasn’t serious. She couldn’t be serious. Could she?

I spotted Trixie’s track’s pretty easily, and I followed those down the steps leading down into the main town. I sighed. Shit, it could take ages to find Trixie. The tracks didn’t last on the stairs, and I had no choice but to just head down into town and search around for her aimlessly.

It took me a moment, but in a second I realized how easy it was to find Trixie. How easy? Follow the giant crowd. That’s how easy. When I found her, she was standing on a table surrounded by oh... at least twenty males and batting her eyelashes at every one of them. Oh. And she was doing magic.

“Come one, come all! Witness feats of spectacular mysticism performed by the Great and Powerful Adelina.” She rose back on her paws and in one hand she had a top hat, and in the other a wand. Seriously, where the fuck did she even get those?

I pushed my way through the crowd, and tried to get to Trixie before she did anything stupid. I got as close as I could to the centre, and there were a few of the burlier guys in the way that didn’t move when I tried to get past.

“Trixie!” I shouted and tried to get closer, but she either ignored or didn’t hear me. After a second I got frustrated and hit one of the males over the head. “Move, shithead.”

He blinked at me in surprise and stared dumbly.

I shoved past him, just as Trixie pulled another larger hat out of the one she had.

“Trixie!” I shouted, and finally she noticed me.

She looked at me and winked. “Well, well, well, it looks like we have a volunteer!” I suddenly found myself on the makeshift stage with a lot of angry males all around us. “Tell me, what is your name?”

I rolled my eyes and muttered for her to hear. “Come on Trixie, you know my name. Let’s just go already.”

“Your name,” she hissed in my ear.

“Gilda,” I said flatly.

“Well Gilda, thank you for volunteering for this highly dangerous and potentially deadly final act! Now watch every gryphon, watch as the Great and Powerful Adelina makes her vanish into thin air!” Wings flared open, she drew her fake wing over the ground, stirring up the dust as she danced around me. The entire time, she ran her paws over my body, sliding up against me sensually and licking my neck affectionately.

“Seriously, Trix.” I glanced over at the males who looked like they were caught between shocked horror and massive boners. “We’re in public.” Normally this sort of thing would get me going, but I was just feeling more embarrassed than anything.

She merely giggled at me and winked. Then she came to a sudden stop, flared out her wings, threw dust up everywhere and by the time I could see again, I found myself back in my mother’s living room while Trixie lounged on the sofa without her disguise.

I looked around in shock. “How did you do that?” I turned around and asked her. “There wasn’t a teleport pop or flash of light or anything.”

“A magician never reveals her secrets,” she replied smugly. “Now if you don’t mind, Trixie will use the shower.” A shudder ran through her body. “She’s not sure what’s dirtier, the dust or the leering males.”

“You certainly seemed to enjoy it.” I wiped my cheek where she’d licked me. “Seriously, the fuck was with that? Great Scars aren’t exactly open minded. I’m still surprised I convinced mom that you and me being together isn’t the end of the world.” I paused. “Oh, and you’re gonna want to apologize to her for snapping like that earlier.”

“Whatever,” she called over her shoulder as she opened a door and looked down the hallway. “Trixie is your guest so show her where the shower is.”

I led the way down the hall and to the left. “Unless it’s changed it’s just in here.”

“Very well.” She entered the bathroom and then immediately slammed the door shut in my face.

I blinked in surprise. “Uh... okay?” I took a step back. Did I do something wrong? Trixie was usually more... flirty and less... answering angrily with just one word. “Trix, are you okay?” I asked through the door.

“I’m fine!” A second later I heard the shower turn on.

I frowned, before I shrugged and turned away. If she wanted to talk about it, which she didn’t, but if she did, then it wouldn’t be through a door while she has a shower.

I walked into the kitchen and found mum at the stove. I washed my claws before I checked the pasta she’d put on and found it alright. I took it off, and checked the fridge for whatever pony foods mum had. She had some carrots and stuff, and even though there wasn’t too much to work with, I did the best I could and soon I had a tangy carrot and leek dish ready for Trixie. I turned around when I was done, and found mum staring at me with a bemused smile.

“What?” I asked.

“Nothing...” she replied. “Just never thought I’d see this day.”

“What day?” I asked as I set the table. I made sure I left the salt and pepper in reach of Trixie in case I screwed something up and she wanted to adjust the flavor.

“You’re cooking, and you’re happy cooking. You, I mean, this.” She made a vague gesture at me. “Is just so surprising. You really like this mare, don’t you?”

“Is it really that big a deal that I’m cooking?” I glanced at the table. “I mean, yeah I like Trixie, but... I remember you making me cook when you were trying to get me to like all this wifey stuff.”

“Yeah, I made you cook. Do you even remember the lengths I had to go to in order to get you to cook? And now you’re not even making food for yourself. You’re making a vegetarian dish for someone else, and I know how much you hate vegetables.” Was she, was she crying? “I better be invited to the wedding.”

I rolled my eyes. “Mom...” I shifted. “Who says there’s gonna be a wedding? And what if it’s in Equestria, or I die or something?” I paused when I heard the shower stop. “Like I said, I’m not sure I could ever settle down.”

“Just tell me when the wedding is,” she repeated with a knowing smile.

I shook my head my head with a groan, just as the door opened and Trixie came in. I smiled at her.

“Hey, Trix. I think I might’ve gotten the recipe wrong.” I pulled out a seat for her. “But it should be alright.”

Trixie ignore the seat, walked right up to me, gave me a quick, but passionate kiss on the beak before sitting down. “Thanks and sorry about before. Trixie hates performing in front of leering males, makes her feel so dirty.” She turned her attention to mother. “And sorry about before, Trixie will admit she might have over reacted slightly.”

Well that caught me off guard. Trixie never apologized like that.

My mother must have noticed my reaction because she ignored it really damn well. “That’s fine dear. I apologize too, I was just... understandably shocked.” She smiled. “Honestly, I’m just happy Gilda found someone that can make her cook without needing to be spanked first.”

I groaned and facepalmed.

For her part, Trixie merely laughed. “Now that is something Trixie would pay to see.”

“Yeah, well anyone that tries is gonna end up with a lot less blood inside ‘em.” I sat at the table and began to eat my food.

“Gilda!”

I wasn’t sure who’d chided me, but then I realised they both did.

“What?” I asked glancing between the two of them.

Trixie merely rolled her eyes and took a bite out of her dinner. She blinked, stared down at it in surprise before taking a second, slowly bite. “This... This is really good. Not as great as something Trixie could make, but still a lot better than she expected.”

I smiled at her, happy that she liked my food. “Yeah, well. What can I say? Badass fighter, badass drinker, better than expected cook.”

“Gilda!” Mum turned to me with a frown. “What did I say about swearing inside?”

I shuddered. “Don’t remind me. I’m eating.”

“Surely it wasn’t that bad?” asked Trixie as she took another bite.

I gave her a smirk. “I doubt you’d mind it so much, Miss Gryphon Lover.” I glanced at mum. “Oh, yeah. Mum, Trix thinks you’re a hottie. She compared you to Fleur de Lis.”

“Well I have to admit that Trixie is very stunning as well,” she replied as she ran a critical eye over my marefriend. “A very nice body, well-toned, nice complexion, takes care of her mane, has manners. Are you sure you’re into females? Because the only explanation as to why you haven’t had sex with her yet is if you’re straight as an arrow.”

I was too busy choking to answer.

Beside me, Trixie flushed bright red, but managed to speak, “Well Trixie has been trying, and has gotten close a couple of times, but Trixie is afraid things kept interrupting. Also, Trixie is afraid to admit she isn’t familiar with gryphon erogenous zones, and has been using what she knows of pegasus anatomy to fill in the gaps. Perhaps you could help Trixie?”

I couldn’t breathe, no matter how hard I tried. After a moment I managed to cough up the chunk of meat. Even then, my throat was too sore for me to croak out anything other than, “The fuck?”

They both ignored me.

“Well, preening is major one, I can tell you that. It’s very relaxing, and if done right, can be very arousing as well. The area between the win-”

“No!” I shrieked the moment I got a reasonable amount of air in my lungs. “Fuck me dead, we’re eating! If you have to talk about how you got dad up, wait till I’m not in the fucking room!” I shuddered. “And seriously, don’t give Trixie advice! She’s bad enough as it is!”

Trixie merely burst out laughing at my reaction. “For such a foul mouthed individual, Trixie has always found it amusing how much of a prude you are.”

“Blame the Equestrian sexual education system.” I told her flatly. “And I’m not a prude. I was ready last time you were at it, but then my insides started turning to jelly. Not my fault that that’s a bit of a mood killer.”

“Mmhm,” replied Trixie flatly.

“What?” I put the fork and knife on the table. “That’s not fair. We’ve only been together for like, two weeks. Just ‘cause I wasn’t ready to jump your bones first day doesn’t make me a Celestian puritan. And not wanting to hear about my mum’s sex life is perfectly fucking healthy if you ask me.”

Once more with the laughter. “Regardless, thank you for the exquisite meal.” Trixie stood up. “Gilda, if you could come with me, I’ve got a gift for you. Trixie promises we will be right back to Help you tidy ma’am.”

I blinked at her in surprise, before I glanced at mum who nodded permission. “Alright.” I stood up and followed her outside the room. “Seriously, I’m not a prude.” I said as I pulled the door closed behind me.

“I know, I was just teasing you. You’re just so cute when embarrassed,” she said as she lead me to my old room. “The gift’s on your bed.”

I frowned. “We’re gonna need a bit longer than that, Trix. I don’t know how quick you are, but the dishes aren’t gonna take longer than five minutes.”

She smacked me over the head. “I’m not on your bed, now am I? Get your head out of the gutter.”

I glanced at her, before turning to my bed. I blinked in surprise before I picked up her gift. With a grin I slid them over my eyes and turned to Trixie. “You’re the fucking bomb, Trix.”

Shades. An awesome pair of badass looking shades. They were a pair of sporty wraparounds with a band behind them to stop them falling off mid-flight.

“You’re welcome. Trixie had grown tired of your incessant whining.”

I pulled her in for a hug. “Come on. Let’s go help with the dishes.”

“Can I serve you?” I asked with a wide smile and lowered my head towards the ground in a bow. I looked up at Nightmare, and my heart fluttered when I saw the look in her eye.

The halls of Canterlot were stained in blood, and ponies lay dead everywhere from knife wounds and broken bones. Even though I was bloody and messy, I didn’t shower. I knew Nightmare loved it when I fought.

Her hoof touched the bottom of my chin, and raised my head up so she could look into my eyes. “Come, my pet,” she nibbled my cheek and I gasped with pleasure. “We have work to do.” She began to walk away, and I was so caught up in her beautiful smile that I only noticed it when she tugged on my collar. “Aurry.” She ordered and I scrambled after her.

Her blue armor shone beautifully on the moonlight, and in its reflection I could see my face. I gazed at her flank and cutie mark, and blushed when caught me staring.

Ahead of us, legions of bat ponies bowed as we passed, and slowly cleared away the corpses me and my mistress had made. I spotted a rainbow mane among them, but I was distracted by Nightmare’s beautiful voice.

“Aurry, come,” she said sharply.

I wilted and slunk after her. “Sorry mistress.”

“I’ll just have to punish you later.” She chuckled seductively.

Fear and excitement mingled in my chest and I struggled to keep up with her. She was so tall, easily as big as Celestia.

Soon we were outside the royal palace, and everywhere in sight were thousands of bat ponies. In the center of the courtyard was a pike, and on top of the pike, Celestia’s head rested. Her horn was shattered and her eyes leaked bloody tears as her mane blew against the wind. Her eyes roved over us and watched all. When they fixed on me they were full of pity.

Why she was sorry for me I didn’t know. As long as my mistress was happy I was happy. That was all that mattered. A circle formed around the fallen god of the sun, and chained up ponies were pushed into it.

“Slay them,” Nightmare ordered.

Without hesitation I flapped my wings and landed in the circle. I gazed at her with a smile on my beak as the chained up ponies were set free. I didn’t even notice when they started trying to kill me, crying names like ‘Chained Beast’ and ‘Whore’s Curse’. I only had eyes for Nightmare’s smile as I countered their attacks and spilled their blood. Nightmare loved blood.

One by one, they died screaming and bleeding. They were just so slow and weak, and didn’t know what they were doing. I knew what I was doing. I knew how to make my mistress happy. I felt a twinge of disappointment when there were none left. There were no more of them to please Nightmare with.

One of them gurgled, and begged “please”. I didn’t even spare it a glance as I crushed its throat. My tail wagged as Nightmare walked down the steps towards me, her canine teeth shining as she grinned.

“Well done Aurry.” She licked her lips and her wing tips made me shiver as they tickled along my spine. “Come,” she ordered and I eagerly followed her up the steps into the palace.

As the doors shut, I found us in her bedchamber, black rose petals on the floor and dark silk coating all surfaces. I shivered in excitement as her long elegant legs draped over the bed. With a wave off her hoof, she pointed at the ground at the toe of her bed.

I sat in front of her, fidgeting and barely able to contain my excitement as she looked me up and down. After a moment she turned her head to the right, and I followed her gaze to a blue unicorn. Or what once was a unicorn. Something about her tickled my memory, but I stopped caring about that the moment I laid eyes on Nightmare again.

“Take something from her,” she ordered.

I nodded happily and scrambled over to the unicorn. Her horn was shattered, her lips were sown together, and her legs were all broken at the knee. The only thing holding her up was the strings tied to the ceiling.

“What do I take?” I asked Nightmare as I drew my knife. It was so hard to think for myself, it made me so happy when my mistress did it for me.

“Hmm... last night you took her horn...” She tapped a chin to her hoof. “How about her tongue?” Nightmare suggested.

I nodded and eagerly cut the strings holding her lips shut.

The moment they were undone she croaked out a word. “Gilda,” she said in a voice that was barely above a whisper.

I rolled my eyes, she was speaking nonsense. Gilda wasn’t a word.

With one claw, I reached into her mouth and grabbed her tongue. It was slippery, so I put my talon through it to hold it better. The unicorn whimpered in pain as I pulled her tongue out, and with my knife I began to saw it off. It was slippery and wet, and it took a few tries before the blade cut in. A dull moan and hot air touched my palm as she struggled and shook in her cradle of strings. With a final ‘snick,’ her tongue came out and the blue unicorn with the silver mane hung limply as she sobbed and moaned wordlessly.

Nightmare chuckled happily. “You won’t be sticking that down my pet’s throat anymore. Aurry, come.”

I dropped the bloody tongue to the floor and ran over to my mistress.

“It’s time for your reward...” she purred in my ear as she pulled me up onto the bed.

I shivered with delight as her wing draped over my back, and she nibbled along my neck. I knew better than to interrupt or rush her, but I was panting with delight as she came to a halt over my flank. She began to nibble down my hind leg, and I rolled over on my back as she worked her way inwards towards my-

My left leg kicked involuntarily and I shivered in spasmodic delight. On my back I looked across, and found myself staring into the eyes of that unicorn. Tears leaked from her lavender eyes, and all I could see in them was pity and misery. She was begging me. Wordlessly begging me for something. Before I could figure out what it was, Nightmare’s mouth stole my attention, and petty things like unicorns without horns or tongues were forgotten.

My eyes slowly opened, and I lay still in bed for a moment. Then I noticed my claws were shaking, and I rubbed them together. Oh goddesses, that was...

I slapped myself. That was a dream. A nightmare, and not true, and something I should just get over. Everyone has bad dreams, and I had more reason than most to be having them now. It’s only natural that what Nightmare did scared me.

Then I noticed that Trixie was gone.

Maybe it was just that fucked up dream, maybe I was being overprotective, but I felt panic flutter my heart, and I searched for Trixie pretty desperately. I ran out of the room and knocked on the bathroom door.

“Trixie?” I asked, and barely waited for her answer before I pushed the door open.

I ran downstairs to the living room and checked the kitchen. When she wasn’t there I cursed to myself and ran outside.

“Trixie!” I shouted. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.” I muttered. Luna was back, or those mutant changelings, or the Wide Eyes, or that fucking pink bitch followed me to-

I froze when I heard someone up on the roof behind me. Whoever had grabbed Trixie was still here! I spun around and flapped straight at the roof, instinctively touching magic as I did. My knives were out and I tackled whoever was up there to the ground, with my blades touching their throat. I froze when I noticed the kidnapper’s blue coat and lavender eyes. I stumbled back in horror and dropped the knives as I almost fell off the roof. I’d almost just hurt Trixie! I shuddered. That was too close to the dream.

“I’m sorry,” I said automatically as I stared at her. “Trix, I’m so fucking sorry.” I hesitated, still not trusting myself before I padded up to her. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“Trixie’s fine.” For the first time in my life, I saw her willingly not wearing her hat and cloak. “Can’t sleep?”

“Why are you up here?” I asked and looked over my shoulder. “What’s wrong? Did you hear something?” I was already stepping between Trixie and whatever it was.

“No. Trixie’s fine.”

“Are you sure?” I asked, before I realized how fucking dumb that was. “I’m sorry,” I repeated and sat next to her. “I’m just feeling paranoid.” I shook my head and glanced at her. “Why are you up here anyway?”

“Nothing.” She shrugged.

I blinked and frowned. “What’s wrong?” I put my arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. “Is it about those males leering? I can break their legs if it makes you feel any better.” I was only half joking.

“No hurting them,” she snapped, though I could tell her heart wasn’t really in it. She didn’t even bother snuggling into me. If anything, she seemed to lean out of my hold.

I let go of her and moved so I was in front of her gaze. “What’s wrong Trix? You know you can talk to me about anything.... Well, anything other than mum’s sex life.” I gave a little smile, hoping she’d take the joke.

In the darkness, I just saw her shrug her shoulders. “Nothing is wrong. Trixie just gets pensive occasionally.”

“I don’t even know what that word means, but I’m guessing it’s moody or something.” I sat in front of her. “Come on, Trix. Talk to me.”

“Trixie is fine,” she snapped, “And pensive means thoughtful or something.”

I shrugged. “To me it just means you're bothered by something and you're hiding it.”

“Just shut up and hold me,” she mumbled.

I did the second part of that, and didn’t say anything for a while. “Please, Trix. For my sake, just tell me what’s wrong.”

After a moment's silence, she sighed and whispered, “I saw him in my dreams again.”

I frowned. “Your dad?”

She shook her head, but didn’t say anything.

“Who then?” I asked. Who could be in Trixie’s dreams? “And... what do you mean ‘again’?”

“No one important,” she replied.

“If you're dreaming about him, then you're either feeling guilty or you want him.” I fell to my haunches. “And if it’s the sec-”

“It’s not the second,” she growled.

“So who are you feeling guilty about?” I asked. “I mean, the only guy you’ve really crossed was that brain-dead you killed.”

“Yeah, and it’s not like he was a real gryphon or anything.”

I shrugged. “Nightmare said there was a chance they’d recover.” Then I got back on topic. “Come on, who’s got you feeling bad?”

“No one!” She yelled and vanished in a flash of blue light.

I groaned and facepalmed. “Magic sucks,” I said to no one.

I flapped my wings and flew down to the front door. I went inside and searched through the house for Trixie until I found her in my old room. She was sitting there, just staring out the window at nothing.

“Trixie,” I walked up and sat next to her. “Please. Talk to me about it.”

“Aren’t you meant to regret it when you kill someone?” she whispered.

I paused. So it was that guy... “I- Um... Shit.” Oh crap. This was... “I’m not sure I know the answer to that.” I swallowed. “I mean, you seem like you regret it.”

“I don’t.” There wasn’t even a hint of doubt in her voice as she said that. “I don’t regret it at all. Trixie... I... What am I supposed to feel?”

Holy shit. She was asking me? “I... don’t know, Trix. I have no fucking clue how anyone’s supposed to feel about it. I mean... guilty is what you’d think but... I don’t know, I never felt that.” I frowned. “You were protecting me weren't you? He was just a brain-dead and a bad guy.”

“He was still a gryphon with family and friends and wasn’t even under his own power!” She spun on me, hoof slamming into my chest. “He was still a sentient being! I-I-I’m meant to feel something! I’m meant to- meant to...”

“Regret it?” I suggested. “Trixie, you’re excusing him. You’re not even talking about yourself, just about who he was and what he did. What he did was try to kill me. What you did was save me.” I left out that I wasn’t worth saving, or I probably would’ve been fine if she just warned me he was there.

“What I did was kill someone.”

I paused. Shit, I’m really not the best with words. “Uh... Oh goddesses. Um... Look, Trix. What you feel is what you feel, okay? You can’t hate yourself for not feeling something. I mean, shit. I’m fucking terrified of myself and what I could do with the right reasoning. Nightmare was attracted to how much of a fucked up bitch I am. Next to me you’re a goddess damn saint!” I paused. “Crap, I’m getting off topic. Uh... you’re not the bad guy Trixie. Just cause you can’t pretend to be guilty doesn’t make you a monster.”

“But-”

“But what? Aren’t you the one that’s always telling me I shouldn’t hate myself? That I shouldn’t be afraid of hurting you?” I winced as I remembered just a few seconds ago I’d almost done that. “If you're worried that you're gonna turn into some mindless beast, well I can tell you that’s not gonna happen.” I paused for thought. “Unless you get hit with that changeling goop crap, or Nightmare decides to actually turn you into a monster.” Shit, that wasn’t the point. “I mean, uh... you’re not a monster. You’re not gonna be a monster. You’re too good for that.”

“Thanks...” She leaned against me and rested her head on my shoulder. “But Trixie should still feel something shouldn’t she? All good ponies should...”

I thought of answer. “Well... uh... what about the Elements of Harmony? I mean, when you think about it, they killed Nightmare... or tried to... But you’ve met her. You and I both know Nightmare’s an actual thinking sentient with her own goals and shit. I don’t know about you, but aren’t the Elements supposed to be like, the embodiment of good, or whatever? Do you reckon any of them hesitated for even a second when they took Nightmare down?”

Trixie just stared at me in surprise. “When did you get so smart?” she eventually managed to choke out.

I paused. “Uh... never?” I shifted. “Doesn’t mean I can’t be right or say something that’s not completely stupid every now and then.”

A weak smile appeared on her face. “Thanks, Gilda.”

Holy shit! I actually managed to help her with words! “That’s okay, Trix.” I pulled her in for a hug. “Are you feeling better or just pretending to feel better so I’m not worried?” I asked after a moment.

She nipped my neck for that comment. “I’m better, thank you very much.”

I sighed in relief. “Cool.” I let go of her, and rubbed my neck where she nipped me. “Come on, we better go to sleep now.”

“Yeah...” She didn’t move an inch.

I blinked. “Alright.” I lay down on my bed, and glanced back at her. “So uh... good night then?”

After a second, she trotted over and slipped into bed with me. “Stay with me tonight?”

I hesitated. “Yeah, sure.” I pulled the sheets down to give her room.

Her warmth immediately filled my side as she snuggled up against me with her back to me. Without so much as asking, she grabbed my claws with her magic and wrapped them around her stomach as she wiggled to get into comfy position.

“Uh...” A little pushy, but I guess Trixie was always like that. I settled in and relaxed, though I was still feeling restless from that dream, and my weird new... night timey-ness. Shit. It was gonna be ages before I got to sleep again.

“What about you?” whispered Trixie. “Why were you up so late?”

I snorted. “Nothing much... just a stupid dream.” I left out the part where it was completely fucking terrifying.

“You know you can tell me anything right?”

I rolled my eyes. “If you have to know, it was a bad dream. I woke up and went looking for you. I’m a big girl, I don’t need to be rocked to sleep every time I have a Nightmare.”

“Yes, yes you are, but that doesn’t mean you don’t need help sometimes,” she replied.

“Honestly, this isn’t something I need help with.” I draped a wing over her. “Don’t worry about it Trix. If there’s something wrong I’ll let you know.”

“Alright, I trust you.” She snuggled back into me and pulled my wing tighter around her while tossing off her blanket.’

“I don’t,” I mumbled into the pillow and closed my eyes.

I don’t know whether or not she heard me, but she gave me a kiss on the side of the beak.

Chapter 17

I managed to get to sleep, and I wasn’t bothered by any nightmares. Given how restless I’d been feeling, I was surprised when I saw the clock said it was almost midday.

“Fuck...” I muttered as I rubbed grit from my eye. “Trix, wake up we should...”

I looked across and found her gone. With a sigh I got out of bed and went to the bathroom. A toilet stop and shower later, I was on my way down stairs. I also noticed mum had cleaned my brown cloak. Good, that thing was getting nasty. I didn’t put it on yet and walked down stairs to find mum and Trixie chatting in the living room.

“Morning, Trix.” I looked across the room. “Mum.” I nodded at her. “Why’d you let me sleep in so late?” I asked Trixie.

“Because you looked adorable,” she replied with a wink. “Your mother has been sharing some very interesting stories with Trixie.”

I groaned. “Like what?” I remembered some of the things me and Grace got up to. There were a fair few things there that’d be embarrassing enough for Trixie to rib me. I glared at mum, “What did you tell her?”

“Well your mother told Trixie of the time you tried to get out of cooking practice by hiding in the garden shed, and Grace dobbed you in, so you tackled him and ripped open the manure bags.”

I grimaced.

“The part Trixie likes, is it got you out of cooking practice the first time, so you tried to coat yourself in it again, and you kept doing that so your mother started having to hide the manure.”

I rolled my eyes. “I was six.”

“Trixie wonders why it had to be manure. Couldn’t you have just rolled in mud or something?”

“I just didn’t think of it, alright?” I interrupted. “I was cub, what do you want from me?”

“And all those other times? Like when you were twelve and decided to-”

“Mum!” I shouted and turned to her. “Please don’t tell me you told her about that.”

“That and more.”

“Look, it’s not my fault the girls in my class were complete bitches.” I crossed my arms. “Yeah, I could’ve found a better way to get even, and yeah I should've planned it out so I didn’t leave paw prints right to my hiding place, but come on! I was young and dumb. I’m sure you did retarded things when you were a foal.”

“Nope.” Once more with that smug grin. “And you still do retarded things.”

“Like what, huh?” I jabbed a claw at her. “What dumb thing have I done lately?”

“Like dating an arrogant mare like Trixie.” Out the corner of my eye, I could see mother wince slightly at that, but she didn’t say anything.

“Hey, you came onto me.” I smirked. “I think you’re the idiot who chased after me.”

“You’re the idiot that agreed.”

“Nah, you can’t turn this around like that. You asked first. You made a move on me. I say you’re the shithead who made the mistake.”

“Gilda!” snapped mother making Trixie laugh.

I sat back into my seat. “Sorry,” I mumbled.

“So,” my mum began and I noticed the pointed edge to her voice. “How did you two meet?”

I glanced over at Trixie. There was no fucking way we were telling the truth, right?

“At one of my shows, she was one of my impromptu helpers. Afterwards, when Trixie went to the bar, she saw Gilda and we hit it off. She was looking for a job so I offered to hire her as a stagehand,” replied Trixie.

“Really? I wasn’t aware anyone could ‘hit it off’ with Gilda.” She glanced at me. “She only ever seemed to get along with Graciano and Elder Calisto.”

I rolled my eyes. “Hey, I had some friends.” But they both ignored me.

Trixie glared at me. “As Trixie was saying, when we hit it off, she means we literally hit it off. Started a bar brawl of the likes you have never seen.”

My mother chuckled, but I knew it was a mask for the uncertainty she felt about me and Trixie. “That I could believe. So, why did you hire her if she started a brawl? Surely that’s not an attractive quality in a stage hand.”

“A mare travelling alone on the road? Someone else who can put up a fight if things get dangerous is always useful.”

“Really?” Mother glanced at me, and I could see she wasn’t happy that I could fight. “When did you ask her out?” She smiled at Trixie. “What was it that attracted you to her in the first place? My daughter is far from...” She paused, thinking of a nice way to say I’m piss ugly. “She gets her father’s looks,” she finished nicely.

“Well looks aren’t everything,” chuckled Trixie. “Plus, she would look absolutely delicious in a suit.”

“Holy shit, we’re already back to that,” I growled.

“It’s true!” Both hooves were thrown into the air as Trixie leaned back in her chair. “You’re not beautiful, but you are very handsome.”

“She’s right, Gilda.” Mother smiled at me. “I always told you, if you tried you could attract a nice boy. You do have your own appeal.”

I snorted and rolled my eyes. “Yeah, well that wasn’t ever what I was really worried about.”

“And she has already attracted someone,” came Trixie’s smug reply.

“Of course, dear.” My mother smiled at Trixie reassuringly. “I was just trying to tell her she should take some more time to worry about her appearance. She’s not a hopeless cause. I’m sure you’d like to see her dress herself a little nicer.”

“Oh yes.” I suddenly found a very heated look directed at me. “Trixie has some ideas of what would look absolutely lovely on Gilda.”

“Actually,” my mother interrupted. “I have a wonderful suit she could try on. It was her father’s, but well, he passed away and never had the chance to use it. I shipped it from this wonderful store in Equestria that’s making all sorts of waves in fashion. Perhaps you’d like to see her in it? Her shoulders are only slightly smaller than her father’s, but if it’s too much we could easily have it refitted in town.”

“Sorry mom, bu-” I sighed as Trixie turned those eyes on me. “Fine.”

My mother clapped her claws together in delight. “Excellent. Bring her upstairs, and I’ll get it out.”

“Bring me upstairs? I’m not a fucking mannequin.” I wasn’t surprised when they completely ignored me other than a sharp glare for swearing.

Just a couple of agonizing minutes later, and I was dressed up in front of a mirror. “I look like a bloody penguin.” I muttered as I stared at my reflection. At least they hadn’t tried to put makeup on me or something.

“Oh. My. Goddess.” I blinked and looked over at Trixie who was practically drooling. “You’re so fucking hot right now.”

My mother coughed politely. “Yes, she is, but no swearing inside please.”

“But it’s true!” Trixie pointed a hoof at me. “Can you think of a way to describe how good she looks without swearing?”

My mother glanced at me, then back at Trixie. “Yes, she looks even better than I expected, but maybe you could find another way to express just how much you appreciate her appearance?”

“If you leave the room, Trixie will do just that. And without words as well.” She began advancing like a predator stalking its prey.

“Ohhh’kay!” I backed away and began undoing the jacket. “I think it’s about time we get this off me.”

“Agreed,” said mother. “Trixie, could you be a dear and grab me a cup of hard liquor? It’s in the large cabinet in the living room.”

“Yeah, and bring me the bottle while you're at it.” I muttered as I undid the tie. Or tried to, anyway. Seriously, how the fuck do you do these things? I yanked at it a few times. “Okay, somebody get this thing off me.”

“Please dear, not so rough.” Mom began undoing the tie for me. “It’s simple, see? Though your father couldn’t tie ties either.”

“Thanks,” I muttered as I undid the shirt. Out the corner of my eye, I noticed Trixie watching me, and I couldn’t help but swallow at the look she was giving as I slipped it off. “Trix, the drinks?” I asked.

“Fine.” She rolled her eyes and walked out the door, no doubt deliberately swaying her hips.

I caught the look mother was giving Trixie, and she gave it to me too. “How long did you say you two were dating?”

“Two weeks.” I replied.

“Well... She certainly doesn’t seem un-eager.” My mother commented idly. “Has she always been so...?”

“Ready to screw?” I finished for her and she glared at me. “Pretty much, but it’s only gotten worse lately.”

“Well, have you stopped to ask why?” My mother asked. “Even if she’s attracted to you so heavily, that’s oddly soon to be so... frisky.”

I shrugged, and opened my beak just as Trixie came back in with the drinks. I shut it and turned to her. “Thanks, Trix.”

Instead of replying, she poured a cup and then immediately downed it before passing it over to me. “Trixie needed that.”

I hesitated before I drank some too. “Why?” I asked her when I took the cup away from my bottle.

“Because she hasn’t seen such good alcohol in a long time,” she replied.

“Ah... well I’m not really a fan of wine.” I took another sip. “This is pretty good though.”

“Yes.” My mum stepped over. “It came from Elder Calisto’s old cabinet.”

I choked and spat it out. “You stole from him!” I growled at her.

She blinked. “No... actually, he left it to our family.”

I stared at her in surprise. “Really?”

My mother nodded. “Yes, after we learned he’d died. I was surprised when most of his possessions were divided between you and a few of the other girls from around town. Though, most of them had moved on or were living elsewhere, so their families got their shares.”

I turned away from both of them and blinked tears from my eyes as I took another sip of Calisto’s booze. It tasted like ash to me now. I put the bottle on the table and made sure my eyes were clear before I turned around to face Trixie and mom.

“We should be going.” I smiled at the unicorn. “It’s been nice but we need to get on the road again.”

“We do, but...” Trixie touched my arm, looking up with me with concerned eyes. “We can stay here a while longer if you prefer.”

“Nah, it’s fine.” I looked down at her. “It’s probably best if we leave mum before anything crazy happens to us.”

“You sure?”

I snorted. “Between the embarrassing stories, the bad memories, and the chance that zombies invade just ‘cause we’re in the room? Yeah, I’m pretty sure.”

“Alright.” To my surprise, Trixie walked on over and kissed my mother on the cheek before whispering something in her ear. It was clear that she was caught between surprise, anger, and happiness, but after a couple seconds of hushed whispering, Trixie walked away with a very red face.

“What was that about?” I asked as we stepped out of the room, mom following behind us.

“A promise Trixie intends to keep and some... information Trixie did not need to hear. Ever.”

I shuddered. “She has no bloody shame. Please tell me she didn’t mention her toys.”

“Worse.” A shudder ran through her body. “Far worse.”

Oh goddesses. What could be worse?

Mum stepped forward with a box in her claws. “Here’s the suit, if you’d like to take it with you.” She winked at Trixie.

Trixie immediately wrapped it up in her magic. “Thank you for everything.”

“You’re welcome dear.” She gave a hesitant glance between me and Trixie. “Take care of her, please.”

I wasn’t sure if she was talking to me or Trixie. So I just nodded while Trixie said, “Actually... um...” She licked her dry lips, while rubbing the back of one fore hoof. “Trixie was wondering if she could, er... get your blessing in dating your daughter...”

Mother froze, before she caught my look and smiled at Trixie pleasantly. “Of course dear. As long as you can promise me an invitation to the wedding and grand cubs, I’d love to have you as my daughter.”

“Thank you...” To my surprise there were tears in Trixie’s eyes. “Trixie promises to take care of your daughter, though she may need to rough Gilda up a bit to get some manners to stick.”

Mother chuckled. “I already tried that myself.” She sighed. “Short of actually roughing her up, nothing seemed to work. Hopefully you’ll have better luck than I did. And Gilda, remember what I said.”

I blinked as I stared at her. “About what?”

Mom’s eyes flicked over to Trixie. “Before, when I was helping you with your tie.”

“Oh,” I nodded, “Right. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Trixie looked at me curiously, but I just acted like it was nothing important. “Anyway, mum. It’s been… not really fun, but-”

A knock sounded at the door, and I closed my beak as mum went to answer it. She opened it, and I immediately backed to the side when I caught a glimpse of a Kingdom soldier’s formal attire.

Apparently he didn’t see me. “Adelina of the Great Scars?” He asked in a formal voice with a just appropriate hint of sadness. My mother nodded, and he continued, “I’m afraid I have some bad news. Your son, Graciano, has gone missing. At this stage, we cannot account for his whereabouts, and the strongest likelihood is he’s dead, or turned to treason.”

I stood there frozen in shock, and stared at my mother as she stared at the soldier. “W-w-what?”

The soldier sighed sadly. “I’m sorry Ma’am. Is there anything I can do?”

She blinked and her beak trembled. “N-no. I-I-I... Please just go.”

“The official statement is in here Ma’am,” an envelope was passed to my mother. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

The door closed in his face, and my mother stared blankly at the letter. After a moment, I snatched it and tore it open. I scanned the letter quickly, reading it to make sure it was official. I checked it over thoroughly, and when I couldn’t find anything that suggested it wasn’t real, I read it again. After a moment I dropped it to the ground, and fell to my haunches trying to process the situation.

“Grace is gone...” I said, and I sounded like I’d just been slapped. “The letter’s real...”

“Gilda...” Trixie laid a hoof on my shoulder.

“He’s...” My lower beak trembled. “He can’t be dead.” I looked at my mother, who was staring at me with tears in her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” whispered Trixie as she hugged me from behind. “But they didn’t say he was dead, merely he had gone missing.”

I frowned. “You’re right.” I stood up and quickly hugged mum. “He’s gonna be fine.” I promised her before I snatched up my equipment and pushed the front door open.

“Wait up!” Trixie was immediately by my side. “Trixie hopes you weren’t planning on leaving her behind.”

I glanced back at her. “You’ll be safer here, and I can travel faster by myself.” Probably not the nicest thing to say, but at the moment I was thinking of Grace and Grace only.

“Trixie doesn’t care, she is coming with you and that is final.” She smirked up at me. “Plus, Trixie doubts you can fly faster than a teleport.”

I hesitated. “Can you really teleport both of us to Aviana? What about your horn?”

Her eyes narrowed. “Trixie doesn’t wish to speak about her horn. Perhaps not the entire way there, but short hops are easy enough and will increase travel speed significantly.”

I hesitated again, before I shook my head. “No, you’ll be safer here, and I’m not gonna kill you with magic for my brother. I can get to Aviana on my own in a day or two.”

“But speed is of the essence,” she said as she kept pace with my running.

No. If Grace was dead, then I was not gonna let Trixie die too. “Sorry, Trix.” With a flap of my wings I took to the air.

There was a flash of magic and I found myself before Trixie again. Before I had a chance to fly off again, her magic locked my wings in place. “Did you really think that would work? Trixie is going whether you like it or not.”

I growled at her. “Damn it, Trix. I’m not getting you killed for my brother.”

“And if you think Trixie is going to let you rush off and get yourself killed, you’ve got another thing coming,” she snapped.

“I’m not gonna kill myself!” I shouted at her. “You were the one that was about to hang herself!” I pointed a talon at her.

Her eyes narrowed dangerously. “And you were the one who decided to rush off with Nightmare Moon into a changeling hive without a second thought, earning you that scar on your chest. You could have died.”

“That’s not fair, Trix! You were hurt, and bleeding! I didn’t know what was gonna be in the mine, or whether we could face it or not! I was trying to keep you safe, and apparently it worked, except for the part where you decided to hang yourself just to guilt trip me or some shit!” I shouted and jabbed a claw into her chest. “You’re not coming with me! And you’re not hanging yourself either!”

“You think you can order the Great and Powerful Trixie around!?” All of my limbs were encased in magic. “Very well, Trixie will just have to drag you there herself.”

I touched my magic, and felt the shadows screaming my name. “Let me go Trix.” I growled. “You’re not coming with me.”

“No, she’s not. The Great and Powerful Trixie never follows.” She began running along the dirt road while I floated behind her in her magic. “Trixie is not coming with you, instead you’re coming with Trixie.”

I snarled, and the shadows snatched Trixie’s hoof, sending her sprawling with a shriek. Her magic let go, and I landed with a smooth slide. I turned to Trixie, and the shadows bound her hooves together.

“I’m not letting you die!” I shouted and snatched my package up from where it had fallen.

“Why do you think Trixie is so insistent on going? She doesn’t want you to die either!” she yelled at me as she blasted the chains off her hooves.

“You don’t get it, do you?” I turned to her. “I’m a grunt, damn it. A stupid blunt instrument that someone else makes all the decisions for! I can kill shit, and that’s it. Kill and kill, until I die and they need to find a better killer! It doesn’t matter if I die.” I fastened my knife belts. “You’ll get over me, and if you can’t then...” I grit my beak. “You’ll get over me, and find someone better.”

“No!” Once more I was grounded by her magic. “Why don’t you get it? I want you. You!” Her lips pressed against my beak. “And you’re not a grunt. Who was the one giving directions while we were on the run? Who came up with the plans? Who kept Trixie safe? You’re more than a killer and more than a grunt. And Trixie loves you so shut up already.”

I tried to pull away from her kiss, but I couldn’t do anything and she kept at it till I stopped struggling. When she pulled away, I didn’t feel any differently about this. I was just reminded of the goddess awful dream I’d had, and Trixie begging me with her eyes like she was now.

“I got us caught. I dropped you in an outhouse, and my plans suck. Yeah, I’m not exactly a grunt, I was talking out my ass but it’s still true damn it! I’m not important, and the only time my life ever meant anything was when I was saving you!” I heaved as hard as I could, and with a pop her magic shattered as I reared up. I panted as I stared at her. “I’m not going to be the one that kills you.” I fell to all fours again and turned away.

“You’re important to me!” Trixie walked over and leaned against me. “And Trixie doesn’t want to lose you. She- I’m afraid you’ll end up in a situation you can’t handle and I just want to help. Please, Gilda. And you know you’d never hurt me.”

I shivered at that last one. The scariest thing about that dream was... Goddesses... the most fucking terrifying thing about it was that I knew it could have happened. I was just few botched runes away from being that pet... Just some lines on the floor from being ‘Aurry.’

I didn’t answer her, for a moment. “I already have, Trixie,” I finally said as I looked back at her.

“Shut up,” she hissed as she moved in for another kiss. “Just shut up and let Trixie come along. You know you could use a great and powerful ally.”

I pulled back from her kiss, the pleading in her eyes reminded me too much of my dream. “Please don’t beg.” I looked at her. “Please, never ever do that again.”

A playful grin appeared on her face. “Even in bed?”

I shivered again. Goddesses, I hope I get over that dream soon. “No.” Black silk pillows flashed through my mind and I took another step away from Trixie. “Definitely no.”

A frowned appeared on Trixie’s face. “There’s something you’re not telling Trixie, isn’t there?”

“You can come,” I told her. Partly to change the topic, and partly because I couldn’t leave her behind now. “Are you really sure you can teleport us most of the way to Aviana?”

“Of course. Trixie is a mare of multiple talents, and travelling cross country is something she is intimately familiar with.” She gave me that cocky grin of hers. “Now stand back, and be prepared to the dazzled by the greatest unicorn who has ever lived!”

“So why didn’t you teleport us when we were on the run?” I asked her. “Or... heck, I can think of a few times that it would’ve been handy.”

“Um...” Trixie looked nervous before she straightened up. “Are you questioning the Great and Powerful Trixie?”

I stared at her. “Trixie, was the basement the first time you ever teleported?”

“Of course not! Trixie could teleport at the age of three.”

I raised my eyebrow. “Uh huh.”

“It’s true,” she huffed.

“Uh huh,” I repeated.

She glared at me.

“Well?” I waved a claw at her with a little smirk. “We’re waiting on you, Great and Powerful.” I doubt I was getting any hugs tonight.

“Prepare to be amazed!” Right back into the showpony attitude. “Watch as the Great and Powerful Trixie shows this neighsayer how honored she should be for having a marefriend as great as Trixie!”

Her horn began glowing, enveloping both of us in her magic. It was weird to say the least; kinda awkward with her magic feeling every inch of my body as though I was being groped, and considering this is Trixie, it was probably intentional. A second later, the world around me was washed away like paint leaving behind what seemed to be deeper into the pinewood forest, further along the path towards the capital.

“Trix... do you know where we’re going?” I asked her with my head tilted. “Can’t you only teleport to places you know? Do you know the way to Aviana from here?”

“Of course. Did you forget the time Trixie teleported out of the cellar?”

“Then... when were you in the mountains? How do you know your way around the Gryphon Kingdom... and... why the fuck were you ever in the remote parts of the mountains?”

“That doesn’t matter,” replied Trixie. “But are we going to Aviana or not?”

“Uh... okay?” I frowned at her. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”

“Is there something you’re not telling Trixie,” she immediately countered.

“Like what?” I asked, feeling a little defensive.

“You know what,” she replied with narrowed eyes.

I shifted, and realized that Trixie was going to have to be a bit more specific. I mean, there was my messed up magic, my messed up dream, the fact I was almost possessed by Nightmare, the sheer number of brain-deads I’d killed in White Peak, and the suicidal edge my fighting had taken recently. Shit. I’m like, the worst girlfriend ever.

“Uh... not sure what you mean.” I told her, though to me it sounded pretty... make that really, really forced. Especially with the nervous chuckle and scratching the back of my neck. For her part, Trixie narrowed her eyes and she took a single step towards me.

“So!” I clapped my hands together and gave her the biggest smile I could. “Are we going to Aviana or what?”

“Gilda...” I knew that tone. It was the same tone my mother and Calisto used whenever I was about to get a talking and those talks never ended up pretty.

Well, I wasn’t going down without a fight. “So, what’s with your horn?” I asked. “How did it get cracked?”

“If Trixie tells you that, you promise to tell Trixie what’s bothering you.”

I winced. “I was hoping you’d just tell me to fuck off and drop it.” I glanced up at Trixie. “I respect your privacy, you know.” I felt a little smug, but I didn’t let that through as I laid on the guilt trip. “I don’t expect you to tell me all your secrets.”

“And Trixie respects yours,” she replied happily, “so tell Trixie what’s bothering you already.”

I decided to settle for the least bothering secret. “My magic is messed up.” I told her, and acted down about it. “Whatever it was Nightmare did to me... I feel different, and I’m worried that it might change me.” Not a word was a lie.

Trixie frowned at me. “Is that how you managed to trip Trixie up earlier? She thought her magic hadn’t immobilized you properly, but if you’re magic’s changed, perhaps that’s it?” Her frown deepened. “Is it even possible for magic to change?”

I shrugged. “You’re the unicorn. But... yeah. That was how I tripped you up earlier.” I frowned and looked away. “That was why I wanted you to teach me about magic so I could... figure out how this new shit works.”

“You should have just said so! Trixie would be happy to teach you.” It was weird how little things like this managed to cheer her up so much. “Do you think unicorns can utilize it? Perhaps Trixie will be able to learn something and harness this new magic for herself. Ha! Imagine that purple unicorn’s face when Trixie comes back more powerful than ever. Take that Twilight Sparkle!”

I shifted. “I don’t think so Trix. I... think I’m... I think I might be a nightkin now.” I frowned. “At least, I think that’s what Nightmare said. I was too busy having my insides shredded to really remember. But uh... when we were in the mines she offered to make me like Slight. As in... give me her powers and stuff. I told her no, but...” I shrugged. “You were there. You don't need me to tell you what she did.”

“Oh...” She pawed at the ground nervously. “Well Trixie will help however she can.”

I nodded, then I remembered the other part of the deal. “So what about your horn?”

She winced. “Perhaps we should discuss this when we make camp tonight?”

I frowned, but shrugged. “Alright. You can tell me when you’re ready.”

“Thank you.” A light peck was left on the corner of my beak. “Now let us go!”

The sun was barely setting when I decided we should make camp. Trixie was bathed in sweat, and panting like a dog.

“That’s it.” I said and helped prop her up. “You’ve done enough for today.”

“We can... still... r-run...” she panted out after a full minute.

I stared at her, before I stepped away. “Alright then. Go for it.” I paused in front of her and waved a claw ahead of us.

She didn’t even manage a single step before she collapsed on the ground.

“Great run.” I told her dryly. “We should do that more often.” I bent down and helped her up before I took us towards the side of the road.

“Don’t even think about mentioning this to anyone else,” said Trixie.

I laughed. “Yeah... no.” I let her down gently. “This is something that’s biting you in the ass down the line.”

I turned around and started to set up camp. Not that there was much to set up. We weren’t lighting a fire- for once Trixie didn’t argue about that- and we only needed one tent. By then, Trixie was starting to feel better, so I helped her move into the tent, and mixed some fruits and vegetables into a roadside salad for her.

“You sure you’re okay?” I asked. “You look totally fucked.”

To my surprise, she glared up at me. “And whose fault was that?”

“You could've stayed behind.” Frowning, I stood up and hopped out of the tent. “I didn’t force you to come.”

“Trixie knows.” With a sigh, she patted the spot next to her. “Now get your sexy flank down here.”

I glanced back at her. “No. You need your rest. Get some sleep, and I’ll keep watch tonight.”

“Fine,” she pouted.

My eyes narrowed and I sat down. “Actually, that was something I wanted to ask you about. What’s with the completely retarded amount of flirting you do?”

“Um... what?” She looked up at me quizzically.

“I mean... You’re way too frisky for a mare that’s only two weeks into a relationship.”

“T-Trixie is not! Are you calling her a slut?”

Oh, fuck.

I quickly backpedaled, trying to come up with a nice way of putting it. “I mean... uh... that is... um...” I was drawing a complete blank. “How’s the salad?” I smiled at her, changing topics about as smoothly as a train crash.

“You are not getting out of that so easily,” she growled. “What did you mean?”

“Um... don’t worry about it.” I sat down and tried to avoid her gaze.

“Are you saying Trixie’s easy? That she’ll fuck with the first sentient she so much as likes?” With each word spoken, she became more and more hostile.

“No!” I shouted. “Fuck no! What I’m saying is... crap. The amount of moves you make on me is freaking me out, alright? Fuck. You’re half dead from using magic all day, and you’re trying to get me next to you. When I was in that suit, it was like a manticore staring at a bleeding deer. My mum was in the room, and I still thought you were gonna start fucking me right there.” I sighed and put my head in my claws. “Forget I said anything. I’ll just get over it.”

To my surprise, Trixie merely tilted her head to the side. “Is it wrong that Trixie finds you desirable?”

“No,” I told her feeling a little confused by that reaction. “I like you, and I’d certainly enjoy a good fuck... but we’re two weeks in Trixie. You just don’t move that fast, unless you want a one night stand or something. Hell, most parts of the world still wait till your married before sex. I’m not a prude but... I’m kinda worried by how damn sexual you’re making everything.”

“Oh...” Her ears drooped. “Does this mean we’re breaking up?”

I blinked in confusion. “...No? Why would it mean that?”

“But... isn’t that the basis of all relationships?” she asked clearly confused.

I frowned at her. “No.” I said flatly.

“Oh. Trixie thought sex was the central aspect of relationships and that without it, all relationships were doomed to failure.”

I stared at her, a worried pit forming in my stomach. “What the fuck made you think that?”

“Well my father was always coming home with females,” she replied with a shrug. “And it was the only time her parents weren’t fighting.” There was a pause as she thought it over. “Well... the only time they fought less.”

I stared at her. “If I ever meet your dad, I’m gonna punch him in the face.”

“Why?” she asked even more baffled than before.

I stared at her for a second. “Because you were a fucking filly!” I shouted. “Fuck me dead, there’s no way you should have to know about your dad being a married whore when you’re six!”

“Hey! Trixie loved her father. He might not have been the best father, but Trixie still loved him,” she snapped.

I snorted. “At least my dad had the good grace to not be there when he was getting drunk as piss. I mean... shit. Did you actually see your dad with those mares?”

“Yes,” she said without even blinking. “And dad never got drunk.”

“Holy crap Trixie! Don’t you see how much is wrong with that?” I stared at her for a moment. “What? Did he fuck on the living room floor, or drag you upstairs to watch or something?”

“Of course not!” At least she had the decency to look shocked by that. “Trixie merely stumbled in on occasion usually when dad forgot to lock the door, or when she came home early from schooling.”

“Still a complete tool.” I spat. “Didn’t he abandon you and your mother or something?”

“No!” She glared at me. “Why would you suggest such horrible things? Though after Trixie ran away, he did leave Freefall.”

I shook my head. “Whatever. Dude was a tool. The point is, and I shouldn’t have to be the one to tell you this, but anyway, sex is not the be all and end all of a relationship.” I shifted my wings uncomfortably. “Yeah, attraction’s important, but you don’t need to be fucking or else everything is doomed. Goddesses damn it, Trixie. Did you really think I was gonna break up with you if we didn’t have sex sometime soon?”

“Yes...? That was always how it worked with dad. They’d stop having sex and then the mare would no longer come around.”

I facepalmed. “That’s because your dad was a slut, Trix.”

“Enough!” Magic wrapped around my head, forcing me to stare her straight in the eyes. “We will get this straight right now, you will not insult my dad. Got that? Insult Freefall as much as you wish, but you will not insult my father!”

Her magic was weak from exertion, so all it took was a jerk of my neck for it shatter. “Whatever. We don’t need to be sleeping with each other constantly for this to mean something, Trix. I mean, crap, me not wanting to screw every minute was not me trying to break up with yo, Trix.”

“Oh... Well... still no insulting dad,” she eventually mumbled.

I snorted. “So... what’s with hating your mother? I mean, you mentioned she was an alcoholic, right?”

“An aggressive, angry alcoholic,” spat Trixie. “You know, the type that will beat up anyone who looked at her funny, or in Freefall’s case, anypony who so much as looked at her.”

I shifted uncomfortably. Sounded a little like me... I didn’t even need to be drunk to be ready to beat someone shitless. My mind went to that bar in Aviana, and the guy I’d demolished because I thought he looked like an asshole. A tiny smirk touched my beak, but I quickly covered it.

“To be honest, Trix. I’m an aggressive almost alcoholic that beats people up pretty often,” I squirmed, “Which makes me wonder what the fuck you’re doing with me.”

“You’re wrong, you’d never hurt me,” she whispered before adding in a voice so small, I almost thought it was the wind, “You’ll protect Trixie...”

“Of course I will.” I cringed at the pleading look in her eye, but ignored it for her sake. “I’d never hurt you.” I paused as I thought about Trixie’s statement. “So... your mother beat you?” I asked. Holy crap, and I thought my family was fucked up. Yeah, my dad was a douche and I never got along with my mum, ever... but holy fucking shit! What the fuck had to be going on in Trixie’s head?!

All I got in reply was her tapping her horn. “Trixie used to be Great and Powerful. In fact, she still has one of the largest magic pools that she knows about, but with a cracked horn, there’s not much she can do.” Tears leaked down her cheek. “Trixie was destined for greatness.”

I stared at her in shock. I swallowed before saying, “Your mother’s the one that cracked your horn?”

“Drunken rage,” she replied with a shrug. “Trixie left after that. She was less thrown out and more ran away as though a dragon was on her tail.”

I snorted and growled. “If I ever meet the bitch, I’ll feed her to a dragon. After I’m done shoving her legs through a rock crusher.”

“Don’t. She’s not worth it. Trixie would rather you hold her at night than waste time on that piece of trash.”

I smiled at her, and lay down next to Trixie again. “She’s probably worth a few cuts...” I mumbled as I wrapped a wing around her. Almost immediately she was snuggled into my side with no hint of letting me go free anytime soon and for once, she wasn’t stroking my chest or nuzzling my neck or anything. Instead, we were just snuggling like a good, normal couple.

I walked through Ponyville, watching unconcerned as Twilight Sparkle was dragged out of her house. Her face was shoved into the dirt, and she screamed and begged as Nightkin ponies readied their blades to kill her.

I rolled my eyes and looked away. Executions? Just kill her already.

In the distance I could see a house that looked like it was made of gingerbread burning to the ground. Something about it made me... angry and hateful. I smiled. Good. Nightmare loved it when I was angry and hateful.

I padded towards it with a spring in my step before I froze at the sounds of a loud crack behind me. Turning around, I saw the two Nightkin slump to the ground in pieces, as one half of them was teleported away, and the other wasn’t. Twilight Sparkle collapsed to the ground sobbing, blood coating her hooves as she desperately crawled out from under the front half of the ponies she’d killed.

I walked over to her, and yanked her out from under the nightkin. “Get up.” I told her, and pulled her up.

“Thank you.” She muttered as she unsteadily stood up. “We need to get out of here!” Twilight Sparkle said as she looked around. Then she turned around and saw me. With a scream she backed away. “Y-y-you’re her!”

I rolled my eyes and padded towards her. “Just stand still.”

“No!” She shouted and lowered her horn to aim at me. “You’ll never hurt anypony again!”

She fired a blast of magic at me, but I melted into my own shadow and rose up out of hers. I grabbed her throat, and started to strangle. She kicked, and her horn started to glow with magic. My fist in her temple broke her concentration, and her aura died. Slowly her kicking started to stop.

“Wait.” A voice that made me shiver with pleasure said from behind me.

I stepped away and the purple unicorn fell to the ground gasping. I turned around and bowed to my Mistress.

“My sister’s favorite student.” Nightmare approached and rolled Twilight Sparkle over with her hoof.

I twitched to touch her and turn her attention to me, but she didn’t like it when I got pushy. So I stood there, waiting for her to turn those perfect eyes on me. Instead they stayed on Twilight, and I glared at the unicorn.

“Where are your friends?” She asked with a smirk. “They’re dead. At least most of them are. Rainbow Dash, that frivolous White Unicorn whose skin will make a lovely dress.” I smiled at that. I loved it when Nightmare made use of my talents. “And Pinkie Pie...” Her wing danced over me and I shivered with delight as I snuggled up to her. She scratched my chin with her hoof, and my eyes rolled up with pleasure. “She was certainly singing by the time Aurry was done with her.”

“-stop you.” Twilight choked out, and I frowned at her. How dare she say that to Nightmare!

“Will you know?” Nightmare chuckled. “And here I was planning on having you join me.”

“I’d never help you!” Twilight screamed and spat.

I snarled and punched her in the face. How dare she spit at my mistress! I went to hit her again, but I was stopped by the most beautiful voice in the world.

“Enough Aurry.”

I looked back at her lovingly, but wilted when I caught the glare on her face. I slunk behind her, and watched as Nightmare leaned down to stare into Twilight’s eyes.

“You know, Gilda said the same thing. She said no, and didn’t want my gift.” She twisted Twilight’s head towards me. “Now look at her. Happy, devoted... mine.” I beamed at Nightmare, but frowned at Twilight when I saw the pity in her eyes. “You can be like that.” Nightmare whispered as she nibbled on Twilight’s ear. “You can be happy too.”

“No!” Twilight shouted and her horn glowed for a second before Nightmare cracked it with a flick of her hoof.

The unicorn screamed in pain and whimpered. I smiled at that. No one defied my mistress.

“I wasn’t giving you a choice.” Nightmare whispered, and with a pop moonflower nectar and salt appeared next to her. A knife floated from her sheath and she drew her own blood. “Maybe your other friends, that pegasus and that hillbilly, perhaps if they prove worthwhile, they can join you too.” When the runes were drawn, Nightmare grabbed Twilight face and rubbed her blood over Twilight’s lips and tongue. She tried to spit it out, but her lips were clamped shut by Nightmares magic. Finally, when everything was in place, “Aurry, give me the vial.”

From my belt I took out what she asked for, and hoped for her to return my smile. I felt a little sad when she didn’t, but the way her tail whisked across my face made me feel a little better.

Twilight choked and gagged on the chemicals, but had no choice but to swallow them as her lips were pulled shut again.

I watched as Nightmare completed the ritual, and stepped away. The moonlight bathed over Twilight, and I watched as she slowly rose to her hooves. Just then, the runes spread their inky blackness and the unicorn was yanked into the air.

I didn’t jerk awake this time. I opened my eyes fairly slowly, and noticed the moon still hanging in the sky. I looked around and realized it was late at night. I’d probably barely managed a full hour of sleep.

“Mother fucker.” I muttered and lowered my head to my claws again. “Not again.”

At least this dream wasn’t anywhere near as bad as the last one was. I didn’t even know Twilight Sparkle outside of the pictures in the papers and a party in Ponyville. I tried to get to sleep again, but it took me less than a second to realize that wasn’t happening anytime soon.

I looked across at Trixie, trying to decide if she was too comfortable for me to move without waking her up. After a minute, of watching her sleep, I carefully extracted myself from her forehooves and gently tugged my wing out of her grip. I stood up, and padded away from her. I sat down, and enjoyed the feeling of the cool night air ruffling my feathers as I stared out at the silent night.

I needed to get to sleep somehow, right? Maybe some exercise would tire me out or something.

“Hm...” Trixie rolled over before her eyes slowly blinked open. “Gilda...?”

“Yeah I’m here.” I reassured her. “Just couldn’t sleep. I’m not running away in the night or anything.”

“Alright...” Her eyes drifted close again. “Any reason why you woke up? Going nocturnal on me?”

“Uh... maybe?” I shrugged. “I mean, the name’s nightkin, right?”

“True,” she replied with a yawn. “Restless?”

I nodded. “It takes me ages to get to sleep these days, and when I do I wake up anyway. I feel heaps drowsy in the morning too, and I get really uncomfortable around midday. Itchy, sweaty...” I sighed to myself. “Fucking Nightmare.”

To my surprise, she crawled over to me and sat down beside me, her blankets wrapped tightly around her body. “If you prefer we can travel from midnight to mid-morning then nap through midday and continue on? Sleep twice everyday...”

I glanced over at her. “You’d do that? Wouldn’t that be like... heaps shitty on your internal clock?”

“And this isn’t ‘heaps shitty on your internal clock’?” Her head rested on my shoulder. “This way, both our clocks can be slightly wrong.”

I snorted. “Alright, but you’re way too tired to start tonight. Go back to sleep and I’ll... keep watch or something.”

“Tomorrow then?” Another yawn followed by a kiss on my cheek. “Promise?”

“Yeah, of course.” I gave her a nuzzle. “Get to sleep. Seriously, you look half dead.” I smirked at the massive ass bags under her eyes. I paused and frowned. “But if tomorrow is gonna be another day like today, then we’re not starting the new sleep time then either.”

A playful smack landed on my shoulder. “Then you better not tire Trixie out. Set a slower pace and let Trixie do a bit more teleports.”

I snorted and smirked at her. “If you can’t keep up with a slow walk, then maybe we should get you walking more.” After a second, I added jokingly. “Your flank’s looking less toned these days.”

The jab that followed that comment was in no way playful. In fact, it hurt. “Trixie will have you know she is not getting fat!”

“Feeling a little sensitive?” I teased and stepped out of her reach. “Maybe you should join me for my morning push ups and wing touches.”

She opened her mouth to say something, only to immediately close it again. “Actually, you practice with your weapons in the morning, correct?”

“Uh... yeah, why you actually want to join me?”

“Trixie thinks it would be prudent. Magic will not always suffice and there are times it needs to be conserved. Perhaps you could teach Trixie how to handle a sword?”

I paused, staring at her in surprise. “I’m not sure I like the idea of teaching you how to kill.” I said with a frown. “Plus, we don’t even have a sword.”

“Trixie will be sticking by you no matter what. You can either teach her how to defend herself with a weapon, or Trixie can rely entirely on her magic.” A tender nuzzle. “Trixie just wishes to know how to disarm and disable opponents. She wants to defend herself.”

I shifted. “You say that, but it’s easier to kill someone than it is to put them down safely. Are you sure you want me to teach you? I’m probably like... the worst teacher ever... Are you really sure you want to learn about this?”

“Trixie has a large magic pool, but that does not mean it is infinite. I would be much more comfortable in the knowledge that Trixie could defend herself if her magic was running dangerously low, wouldn’t you?” she asked sweetly.

“I’m not even sure I could teach a pony how to fight...” I mumbled, looking for excuses not to do this. I really don’t want to turn Trixie into someone like me.

“Gilda...” Yet another nuzzle. “Don’t worry, if you don’t want to teach me, you don’t have to. It was just a suggestion and Trixie would never dream of making you do something you didn’t want to.”

I sighed. “Nah, you’re right. I should just get over it. I mean... I won’t always be here, right? You’re right. I’ll teach you what I can.”

This time, she poked me with her horn. Did she sharpen that thing in her spare time or something!?

“You will be around as long as I say you’ll be around,” she said. “And I say you’ll be around forever so don’t go dying on me before that or Trixie will be forced to drag you back from Tartarus herself.”

I stared at her for a second. “You’re planning on making me live forever? I’m pretty sure there’re -like... a billion rules about that.”

“You’re talking to the Great and Powerful Trixie. If she didn’t come up with the rule, then it’s not a rule and can be broken,” she replied with a smirk.

I snorted. “I’ll remind you of that when I’m an undead lich abomination thing that wants to eat souls and shits out demons.”

“No rule about being unable to turn someone back,” she chuckled. “Though Trixie is certain liches don’t actually exist outside of stories.”

“I thought bat ponies didn’t exist outside of stories.” I replied, before frowning and adding. “Or Nightmare Moon.”

“Or a mare as beautiful and as sexy as me?” asked Trixie teasingly, and for once, there was no added layer of sexuality behind it. No battering of the eyelashes or stray hoof or anything. It was just a simple straightforward tease, and I was smiling despite myself.

“Well, I was a cub at the time, and my sex life was less than active, thank fuck for small favors.” I replied and bumped her shoulder. “And I hear that the Bearer of Generosity’s pretty hot.”

“Well if you’d like, Trixie is willing to arrange a wet mane competition against this mare.” If anything her smirk deepened. “But Trixie is certain she’d still win in the end.”

“I have a better idea, how about we get her in for a threesome, and then you can actually be in my harem.”

To my surprise, she burst out laughing. “Well then, why don’t we invite this... Rainbow Dash? I believe her name was?”

I shuddered. “Ew, fuck no.” I stuck my tongue out in disgust. “That’d be like fucking Grace.”

At that comment, Trixie got a contemplative look on her face. “Well...” she began with a cheeky grin and I immediately gagged.

“Seriously? You’ve got the hots for my brother? Fuck, the mental images of him and Dash together...” I shuddered. “Goddesses damn it, Trix. Please tell me you’re joking about Grace.”

She finally burst out laughing, rolling around on the ground as she did so.

“Fucking Tartarus, how could you even dream of that?” I muttered.

She straightened up and smiled at me. “Well, who hasn’t had a fantasy about twins?”

I gagged again, and this time I barely managed to swallow the bile before it made it into my mouth. Even then I still had that acidy taste on my tongue. “We’re never talking about this again... ever.”

Once more she burst out laughing and this time there were tears. “Oh Gilda, you are too easy to tease. Almost takes the fun out of it.”

“Then don’t do it.” I muttered.

She grinned at me and planted a kiss on my beak. “But you’re so cute when flustered. Plus, Trixie humiliated the Bearer of Generosity, so she doubts she could set up a threesome anyways.”

I snorted. “Yeah, you sort of don’t have the charisma to convince anyone to join a threesome without a big bag of bits.”

“Trixie would like to see you do better.” Trixie tossed her hair back. “It’s not Trixie’s fault her hotness intimidates others.”

I burst out laughing. “Yeah, that’s the problem. I’m pretty sure I’d have a better chance than you would, and that’s saying something. I’m under no delusions about my own charm.”

“Trixie will have you remember she had all those backwater village boys eating out of her hoof yesterday. Though she will admit she had help in the form of one very sexy volunteer.”

I rolled my eyes. “Please. Those Great Scars weren’t sure whether I was a dude or chick at first. Half of them were heartbroken you were spoken for, and the other half were too shocked to know what to think.” I paused and thought about it. “Seriously, what’s with the gender inversion with me and Grace?”

“Who knows?” With one hoof wrapped around my waist, she leaned into me. “But I wouldn’t change one single bit... Except maybe the drinking habits.”

“Hey, I can control my drinking.” I replied. “And you didn’t seem to mind them when we were back in White Peak.”

“Trixie is starting to trust you more around drinks,” she said slowly, “but she still has reservations. A tad less drinking would be ideal.”

“The drink we had at mum’s was the first drink I’ve had since White Peak!” I said indignantly.

“Which is why Trixie so happily got the drinks for you,” How did she manage to sound so reasonable while saying these things?

“But... then where has the rum gone?” I asked feeling confused. “You let me drink for not drinking when I didn’t have anything to drink?” Other than the bottle of whiskey I’d bought in White Peak and hid in my pouches.

“Exactly.” The way she said it, it sounded like it was the most logical thing in existence. “Now can we go back to bed? Trixie is getting cold, and it’s hard to sleep without you beside her.”

“But... what? I mean... alcohol and... what are you saying?” I stared at her in complete confusion.

“Bed.” Poke. “Snuggles.” Poke. “Sleep.” Poke. “Now.” Poke.

I sighed and followed her back to the tent. “But I like drinking.” I might have been whining, but whatever.

“Are you whining?” A small giggle escaped. “To think I’d actually hear you whine. It’s almost adorable.”

I bristled as I watched her lay down. “I’m not adorable!” I snapped. “Ponies are adorable, gryphons are predators.” I jabbed a claw at her chest. “You're adorable.” I accused her.

“Was that supposed to be an insult?” With a sigh, I lay down next to her and covered her with my wing. “Plus, Trixie was complimenting you, you oaf.”

“Oaf!” I repeated and perked up again. “I can live with that.” Anything was better than adorable.

She simply rolled her eyes and smacked my shoulder. “At least you're my adorable oaf.”

“I’m not adorable.” I muttered and lay my head back down.

“Adorable, adorable, adorable. The more you deny it, the more adorable you are.”

I tried to think of a good answer, but eventually I decided actions speak louder than words. Actions like throwing Trixie out of the tent.

“Hey!” Trixie glared at me. “You do not just throw your marefriend out of a tent!”

“I did,” I said proudly. The pride faltered when I caught that look in her eye.

“Fine. Trixie shall sleep out here then,” she announced as she turned over and wrapped the blankets around her. With my enhanced vision, I could see how badly she was shivering though.

“Trix... you’re taking the fun out of it.” I muttered. “Get back in here.”

She didn’t move an inch.

“Trix, I was joking.” I walked out of the tent and nudged her. “You’ll freeze to death out there.”

“Admit you're adorable.”

I froze. “What?” I asked incredulous.

“Admit that you are adorable.” Trixie met my gaze dead on. “Admit it and Trixie shall return to the tent with you.”

I glared at her, before I turned and walked back into the tent. “Fine then. Freeze to death. See if I care.” I lay down and watched her shiver.

For her part, she didn’t even seem fazed as she closed her eyes.

“And you call me suicidal,” I said to her. “You’re gonna die Trixie. Just get back in here already.”

“Admit you’re adorable.”

I snorted. “You’re not gonna kill yourself just to get me to say I’m adorable. No one’s that retarded.”

“Ah, but this will prove once and for all just how great and powerful Trixie truly is. After all, who else can get the mighty Gilda to admit that she’s secretly adorable?”

I rolled my eyes. “There’s no way this can mean that much to you. Who the fuck could you brag to about it anyway? Not like I’m famous.”

“Trixie is a showmare and despite the incident at Ponyville, she still has a small, but loyal following.” And that evil smirk was back. “This adventure has given her all sorts of new stories for her amazing return shows.”

“And how many fans do you have exactly?” I paused for thought. “Can’t be more than three. No wait... make that two.”

“Your lack of faith is most disturbing,” she replied. “I am the Great and Powerful Trixie! Her fame is not limited by space or time. Her fame is not limited by the four walls of this dimension. Her fame transcends the very boundaries of this universe!”

“And for some reason you want to brag about me being adorable.” I rolled my eyes. “Isn’t that a bit beneath the Great and Powerful?”

“It’d be part of the comedy act for foals below the age of five,” she replied. “Heroism and dark stories only appeal to a small demographic.”

“Yeah, romance is the big seller,” I muttered. “Speaking of which, get back in here already.”

Trixie stuck her tongue out. “Admit you’re adorable.”

I rolled my eyes and stepped out of the tent. I walked over and lay down next to Trixie. I draped a wing over her back. “Never.”

“Well then it looks like we’ll be sleeping under the stars,” she whispered as she kissed my cheek. “Plus, your wing is plenty warm.”

“If it rains, I blame you.” I looked up at the sky suspiciously. “They don’t bother controlling the weather this far from town.”

“Then you will have to admit you’re adorable, won’t you?” Trixie smiled too sweetly for my liking. Unicorn’s couldn’t make it rain... could they?

I snorted. “I’ll be fine. You’re the one who’ll freeze to death in the wet.”

“So my big, brave, totally handsome gryphon won’t save me?” she asked with those big eyes of hers.

“No. Your big, brave, totally handsome gryphon will be too busy saying she told you so.”

Trixie grinned at that and snuggled into me. “Well this totally handsome gryphon is going to be Trixie’s blanket for the night.”

“Honestly, how did you ever even sleep without me?” I asked her. “Seriously, it’s like you’ve always had a wing draped over your back or something.”

“Trixie feels all safe and warm when you’ve got your wing wrapped around her,” she replied with a yawn. “Protected and safe.”

“Ironic. What with how dangerous your life has been since you met me.”

“Still safe and protected.” Sleepy eyes looked up at me. “Safer than Trixie has felt in a long time.”

“Well then you better get to sleep and let your big handsome gryphon keep watch.”

“Trixie would prefer her big handsome gryphon stay right where she is to keep Trixie nice and warm.” A soft sigh escaped. “And it should be illegal for someone to be this comfy.”

“Yeah, lying in the open on the ground in the middle nowhere. Celestia’s royal palace has got nothing on us.”

“Nothing on you,” she corrected as her eyes drooped close.

I watched as her breath evened out, and I tightened my wing around her so she’d stay warm. Under my breath I started humming a lullaby my mother used to sing to me. Yeah, it’s lame but whatever. I can be sappy now and then. As long as Trixie was asleep and couldn’t rib me about it.

“Sleep well, Trix,” I murmured after the song ended.

Chapter 18

The door unlocked with a click, and I slipped the lock picks back into one of my pouches. I slipped through the door, and glanced around the room. With no one inside, I beckoned Trixie over from across the street.

I cast a quick glance at the gryphon on watch, who was snoring deeply thanks to the sleeping powders I’d used. He’d think he just fell asleep, it was well past midnight after all. Trixie seemed pretty tired, but I was feeling great. Alert and ready for anything. I touched my magic, and the room seemed so much clearer. Without much work I could see the faint outline of the magic traps and defenses someone, probably Grace, had laid out.

“Hurry up, Trix.” I hissed at her as I poked my head out the door again.

I felt something brush past me before the door clicked shut. A couple seconds later, the air shimmered as Trixie dropped her invisibility spell. “What are you looking for?”

I didn’t answer her, because I had no fucking clue. The Wide Eyes had already ransacked the place and been over it with a fine comb, so I had no idea what I’d find that they couldn’t. Hell, I didn’t know what I was looking for other than something that told me where Grace was when he disappeared.

I silently padded forward and gave the traps a wide birth. I noticed most of them had been set off already, but even then I made certain me and Trixie weren’t anywhere near them. I paused for a second and looked around.

“You know, Grace has a really nice place, doesn’t he?” I couldn’t help but gaze at some of the stuff he had set up in display stands. I smirked when I saw a few first additions of several different comic book series. “Hah. Trix, check it out.” I pointed. “First edition Red Claw issue one. I never knew my brother was a nerd.”

“Keep your eye on the prize,” she snapped as she began combing through his bookshelf. “Do you know if he had any secret compartments or whatever?”

“No. I’ve never been to his house before,” I muttered as I paused at a display case. “Hey, check this out.” I smiled at its contents. “The Legend of the Last Shadow in the Day. Printed on cloth and in a dead language. This thing has to be like... freaking centuries old.” I glanced around. “Grace has an awesome house.”

“And here Trixie thought you were actually concerned with finding out where your brother is.” Her magic enclosed the entire bookshelf as she hummed a tune to herself before she moved onto the next one. “No secret passages behind there.”

I padded past her and pushed open the door to Grace’s bedroom. I noticed the messed up sheets and his pillows scattered over the floor.

“Either Grace had company, or someone came at Grace while he was sleeping.” I told her with a frown. “No blood or lost feathers...”

“Trixie wouldn’t be so sure of that,” she called from the living room. There was a pop and a blue feather appeared before me. “Trixie found that stuck between two pages of a book.”

I picked up the feather and my beak curled in disgust. “Luna...” I muttered in disgust. “That fucking whore.”

“Apparently so,” a click echoed through the room, “Ah ha! Found it.”

“A secret compartment?” I asked as I padded past her into the office. The documents on the desk could be important so I flipped through them and found a bunch of reports. Sitting down at his desk, I leafed through them. “Why would he be looking at these...?” I mumbled as I read through them.

“Was he tracking something?” asked Trixie. “It’s color coded and there’s a clear pattern of movement from- Wait, is that White Peak?”

“It is.” I answered and took the map she’d found from her hooves. “Those reports on the desk where about hallucinations and stuff...” Trailing off, I processed this. “Could... he have gone to White Peak to deal with the changelings?” I frowned. “No, he’d have the king’s backing if he did that. They wouldn’t send a letter to his mother saying he’d gone MIA.”

“They said he might be a traitor right? Perhaps they saw him with Luna and considering what Nightmare Moon did...” Trixie frowned as she began scanning over the reports.

“Do you think... she possessed him or something?” I swallowed. Please tell me Nightmare didn’t do to him what she did to me.

“You mean the ritual?” I watched silently as her magic began crawling along the ground, brushing everything aside and pushing the furniture up against the wall. Once everything was cleared away, we looked at the empty floor and saw no trace of blood or creepy runes.

I leaned down and smelled it. “Nup. No vinegar or cleaner, and I can’t smell blood or moonflower either.” My eyes settled back on the map. “It doesn’t look like the ritual.”

She gave me a reassuring squeeze before turning back to the reports. “You said hallucinations right? Mutant changeling’s perhaps? Considering that’s what Luna was chasing after...”

“This map has Ashguard circled in a different color.” I tapped a claw against the map and checked through the notes that were attached to it. “This is a bunch of statistics and stuff about how many gryphons live there, how close it is to the water supply and... how many are on the water table?” A frown touched the corners of my mouth. “What is this?”

“What is what?”

“This map... It’s like a spread map... I... think it’s tracking changelings moving out of White Peak.”

“Oh. Shit.” We both looked back at the map. “If this is accurate then does that mean the changeling’s are right outside the capital?”

“It looks like it...” I swallowed. “But they’re not coming in yet for some reason. Grace seemed to think that... they were gonna take Ashguard first and then spike the city’s water supply.”

“What!?” Trixie began poring over the documents I read. “This... is not good. If they manage to spike the water supply, that’d compromise the entire region.”

“Why isn’t the king doing something about this? Shouldn’t Grace have taken this straight to him? There should be Wide Eyes and soldiers crawling all over the city looking out for changelings.”

“Does Grace even have that much power?” asked Trixie. “And what is Grace going to say? Mutant changelings with the power to mind control gryphons have escaped and will be spiking the water?”

“He’s the king’s hand,” I muttered. “He’s as close to the king as any Wide Eyes can be. I know he has some guys under him, and if he doesn’t, then he’s supposed to be able to go the king and get support there. Or even just higher ranked Wide Eyes if this needs to stay secret.”

“Perhaps he already has. It has been a couple of days and maybe whatever happened at that... er... Ashguard place has already happened and he went missing in the fighting or something?”

“That would make sense... but...” I trailed off. “If he’s gone missing in Ashguard then I need to go after him...” I left out the fact that I wasn’t happy with taking Trixie to another hive.

There was a second of silence as she stared at the pages before us. “Do you still remember the ritual?”

I shivered as I remembered my dream from just last night. “Yeah... I do.”

“Is it possible to use it to, um, destroy the hive or something? Like, reverse engineer it or something?”

“How would I kno-” I froze as I realized something. I... did know. In her frantic rush to get me out of there before Nightmare came back, Luna practically threw everything she knew about that ritual at me. “I... think I might know how to do... something like that.” My brow creased as I tried to sort the jumbled mess of images and archaic names into a usable process.

“Well if you figure out how, tell Trixie. Also, if you’ve got anything about avoiding the whole fake reality thing, that’d be great as well.”

I frowned. “Uh... Well... maybe? I’d need some time to figure it all out. And... I’m not sure if I could do it. Nightmare mentioned it took a lot of her power and it was really damn hard, and she’s like a goddess and I’m just a gryphon...” After a moment I muttered. “Or at least I used to be.”

“You’re still a gryphon,” replied Trixie without missing a beat or even looking up. “Trixie doesn’t care what you are as you are hers, that’s all that matters.”

I smiled at that. “Thanks, Trix. I really like the part where ‘all that matters is you’re mine,’ never mind anything else as long as there’s that one thing.”

“It’s the truth.” From her tone of voice, it was clear she wasn’t even really concentrating on what I was saying. “If we take Ashguard as the central location then that’s probably where they went. We’ll need to set up some sort of mind shield and then infiltrate the area.”

“You have any clue how to make a mind shield?” I asked. “‘Cause I sure as Tartarus don’t.”

“Have some faith. Illusion magic is Trixie’s specialty and mind magic is just a very small, very illegal subset of that. Trixie will be able to figure something out.” She looked up at me with a reassuring smile. “But, we need a plan and equipment.”

“Okay, what sort of equipment?” I asked. “Because I can tell you now, it ain’t easy finding magical aids in Aviana. Especially on short notice.”

“Weapons, some of that powder everyone seems to use, fire. Lots and lots of fire.” Trixie looked a tad too happy as she said that last one.

I stared at her with my eyebrow raised. “It’s like I’m the last sane one alive,” I muttered. “Well I could get us a cart, and I know where we could steal some barrels of oil.”

“Perfect!” When she began humming a happy little tune, I just buried my face in my claw. “Now we need a way to get in without being seen.”

I shrugged. “Well, stealth is a specialty.” I caught her flat look. “Okay, not a specialty, but I can do it.” I thought about it for a second. “And if that doesn’t float your boat, I can probably hit up a few smugglers for ways in and out.”

“Let’s stick to the smugglers.” She leaned back in her seat. “Are you confident in your magic at all?”

“Uh... no. I don’t even know what the ritual Luna showed me did.” I frowned. “I mean, I know it... helped... at least I think it did, but I’ll need some time to sort out all this shit she dumped in here out.” I tapped a claw to my head. “I could probably put... something together. There is a pattern to all of it.”

“Trixie meant your new magic. The whole shadow thing, but the ritual will more than likely help,” said Trixie as she rubbed her temples. “We’ll probably need to hit up the local library as well to see if we can make sense of those symbols.”

“Alright,” I paused for thought. “I suppose that’s easy enough. But my magic? Uh... I haven’t really had the time to even figure out what it does.” I tapped into it, and felt the deep shadows of the night all slip under my influence. With a little bit of effort, I snuffed out the flickering light from Trixie’s horn. “I can do that, and uh...”

A moment later I dragged the desk towards me, though I felt the shadows slipping out of my control under the weight. It wasn’t long before the magic in the shadows coiled back into me without having shifted the table very much at all.

“I really don’t know the limits of this stuff. It’s like... I’m just moving the energy around that’s already there. Not like flying or weather work when I’m using my own energy.” I frowned. “It’s weird.”

“Not bad. Remind Trixie to continue your magical tuition at a later date. In that case, we should also read the old stories about Slight in order to figure out what else you can do.” Her hoof suddenly slammed onto the table, causing everything to jump. “Damn it! Why can’t life ever be simple?”

“Why, what’s wrong?” I asked concerned. “Did we forget something?”

“No, nothing. Trixie’s just tired and sore and filthy.” A sigh escaped. “Trixie needs a nice long bath to soak in followed by a massage.”

I sighed. “I used to hate baths. I’d kill for one now,” I muttered, “and I know shit all about massages. Fuck, I thought this was over, you know?”

“Trixie thought so too.” She rubbed her eyes before returning to the reports. “But it will be over soon enough.”

“I hope so.” I muttered and pulled up a chair. “It was supposed to be over after the temple. Heck, it wasn’t even supposed to start in the first place. If I’d known that it was gonna land me here, I’d never have gone to Ponyville in the first place.” My shoulders cracked as I stretched them before falling into the seat.

“That sounded... bad...” said Trixie. “Do you need a massage?”

I snorted. “And I’ll get a pedicure and tea oil preening while I’m at it.” I rolled my eyes and glanced over at Trixie. “No thanks, Trix.” Though my shoulders were feeling a bit twinged lately. I think it might have been from getting bound with magic and struggling so much.

“Very well.” The sound of footsteps could be heard coming down the hall. “Perhaps it would be best for us to relocate ourselves?”

I nodded and slipped out my knife as I doused all the lights with shadow magic. Trixie might have squeaked in surprise at that, but I shushed her with a talon to my beak. Peeking under the door crack, I couldn’t see anything so I opened it slowly and beckoned for Trixie to follow me. I lead us across the room and to the bannister. Down stairs I could make out the glint of moonlight on guard armor so I stepped back and led Trixie to the balcony.

With my lock picks, it took me a second to get the door locked again from the outside. “Come on, jump down.” I jerked my head at the balcony before I lightly hopped over the railing to the ground. Didn’t want to risk too much noise with a flap. I glanced back up at Trixie and saw her hesitating at the edge, looking down. “Now’s not the time to be afraid of heights,” I hissed.

After a bit more hesitating she jumped off and I caught her without a hitch. After gently setting her on the ground, I led us through Grace’s garden and back to the city streets. Once we were a few streets away I slowed our pace and started walking casually.

I turned to Trixie. “Disguises.”

They were immediately back on and I found a very attractive gryphoness walking beside me. Trixie simply winked at me, and for once, did not start trying to seduce everything in a ten mile radius around her, and instead, kept to my side.

“Where to?” I asked her. “An inn, or are we gonna get all our things ready tonight? If we need to stop by a library that’ll have to wait till morning.”

“We need that ritual and a mind shield,” replied Trixie. “Unless you think you can figure it out in a night, we’ll have to visit the library.”

“Alright. Well, we’ll get you some rest now and make a start tomorrow. I can hit up the bars for some information about smugglers working in Ashguard, and I’ll come find you in the morning.”

“Don’t do anything too stupid,” said Trixie. “Trixie will be waiting for her warm, feather blanket to return home.”

“Me, stupid?” I smirked at her. “Never. You’ll just have to deal with a normal blanket till I get back.”

“The horror! The horror!” With enough drama to power Canterlot for a decade, Trixie mock fainted in the middle of the street. “You sir, are a brute of the highest order.”

“Oh, yes,” I replied with an evil chuckle. “I have made you grow accustomed to sleeping with gryphon down, and now I shall make you go several minutes without it.” I reared up on my hind legs and laughed with my claws to the sky. “You will be inconvenienced for almost a full hour! Mwah hah hah!”

Trixie just gave me this flat, unamused look. “Your acting skills need work. A lot of work.”

“Sorry guvnah,” I replied in a Trottingham accent as I fell to the ground. “Just making a joke sir, honest.”

This time she didn’t even bother replying or talking to me as she stood up and began walking to the inn.

“May we meet in good light.” I called after her, giving my Zebrican accent a try. “With luck we shan’t fight!”

The glare that was shot over her shoulder would have killed a lesser being.

I just grinned at her till she faded from sight. Then I noticed the homeless guy giving me a weird look. “The fuck is your problem?” I glared at him.

After another moment he shrugged and turned away.

“Damn, right,” I muttered and walked away.

It wasn’t long till I spread my wings and made my way across town. It was less than twenty minutes’ flight till I was back at the entrance to that less-than-charming little shit hole pub I’d started the fight in last time I was in Aviana. Mind you, calling that a fight was pretty generous to that fat prick.

“Fixed the window,” I noted as I stepped inside. The only gryphons still here at this time of the night were the real bad crowd. The guys that were there for business, not pleasure. Well, except maybe for that one male quietly dry humping a hooker in the corner. My beak curled in disgust as I sat at the bar.

The bartender came over, and froze when he saw me.

I smirked. “Hi.”

He pointed a talon at the door. “Get out,” he ordered flatly.

I just put a few bits on the table. “Whiskey.”

“I said, get out.”

I snorted. “Are you gonna throw me out?” I asked. “Just get me a whiskey, and I promise this time I won’t break anything.”

He hesitated, not liking taking orders from a female. “I said get-”

I took off my shades and stared at him with my brand new freaky cat eyes. “I heard you.” I matched his gaze. “And I said whiskey.”

The bartender stared at me for a moment before he walked away muttering about demons in his bar. In a minute he came back with a shot glass and a bottle.

“Thanks,” I told him with a grin as I poured myself a glass. “Notice anything weird in town over the past few weeks?”

He just raised an eyebrow and looked me up and down.

I rolled my eyes. “Other than me. Did you get anyone through here that was acting... strange. Like, distant and retardedly happy about nothing?”

After a moment he shook his head.

I smiled. “Glad to hear it. What about smugglers? Can you tell me anything about them?”

His eyes flickered past me for a second, but returned to my face quickly. “Why?”

“I just need some advice,” I replied. “Either you help me, or I find someone in here that will, and I break things doing that.”

He crossed his arms unimpressed. “Chairs I can replace. Patrons I can’t.”

I drew my knife and dug it into the table. “How about talons? Can you replace those?” I tapped a claw beneath my eyes. “Or your eyes? Will you get new ones of those?”

He hesitated, obviously not liking being threatened by a female. “No. I said get-”

The bartender stopped speaking as the lanterns around us snuffed out, and the shadows visibly crawled onto the countertop from under the bench. He backed away as they started to move towards him. I just smiled.

“Smugglers.” I repeated.

He nodded and said. “Back table, left side. The northerner named Pierre.”

I followed his directions to the prick that was sitting in the corner. “Thanks,” I told him as I downed the shot of whiskey and stepped away.

“What are you?” He asked my back.

I smirked over my shoulder at him. “I’m not sure, but I’ll let you know if I figure it out.” I slid my shades back on and walked to the gryphon. I thought about how to approach this for a second, but ruled out just waiting because I knew Trixie was waiting for me.

After a moment I coughed to get his attention.

He ignored me.

Rolling my eyes, I poked him in the back. “Hey buddy.”

All I got was a grunt as he glanced over his shoulder at me.

I grit my beak. “I need to talk to you.”

“Yeah, you and half this joint. Beat it cub, I don’t have time to play games with bitches like you and I ain’t gonna fuck you even if you pay me.” With both feet on the table, he downed a shot of whisky.

I seethed. “Listen, buddy, I wouldn’t touch you with anything but the sharp end of a spear-”

“That’s if you can tell which end of the spear goes into the enemy?”

I cracked my neck. “Don’t test me.” I replied. “Seriously, I’d really fucking love to hurt you right now.”

“Please, drop the tough girl act will you? It’s so tiring and boring and clichéd and overdone.” Pierre gestured at the seat opposite. “So let me guess, you want to run away and seek your fortune somewhere else. You’re gonna tell me some sob story of how your father beats you at night, or how your husband whores you out for some stupid reason and blah, blah, blah. Look kid, I don’t give a shit as long as you’ve got the money.”

I paused, taking a second to consider how long I should let him get away with this before I mutilate him horribly. “I’m not here for you to take me out of Aviana. I’m here because I need a way into Ashguard.” I could’ve mentioned I don’t have any bits, but if he knew that then he’d be more of a pain to get any information from. “I don’t even need you to take me there, just tell me a way in.”

He stared at me as though I was an idiot before slamming the shot glass onto the table. “Look, I have one rule and one rule only when it comes to smuggling. Never, ever, get involved in affairs. If you want to fuck some guy in Ashguard, find your own way in, but I’m not getting involved in that shit.”

“Fuck, I thought I was dense.” I took his shot glass away from him. “There’s no fucking affair, no family matter, no shitty sob story, and no one involved is having any fucking sex! Shit dude, is this just how you do business?”

“When it comes to bloody females? There’s only one way to do business, and I’m already being polite. Half the scum in my line of work would kill you. The other half would rape you. But all of them would hold you for ransom... if they were smart of course.” He peered at me. “Though considering it’s you we’re talking about, I doubt any of them would even be able to get it up. So here’s the deal bitch, show me the money and I’ll show you the way in. Deal?”

“No deal.” I said flatly. “Here’s the better deal, you help me get in, and I don’t cut your balls off and make you eat them.”

We stared at each other, neither of us blinking. Then, he put both feet on the ground and leaned back in his chair with a whistle. “Well color me pink and call me a whore, you’re serious aren’t you? Well now, that’s the first time I’ve seen a gal with the look of a killer, though with some of the lady friends I’ve met over the years, I’m surprised it hasn’t happened sooner.”

I blinked at him in surprise. “Whatever. You’re helping me one way or another. There’s not a lot of bits in it if you do, but there’s a fuck ton of hurt if you say no.”

“Why me?” he finally sighed. “First it was a crazy filly that talked to herself and put all my crew in hospital, and now it’s a crazy bitch. Fuck my life. Fine. Whatever. Not like I haven’t lost enough crowns already.”

“A filly? She came through here?” I leaned forward. “What did she want? Did she have someone with her? What was she calling herself?” After a second I added, “And what color was her coat?”

“Light blue? Dark blue? Some shade of blue, I dunno. Jumped me in some back alley, shoved her horn in my face and next thing I knew she thanked me for the information. There was a gryphon with her though.” He rubbed his temples and took a another shot. “Fuck, is this some sort of revenge quest? Those things suck. I suggest you give up on it now, but it does explain the whole crazy vibe you’ve got going.”

“How did she talk?” I asked him. “Was it with thees and thous and sounded like she was from a shitty old play?” I paused. “And do I really have a crazy vibe?”

“Yeah. Thought she was joking around and was hired by a friend as a prank or something. But nope, bat shit insane.” With a sigh he just looked at me flatly before his gaze trailed across the scar on my chest then down to my daggers. Finally, he tapped the corner of his eye and I touched my sunglasses lightly. Right. Who the fuck wears sunglasses at night?

After a moment I took my glasses off. “Yeah, this is some pretty crazy shit you just got dragged into.”

“Don’t know, don’t care. If I tell you the passage in, can you please leave and let me drown in my drink?”

“That’s the idea. You mentioned she had a gryphon with her? What did he look like?”

“Dunno. Kept to the shadows. I’m just glad he managed to convince the crazed bitch to not wipe my memories.” He held up the bottle to me. “Drink?”

I took it from his hands and gave it a sniff. I couldn’t smell any poison in it, but I didn’t take any chances and pushed it back to him. After a moment I pulled out my own bottle of whiskey and took a swig of that.

“Tell me about this passage.” I told him.

“Can you put your glasses back on first?” A shudder passed through him. “Your eyes remind me of that insane filly.”

With a shrug and a smirk I covered my eyes again. I was starting to get used to these things. “Feel better now?” I asked him a bit condescendingly.

“Hey, when you see some little girl slaughter half your crew, you’d be put out as well. Why else do you think I’m in here drinking?” A small sigh escaped his beaks. “Okay, so there’s one entrance into Ashguard, but it’s not pretty.”

I sighed. “It’s a sewer isn’t it?” I took a swig of whiskey. “Fucking typical.”

“It’s worse than that,” he replied with a chuckle. “The sewer is only part of the issue. You see, before they dammed up downstream, the river level was a lot lower than it is now. So you have to go through a submerged tunnel without drowning, come up into the sewer system, and then crawl through shit to get in.”

I frowned at him. “And this is the only way in? You’re not holding out on me, are you?” For added effect, and because I could, I made the shadows from under my sunglasses crawl down my face ever so slightly. “Doesn’t sound like a very good route to me. I don’t imagine a smuggler would make much money moving product through a mess like that.”

“You don’t, that’s why most stay clear of Ashguard whenever possible. Doesn’t help that place is crawling with guards even on the best day,” he replied. “If there is a better route, I don’t know it, and I don’t want to know it.”

I leaned back and let go of the shadows. “Anything else you can tell me about it? No mutant piranha’s or death traps that I need to watch out for?”

“If they exist, I don’t know about them.”

I sighed. “I fucking hate having low intel,” I muttered and stood up. “You said the filly had eyes like mine, but spoke in the plural, right? Saying ‘we’ instead of I, and stuff like that.”

“Yeah...” He looked at me as though I was stupid. “Why? That important?”

I frowned. “It means they’re working together.” I turned to leave, but after a moment I left the bottle of whiskey I’d brought on the table. “For your trouble.”

“Sure it’s not because your husband will kill you?” Fucking morons, always needing to get the last word in.

I turned around, my claw going to my knife. “No, it’s because my marefriend will, shithead.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Come on, take a joke will you?” The way he scooted back in panic was so worth it. After a second of silence, he hesitantly spoke up, “You’re dating a mare? Damn, I hear they’re damn tight, if you know what I mean. Always wanted to hit one up, think you can get me a name?”

I stared at him in disbelief. “You fucking disgust me.”

“Oh well, it was worth a shot.” He went back to his drink. “Don’t ever find me again.”

“I’ll try not to,” I muttered dryly and walked away.

I left the bar and flew back to the inn Trixie was at. Another ten minutes’ flight, and I had to admit, I was feeling pretty good about the fact that apparently I was pretty scary. The way we were gonna have to get into Ashguard was shit, but... I really doubt my chances of finding a better smuggler, especially on short notice.

I wasn’t feeling sleepy, but I wanted to get back and check up on Trixie. Aviana could be a pretty rough town, even in some of the better districts, and given Trixie’s hot-as-fuck female disguise, I’d rather not leave her alone for too long.

I stepped in the inn and found the guy at the counter. “Hey, I’m looking for a female that came through here. Probably really loud and obnoxious, but rocking hot. What room’s she staying in?”

“Oh, her.” The way he grinned made me want to smash his face in. “She mentioned you’d be coming through. Top floor, third door on the right.”

Why did that sound so... ominous? “Thanks,” I told him with a scowl as I made my way upstairs to the room he mentioned. I briefly wondered if I should knock before I shrugged and just knocked anyway. “Trix, I’m back.”

The door opened by itself with a soft creak and I stepped inside. There, on the bed with her rump facing me, was Trixie. She was busy humming a tune as her flank waved in time with the beat. It was a good thing that it wasn’t some random guy who had stumbled in on her. That would not have ended well for her.

“Welcome back,” she smiled over her shoulder at me. “And some gryphon seems to be enjoying the view. At least close the door.”

I closed it behind me and smirked at her. “What are you doing? Other than begging for a screw?”

“Trixie is not begging!” she snapped. “Trixie is reading.”

I walked over and sat on the bed next to her. “What are you reading?” I asked curiously. “And is there any reason you’re reading in that pose?” I waved a claw at her flank waving in the air.

The waving immediately stopped and she glared at me. “Trixie enjoys humming as she reads. As for what she was reading, she was reading the reports.”

“Notice anything I should know about?” I asked her, and started taking off my stuff. All the pouches and knives I had as well as the cloak and sunglasses were now on the floor. Except for my one good knife, which I slipped under my pillow still sheathed. Then I noticed I probably smelled like whiskey. Shit, I hope Trixie doesn’t notice.

To my surprise, she leaned over and kissed me firmly on the beak, slipping her tongue into my mouth as she did so before pulling back. “You’ve been drinking,” she said as she licked her lips. “Did you at least bring back a bottle?”

I blinked in surprise. “No, sorry.” I was expecting her to be more annoyed than that. “I hit up a smuggler, and we have a way into Ashguard but...” I trailed off. “It involves sewers and swimming. And holding your breath.”

“Great.” Trixie threw herself back onto the bed with her limbs spread out in all directions. “Why is Trixie not surprised?”

“I know, right?” I shook my head and sighed. “Why the fuck can’t this shit ever end?”

“Because that’d be too easy.” With a startled meep, I found myself being shoved through one of the doors. “And take a bath. You reek of alcohol.” Pause. “And keep the door open while you do so.”

Standing up, I complained, “I only had one shot...” I trailed off. “And a bit from the bottle, but still. I can’t smell that bad.”

“You were in a bar. You stink.” Another shove. “Now clean yourself up already!”

With a roll of my eyes, I started the hot water and let the tub fill up. After closing the door, despite Trixie asking me to leave it open, I settled into the tub and breathed out a sigh of relief. My shoulder muscles were as cramped as fuck, and the hot water helped me ease the knots of tension in them. After soaking for a bit I started to preen myself, and froze in surprise when I noticed the door was open again.

Trixie leaned against the door with her disguise nowhere in sight. “You forgot this.” A towel hovered in the air beside her and sure, she could have immediately handed it over, but this was Trixie. So she stood there, letting her gaze run over my very wet body. Thanks to the water, my fur and feathers clung to my body revealing the muscles underneath that were very rarely seen. No doubt she was drinking in the sight and- Was she drooling?

“Thank you very much Trixie.” I told her so very dryly. “It’s so damn nice of you to bring me my towel. I really doubt you took it out of the room in the first place just so you could watch me getting wet.” My voice was so flat and dead it made the Changeling Wastes look like a tropical jungle.

“There was only one towel,” she replied happily. “So Trixie had already used it.”

“Well isn’t that nice.” I raised an eyebrow. “I’m not quite done yet, so if you could leave it on the rack that would be great.”

“Alright.” She put it exactly where I wanted before walking out without closing the door.

I rolled my eyes. “You’re a bloody peeping tom, Trix,” I called out to her as I set about preening again.

“Trixie is your marefriend, and with that comes some privileges,” she replied. “And you do realize Trixie can help you with that.”

“I’m fine, thanks,” I said as I kept on preening by myself. “I’ve been cleaning myself for years now, I’m pretty sure I don’t need help.”

“Fine,” she replied with an eye roll. “Trixie will just watch from here then.”

I paused, and glanced over my shoulder. “Trix, do you want to help?”

“Well Trixie has read how it is relaxing and rather pleasurable, but that was in reference to pegasi rather than gryphons.” The smile she gave me was rather sheepish. “Trixie felt it would be a good way for you to relax. You have been rather tense these last couple of days.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh. Good. I was worried that you’d taken tips from my mum or something. That would be weird.”

“Please don’t remind Trixie.” A shudder went through her body. “Your mother...”

“Has no idea where the line is, and no idea how many times she’s crossed it?” I rolled my eyes. “The amount of dates she tried to set me up on was fucking buts. I wasn’t even at breeding age, and she was trying to teach me how to get my husband up.”

At that, Trixie actually gagged. “That is wrong. On so many levels.”

With a shrug of my shoulders, I sighed. “It’s not quite as bad as that. In the Great Scars, females marry after they get their first period. Mum married dad when she was fifteen, so yeah she was starting a bit early with me, but it wasn’t... you know, retardedly early.” After a second I added. “Oh, my dad was thirty by the way.”

“A bit?” Trixie shook her head at that, though her eyes stayed trained on my body. “Way too early.”

A sigh escaped my beak and I leaned back into the water. “Sorry I’ve been so tense lately, it’s just... with Grace and this nightkin thing and... Fuck, you don’t need me to tell you how hard all this shit has been.”

“No, you don’t.” She sighed. “Which is why Trixie offered to help you preen.”

After a moment I shrugged. “Alright, we’ll give it a shot. Not like it can hurt.”

“Really?” She actually sounded surprised and a bit nervous. “A-Are you sure?”

“If you want to do it, I can’t think of a reason to fight it. I mean, who knows? It could be nice. We need things we can do together other than cooking and getting wrapped up in insane shit.”

Laughing, she walked over and knelt down by the tub. “Um... So what does Trixie do?”

I spread a dripping wet wing out in front of her. “Just, straighten the feathers out. Don’t be too rough and wrench any of them, just flatten them out and move them to the right place. I usually use my beak, and I remember Dash used her mouth, but if you want to use your magic then I don’t see why not.”

“Alright...”

Looking far more nervous than she should, I felt her magic run over my wings, sending a shiver through my body. It was like a cool shower or a nice patch of cold air on a hot day. I leaned back into it, letting her handle it for me. It was nice alright. Maybe me and Trixie could do this more-

“Ah, shit!” I cursed and jerked away from her. “Don’t yank them,” I muttered as I looked at her over my shoulder.

“Sorry...” she mumbled as she went back to the light touches from before. I had to admit, this was beyond nice.

The rest of it went off without a hitch, and I stepped out of the tub feeling pretty relaxed. With Trixie watching, I slowly dried off and examined how well she’d preened me. It wasn’t the best work, but... it was nice enough I guess. Maybe if she got better she could do this more often.

“Thanks, Trix,” I told her. “That was great.” I cracked my shoulders again, rising onto my hind legs for a leisurely stretch. Trixie’s eyes immediately ran down my front that was still slightly damp and still clinging to my body. “Maybe we can do that more often.”

“Maybe Trixie will get better at it?” she said, only half paying attention.

I landed back on all fours. “So, you ready for bed?” The bags under her eyes said yes. “You need to sleep while you can. I know the new sleeping cycle’s tearing you a new one.”

“Mmmmhm.” As she climbed into bed, a yawn escaped before she opened her arms at me. “Come on.”

Sitting down next to her, I lay my wing over her and rested my head on the pillow. After a second I sat up again. “Oh, I forgot to mention, but the smuggler I talked to said that he’d seen Luna. She wanted to get into Ashguard and mind raped him for the info. After killing all his gryphons.”

There was no reply. Well, other than a soft snore.

I rolled my eyes. “Good night, Trix.”

The book I was reading fell to the table, and the loud smack it made echoed through the empty halls making Trixie jump and glare at me.

“Sorry,” I mumbled to Trixie as I rubbed the bags under my eyes. “Reading sucks.”

“Why don’t you read up on Slight then?” replied Trixie. “That should be more interesting.”

The book I’d just dropped was ‘Advanced Rune Theory for Dummies’. I hated that name. “Who the fuck writes a book where the title’s giving the reader shit? I might was well write a book called ‘Hey Shit Head, You Suck,’ and fill it with nothing but pictures of a pony sucking dick with the words ‘your face here’ where their head should be.”

Trixie’s face decided to greet her book. Hard. “Just... go read about Slight or something.”

“What?” I frowned at her, feeling annoyed and tired. “The book started it.”

“Of course it did.”

“I’ve got a point, don’t I?” I crossed my arms. “It’s a shit name for a book.”

“Don’t care.” She didn’t even bother glancing in my direction.

“The book’s not even for dummies. That shit makes no sense, I mean, what the fuck is leyline enrichment, and what in Tartarus does that have to do with drawing a symbol in some dead language?”

“Give it here.” The book was ripped from my grasp. “Go find a picture book or something.”

I snorted. “Yeah, well fuck you too. I’m not a unicorn, this shit makes no sense to me.”

“So find a picture book or something on Slight and nightkin,” she growled.

“Fucking Luna. What the hell is this crap she threw in here anyway?” I grabbed a sheet of paper and began scribbling the ritual onto it. “For the life of me I have no goddess damn clue what it did when I used it.”

“Who knows?” said Trixie.

I threw the pencil at the table in disgust and held up the sheet for her to look at it. “I can draw this in my fucking sleep, but I have no clue what it is.” I turned it around and glared at the mess of runes and lines and little annotations mentioning what components went where. “I fucking hate magic. Zebra powders are easy. They at least make sense. Mix this with that, throw it. Done. If you want to get really technical you have to memorize a few words.” I threw the sheet of paper at the table. “But this unicorn shit is so freaking... Argh!” I shouted and it echoed through the library. “Who the fuck is better off with it anyway? Earth ponies get along fine and they can’t even fly.”

“You done?” asked Trixie with a glare.

After returning it to her, I sighed and fell back into the chair. “Yeah. What are you reading anyway?”

“Advanced Ancient Runes for Dummies,” she muttered as she peered at the runes I had drawn. “Some of these look familiar, but they’re odd.”

“A few of them were on the walls of the temple.” I pointed a claw at one that looked a bit like a Y with a vertical and horizontal line through it. “I think it means light.” After pointing at another one, I drew a circle around it. “But when these two are together it has to mean ‘shadow’, or maybe ‘no light’. And when that ‘light’ rune is mixed with this one here, it means life, but then add that not-shadow rune with life and thirty others and I have no fucking clue what you get. And I have no bloody idea what all the lines and circles have to do with anything. I mean, maybe it’s like a sentence or something. Like those lines are little words like ‘and’ or ‘the’ or you know, things like that. ”

“Those lines and circles are directing the flow of magic,” replied Trixie. “It is creating a vortex and channeling the magic inward while these ones are creating a counter current in order to disperse the extra the energy.”

I frowned at it. “Then why do I feel like this whole thing is like... some kind of statement or whatever? I don’t think this is just a math question... I feel like there’s actual meaning here. Like a sentence or something.”

“Perhaps a symbol acting as a channel? It is theoretically possible, but never done before...”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. Half the time I talk out my ass anyway, what the fuck do I know about this unicorn crap?”

“You just said a bunch of crap that was accurate, despite not knowing any of it,” countered Trixie.

“I hate that Luna got in my head. I hate that I ever fucking trusted Nightmare, and I really fucking hate this constant feeling I have of... being completely out of my depth, but the air’s always just a few inches over my head. Like I’m just a stroke away from breaking the surface and everything making sense, but there’s a chain around my leg holding me down. I’ve been feeling like that ever since I got that glimpse at Nightmare’s head, and it’s even worse now.”

“Gilda...” Trixie placed her hoof on my claw. It was clear she wanted to say something, but it was just as clear that she had no idea what she wanted to say.

After a while of just sitting there I stood up. “Whatever. I’m gonna go and read about nightkin. And by that I mean check out cub’s stories.” Walking away, I swished my tail angrily. “If that doesn’t tell you I’m an idiot, I don’t know what does.”

“Wait, Gilda!” I felt her magic wrap around my tail. “Please come back.”

After a moment I turned around and walked back over to her. “What’s up?” I asked.

She immediately pulled me into a hug and after a second of confusion, I returned it. We stayed like that for a moment, until I said in her ear, “Thanks, Trix,” and pulled away.

“I’m sorry I snapped like that...” I looked at Trixie. “I’m just tired and frustrated and...” The sentence trailed off as I ran out of things to say.

So, she decided to give a full blown kiss. I felt myself melting into her arms and lips as it dragged on. Even when it finished, we stood there with her lips touching my beak. It must have been years before we pulled apart.

“Thanks, Trix,” I told her. “I’ll try to tone back the whining.”

Instead of replying, she gave me another kiss, though this time it was a short, sweet one. “Well Trixie is sorry for being so bitchy.”

“We’re both just tired from this new sleep cycle, and frustrated with this goddess damn mess. I mean, we’re both pretty bitchy, so of course we’re gonna fight I guess. It’s no big deal, right?”

“True.” Another kiss. “And Trixie never fulfilled her promise. Remember? From when Trixie wanted to go to White Peak? Perhaps once this is all over, Trixie can finally get around to fulfilling that little wish.”

I smirked at her, before my eyes widened. “Ah shit. My birthday was the day before yesterday. After we left mum’s house. I forgot about it completely.”

“Such a shame.”

“Yeah, you’re right. It doesn’t matter. We’ve been too busy to really do anything about it.”

“Mmhm,” said Trixie as she went back to her notes. “Do you know what this symbol is?”

I glanced over her shoulder. “Which symbol?”

“This one.” She tapped the drawing of three circles overlapping over a rune that looked like two half circles that were back to back with a line through it.

I frowned. “That rune means... ‘mind’ I think, or maybe ‘memories’ or ‘thoughts’. These circles are... I’m not sure. I think they’re saying ‘more’ or... maybe changing the context of the rune. ‘More memories’ maybe?”

“And these?” More circles, but this times with lines through them or alongside them at odd angles.

“Uh...” Crap. Have you ever had that feeling that you should remember something, but it’s just out of your reach? “Shit... I think the rune’s for ‘bond’... or maybe ‘emotional attachment’. The lines and circles make it a specific kind of bond... uh... shit maybe, like sisterhood? Or... family? Adopted family? Shit, I dunno.”

“Could it be romantic?” asked Trixie. “Like lover or something?”

I shifted uncomfortably. “No... this part of the rune’s about... I dunno. I’m thinking it’s the part about being adopted into the night and stuff. See? It’s connected to this part about shadow and daylight... this part over here is about passion and devotion I think.” My claw tapped another piece of the paper.

“Well, the bright side is, it looks like you were right.” She pulled out the sheet with the entire ritual on it. “Those segments were the large bits here and here. I’m still trying to break down the central circles, but it seems like the entire thing is laid out as a massive energy conductor of some kind as well as being symbols.”

After looking at the central circles for a moment I said, “Sorry, I got nothing.” A frown creased my beak. “I get the impression that it’s about... change? Or difference or... I dunno. Just this really vague idea of something being different somehow. I couldn’t say any more than that.”

“Alright. Trixie will continue searching through these books then. Perhaps you should look into mythologies and see what you can dig up about nightkin powers? Slight may be a good starting point.” Trixie sighed as stared at the book before her. “Though you know a lot more about these runes than Trixie.”

“Really?” I asked surprised. “I thought you were like prodigy or something?”

“Was being the key word,” replied Trixie, “And at practical magic, not this theory crap.”

“Oh...” I shuffled awkwardly. “Sorry...”

“It’s fine.” A light peck on the cheek for my worries as well as a small smile. “Don’t worry about it, Trixie got over it a long time ago.”

After a moment I nodded. “Alright then... if you’re sure you’re okay here.” I stood up and walked away.

“Just come back soon,” she called after me.

The library was pretty big. Well... big for a gryphon library. This was the Kingdom we’re talking about. This place had nothing on the one in Canterlot. I poked my head in there once out of curiosity, and the sight of so many freaking books bored me so much that I just walked out.

As I walked through the building, I realized that I had no clue how to navigate this place. Where would I find books about Slight? After a moment I shrugged and made my way to the front desk and asked the librarian.

“Slight?” She asked over her nerdy glasses. “Aren’t you a bit old for-”

“Just tell me where the books are.” I growled and leaned in towards her.

She swallowed and backed away. “In the nonfiction section. Under tribal lore. We have the complete Great Scar’s Last Shadow in the Day, and the Equestrian Curse of the Everfree.”

“Thanks.” And with that, I made my way to the area she recommended. Even with her directions, it took me ages to find the books. I’m not an egghead. What do you want from me? I picked up both versions and made my way back to Trixie.

When I found her she was poring over the books and scribbles I’d left her with. I sat down and flipped through The Last Shadow.

“Heh.” I smirked. “I love these old tribal legends. I mean, listen to this shit: ‘From the death of her goddess, she was forged. A final tribulation for all of equinity as punishment for defying their god. Song of Night, blessed of the dark and chosen vassal of Nightmare Moon. Slight.’” I smiled at Trixie for a moment before I frowned as I noticed something. “Oh, wait... that’s just the inside blurb.”

“Yes, well, perhaps you should start reading the actual thing?”

“Whatever, I’ve read the whole thing before anyway. Or... you know, skimmed it at least.” I flipped the book open till I came to a pretty cool picture of Slight standing on a pile of corpses. “Hey, this one has pictures done by some comic book artist.” I smiled over at Trixie.

“That’s great,” replied Trixie. “See if you can find the sections where she did magic and see if you can replicate it.”

I rolled my eyes. Stupid Trixie, getting between me and my nostalgia. We settled into silence for a while as I flipped through, trying to find the sections where Slight used magic, but there weren’t many. There was one pretty cool one about her melting into shadow and forging blades of darkness with her mind.

I shrugged before I put the book down and tried to make a sword of shadows. Or a knife or whatever. It took me a few tries before I realized the room was too bright for me to really make the shadows crawl out of their hiding places. So I stood up and drew the curtains shut, casting our table in deeper darkness.

Trixie glanced up at me, then around before she summoned a light and plopped it onto the table and kept on reading.

With more shadows to work with, I pulled them towards me and shaped them into something. After a moment I had a vaguely knife shaped spike, and I ran it over my claw. It didn’t draw blood at all, just mushed itself against my talons. I tried sharpening it and hardening it, but the blade wasn’t solid enough to cut anything.

I sighed and let it dissolve again. I’d made those manacles for Trixie, right? How did I do that? Those had to be solid, or they wouldn’t have shattered. I glanced over at Trixie, before I willed the shadows into wrapping themselves around her hooves, but I knew they weren’t solid enough to bind her. Just sticky and cold feeling.

“Trixie hopes that’s you, otherwise Trixie is about to blast the offender into the moon.” Was it just me, or did she sound bored?

“Sorry,” I muttered and let the shadows go again. “This magic sucks. There’s this energy in the shade, but it’s all... soft? I mean, if I could like, concentrate it or maybe purify it... Get the energy away from the shadows or something...”

“Hm... concentration you say?” The book slammed shut. “Trixie doubts meditation would work for you, so let’s try anger.”

I stared at her for a moment. “What? Are you just gonna try to get me pissed off then?” My mind went back to White Peak. Back to how I’d killed so damn many brain deads, how I’d gotten obsessed with punishing them and determined to find the thing that would kill me. “Maybe that’s not the best idea.” I tapped a claw against the table. “I can do some pretty stupid shit when I’m angry.”

“Well you need to focus in some manner or form. Fear?” She shook her head. “Anger is still the easiest so-”

Trixie vanished with a dark blue pop and I was immediately on my feet. I’d know that aura color anywhere. Where in the fucking world was that bitch! Spinning around, my eyes narrowed at Nightmare Moon as she stood there with that cocky grin as a bound Trixie lay at her feet. With a snarl, I dived for her and she disappeared with a pop.

“Get the fuck out here Nightmare!” I shouted as I flapped my wings to get a view over the bookcases.

“Why? Did you miss me?” A voice purred in my ear.

I spun around and slashed at air, then I noticed her grinning at me from the top of a book case. I snarled, and I felt the shadow magic wrap around her neck in a thick chain and yank her towards me.

Or it would’ve if it didn’t pass right through her.

I stared at that in surprise, before my mind ticked it over. “An illusion,” I snarled as I turned around looking for the real Nightmare. With my new magic, I looked over the library and spotted the little shimmer of magical invisibility, and the real shadow of a pony.

Shackles wrapped around her hooves and I dived for her with my knives drawn. I tackled Nightmare to the ground, but passed straight through her again. Snarling, I climbed to my feet just as a book hit my shoulder.

I swirled around, and spotted her watching me, that goddess damned smirk still on her face. I wasn’t diving for another illusion, so without thinking, I made a solid chunk of shadow in my claw and threw that at her. When it passed through her face I didn’t waste any more time before I looked around for the real Nightmare.

“See? Anger.” I spun around and came face to face with Trixie. “And you dared to doubt the Great and Powerful Trixie.”

I stared at her in surprise for a moment, before I tackled her to the ground and came up sheltering her protectively. I glared around the room, looking for Nightmare with my body between Trixie and any potential attacks.

“Gilda! Calm down, it was an illusion I made. Nightmare Moon is not actually here.”

I stared down at her in surprise, before I hopped off of her. “Fuck you, Trix.” I muttered angrily. “I thought she was gonna kill you.”

“Sorry...” She dusted off her cloak and hat. “But it proved a point. Anger.”

“I can’t just get pissed off every time I want to use this shit!” I snapped at her. “You could get hurt.”

“You’d never hurt me,” she replied. “But it will have to do until we can find time to work on your concentration.”

I glared at her. “I’m not okay with that. I really fucking thought Nightmare was here.”

“Sorry, but it was the only thing Trixie could think of that’d make you angry enough.”

I frowned at her, before I held out my palm and tried to make that sword again. There wasn’t enough energy left in the shadows for that, but I did pull together a knife. I think I figured it out. I had to draw the shadows into me, and filter the energy out of it, before I directed the energy into the shape I wanted.

I squeezed the handle in annoyance, and the knife shattered in my grip. The fragments of it crumbled to the ground like chunks of charcoal, and dissolved in a black haze after another moment.

“Well that was a whole lot of work for fucking nothing. That thing’s as brittle as glass.” I muttered in disgust. “Who could fight with a sword made of that?”

“We’ll figure something else. See what else is in there.”

I was still pissed off with her as we made our way back to our desks. I sat and started flipping through the book before I got annoyed with the lack of magic.

“This is crap.” I threw it to the table. “It barely talks about her magic. Most of it’s about her skill and defiance and determination and shit like that. Gryphons don’t give a fuck about magic. Even if she could move the fucking moon, they’d only care about how she could handle herself with just her hooves.”

“Typical,” sighed Trixie. “Anything you remember from memory then? Maybe look in some book o mythical creatures and see if nightkin comes up?”

After a second I shrugged. “I still haven’t read ‘Curse of the Everfree’. Maybe that one will be better.” I frowned. “Goddesses know that I couldn’t sit through some mythology book about cub’s shit like, draconequus and crystal ponies.”

“Alright.” She wasn’t even listening anymore.

After frowning at her, I sighed and picked up the piddly little pony fairy tale. No way in Tartarus was a pony legend gonna be anything other than some thinly disguised message about friendship and being nice.

I flipped open the cover, and skipped the blurb. On the table of contents, rather than finding a list of chapters and sections, there was a selection of different stories.

“Hey, Trix. What’s with this story? There aren’t any chapter numbers.”

Without looking up she said, “‘The Curse of the Everfree’ isn’t just one story. It’s a variety of different tales ranging from horror to tragedy, even to a black comedy about the ponies that dealt with Slight.” She glanced over at me. “The main tale in Curse of the Everfree is just the three largest stories that occur in chronological order about her conception, her attack on Celestia, and her eventual death. They make up about two fifths of the whole collection.”

“Oh...” I replied and blinked in surprise. “How do you know that?”

“Everypony who paid attention in history class knows that,” replied Trixie as she continued writing.

“Oh...” I looked at the book in my hand. “This was junior school, right? I don’t remember that from high school.”

“No, that was from kindergarten.”

I nodded, glad I had an excuse not to know that. “Well I didn’t go to Equestrian kindergarten.”

With a groan, she slammed her face against the book multiple times. “That was sarcasm.”

“...Oh.” After a moment I sighed. “Yeah, well my job was never to be smart, it was just cut shit. It’s not my fault I got straight D’s.”

“Well at least you went to high school,” replied Trixie. “Everything Trixie knows is self-taught.”

“Really?” I asked her in shock. “But... don’t you know a ton of stuff about magic? You never had anyone show you how to do it?”

“Ha! Beyond the basics, Trixie is running blind. Apart from illusions of course, considering that’s her specialty.”

“Oh... right.” The conversation died as she went back to reading, and I flipped through the pages of the book.

I eventually settled on a chapter called, ‘The End of Iron’. It was... not what I was expecting. The whole thing was about a brave and noble warrior of Celestia. his wife was killed by Curse, and so he set out to avenge her. Over the course of the story, he became increasingly obsessed with finding Curse and killing her, and she continually mocked him, staying just out of his reach. By the end, he’d given up everything he had and forsaken all his vows to find her. He wasn’t there for his son’s first birthday and his colt was forced into an orphanage. His friends had all turned their back on him because of how much he’d made them sacrifice in the name of a dead mare, and he’d abandoned his soldiers to the battlefield. The last scene was the final fight between him and Slight as she told him he should have just gone home. That by chasing after her for so long, he’d lost more than just his wife, but everything he ever held dear too. Then she killed him. Suddenly and violently, with a sadistic grin.

“Well that was dark,” I muttered as I dropped the book on the table. “Shit, is that how you ponies really look at Slight?”

“Pretty much.”

I frowned at the book on the table. “In this she’s like the Boogie Mare or Slender Mane or something.” Slowly I picked it up again. “This makes her out to be nothing but a sadistic monster, pretty much just Nightmare Moon at a smaller scale.”

“Pretty much. Nightmare Moon is scary and evil, you realize.”

“Yeah, but Slight wasn’t evil,” I muttered. “She was the chosen of Nightmare. The last believer in a dead cause, fighting to the last breath against the empire that had destroyed everything she believed in.” The book cracked open again and I found a different page. “She wasn’t some creepy monster that made a guy lose everything before killing him.”

“And yet that’s exactly what happened. Secondly, she was chosen by Nightmare Moon. Thirdly, Nightmare Moon would have killed everypony. Fourthly... actually, I can’t think of anything, but I’m sure there’s something there.”

“He hunted her. He had every chance to back out, and she didn’t lure him across the face of Equestria just to fuck with him. Not her fault he couldn’t forget a grudge.” I settled on a new story called ‘the Protectors of Corn’. “You ponies are looking at her all wrong.”

“Perhaps you’re looking at her wrong,” snapped Trixie.

I glanced at her before I started reading again. This one was... different. It was an odd comedy about some Celestian royal guards, who were ordered to escort a corn shipment from the farmlands to New Canterlot. On the way, they continually saw Curse, and made delays to track and kill her every time they did, inevitably resulting in the death of a guard. The Captain of the Guard, a pony who had ‘paint for blood’, whatever that meant, never learned from his mistakes and kept sending more guards to their death trying to kill Curse. He wasn’t afraid of her, and he refused to let her escape him.

After months of delays and redirections, only two guards were left: the captain, and a cloaked mare. The captain finally decided to give up on killing Curse and just delivered the corn to Canterlot. They arrived, but discovered the corn had rotten because of their delays, and the Captain was executed for letting so many ponies starve just so he could chase a fairy tale. By trying to kill her to prevent her from killing others, he’d ensured the deaths of countless innocents by starvation. His blind nobility was what killed him in the end, and the punchline was that the hooded mare had been Curse in disguise the entire time.

‘I thank you for your stupidity.’ She grinned as she danced on his gallows. ‘For without your strong heart and weak mind, I would never have ended so many.’

“Okay, this shit is retarded,” I muttered and slammed the book shut. “You ponies have it all wrong. This is all a load of crap. It doesn’t even mention her companions like Annibal or The Twins.”

“Whatever,” replied Trixie.

“This isn’t even the same character.” I growled angrily. “This is supposed to be the classic hero's journey, you know? She leads a fairly normal life, then some shit goes wrong and she gets the tools she needs to go and avenge her god. It’s the exact same formula of any gryphon legend but about a female instead of a guy for once.”

Trixie’s face decided to greet the table this time. “That is real life, not a work of fiction.”

“This is fucking fiction!” I snapped. “The ‘pony with paint for blood’? The fuck is that, his anatomy?! She danced on his gallows?! How would she even do that?! This is a bloody poetic piece of shit horror story bundle, not what actually happened.”

“You mean, it does not match up to the story you were told. Both were probably works of fiction.”

“Nightkin are supposed to be fucking fiction!” I snatched off my sunglasses and glared at her. “The bloody runes were less frustrating than this!”

“Trixie knows this.” She levitated my glasses back into place. “Just keep an open mind, alright?”

“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered at her and opened it again. “At least this one actually talks about her magic.”

“That’s good.” A frown appeared and she shoved a drawing of some overlapping triangles at me. “What does this say?”

I gave it a glance. “Blood of the Moon,” before I turned back to the book.

“Overdramatic as per usual,” sighed Trixie. “Do you know if we read it left to right?”

After a second look I shrugged. “No clue... Uh... I think it’s center outwards... maybe?”

“Ah, that would explain it.” Mad scribbling followed.

I started to read again, but I couldn’t even finish the story about the lord who was driven insane by Curse killing one of his servants every night for a month. Still, at least it mentioned her using brittle shadows to make a man choke to death, or how she stepped through one shadow and into another. Apparently, direct sunlight made her powers weakest.

Another story talked about a pony on the run from her, as she hunted him all the way from New Canterlot to the Everfree. That one was alright. He’d stolen something of hers, and it painted her more as an unstoppable badass than some unspeakable horror. I still didn’t like it, but it mentioned that as Curse got more tired from using shadow magic, black smoke leaked from her eyes and with her breath. Guess that means overusing shadow magic can be dangerous.

Another mentioned when wearing a cloak, she could use the shadows in it even when in direct sunlight. Kind of like a little battery of magic she walked around with.

I plucked at my cloak. “Well that gives me ideas,” I said aloud. After a moment I felt into the shadows of my cloak and realized yeah, I could use them. In fact, they felt a little more potent than the other shadows in the room. Maybe it’s because it was my shadow or something.

With a frown of effort, I used magic to slide the blades from my sheaths, up through my sleeves and into my claw. It was slow though, so I might as well just draw them normally.

I glanced at the book before I closed it and put it on the table. “Maybe we should take this with us. I can’t read it all in one day, and it has been kinda helpful.”

“That would be for the best.” Trixie leaned back in her chair and rubbed her eyes. “So far Trixie has some information, but it keeps using stupid, melodramatic terms for everything so it’s hard to figure out what it’s saying specifically.”

“Maybe I can help?” I offered.

“Sure.” She tossed her stack of notes at me. “From what Trixie can gather, the shapes are channeling magic inwards. It keeps referring to the ‘Moon’ and a ‘Mistress’, which Trixie assumes is Luna or Nightmare Moon. ‘Blood of the Moon’ is more than likely the use of Luna’s blood in the ritual. The rest though, is gibberish. Like ‘Tears of the Moon’ for example.”

After looking at it I said, “I think Blood of the Moon has a double meaning. Not just Luna’s blood, but also like a family. Like... bloodline of the moon or something like that. ‘Tears of the Moon’?” I frowned at the sheets as I leafed through them. “Could that be moonflower nectar? And... someone she lost maybe?” There was an itch in my brain, just like there always was when I was thinking about this stuff. Like... there was just this little piece of the puzzle I needed and couldn’t ever have.

“Hm... well Nightmare called them nightkin did she not? So perhaps family does make sense. There’s a line here about hearing the ‘Voice of the Night’ which is different from this version of the ritual you drew. In this one, it talks about the ‘Eternal Silence’ instead. Perhaps that’s the total obedience line?”

A shiver rolled down my spine. “Fucking Nightmare.”

“If you want, Trixie can figure this out on her own...” She nuzzled my neck tenderly. “Trixie doesn’t want to bring up bad memories for you...”

“It’s fine.” I told her and patted her back. “I need to get over this some time, right?”

“But Trixie doesn’t want to force you into something you’re not ready for.”

“Ah, you know me. I’m never ready for anything. Don’t worry about it.” The smile I gave her was pretty desperate and felt dead on my face.

“Gilda...” I pressed my cheek into her caress. “You’re not fooling anypony. You don’t have to put on a tough act for Trixie.”

A sigh escaped my beak. “Yeah, I know, but... shit, it’s automatic, you know? And I have to save Grace, so whether I’m okay with this or not means shit all.”

“Listen, I can finish up in an hour or so without your help. Why don’t you go fetch some lunch for us and if you’re still feeling up to it, you can help out once you get back?”

“Thanks Trix,” I leaned back over to look at the drawings. “But let’s just get this done.”

“Very well.” Three pages worth of scribbles were passed over to me. “See if any of those are actually symbols that mean anything. Trixie’s been trying to pull apart the large magic channels to see if they are runes or not.”

I leafed through the sheets and wrote down the three that were. “Shadow.” I put one down. “Change.” Another went on the table. “And... I think this one means magic... but in this context it means a particular kind of magic. Maybe this is the part of it where normal magic gets changed into shadow magic?”

“Of course! Yes, that makes total sense, she’s channeling her magic into you. Though how that works or what it does is something Trixie has no idea about.”

“See,” I nudged her. “With my help we can get it done quicker.”

“Trixie never said we couldn’t.” She gave a playful nudge back. “Well, that seems to be it. The rest Trixie can do back at the inn.”

“Alright, let’s grab these books and go.”

We grabbed our notes and scribbles and bundled them up. Trixie slid those under her cloak while I stacked the books we’d been reading from. I thought about putting them back, but screw it, that’s the librarian’s problem. On the way out, the librarian looked at us like we were crazy, but whatever. I noticed that she noticed the book I was taking with me, but after a look at my knives, she left it alone.

Smart girl.

When we were back on the street outside I nudged Trixie. “Shit, we forgot your disguise. You’re still a unicorn.”

“Great,” muttered Trixie. “I need somewhere private to change so they don’t know it’s me.”

With a glance around, I spotted an alley that I knew would lead onto the street the inn was on. After checking around, I led Trixie down it and kept an eye out for trouble as she worked her magic.

“Done?” I asked her as the tell-tale sound of magic died.

“Yep.” Once more with that super-hot disguise. I swear she uses that one on purpose.

After a moment I realized that it had changed since I last saw it. “Trixie, did you make your crown feathers a little bigger?”

“Nope. Why?” she batted her eyelashes innocently.

I frowned at her. “You did, didn’t you?” I groaned in exasperation. “Come on Trixie! It’s a disguise, damn it. The idea is to not stand out.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just... Ah, fucking forget it. Let’s go already.” I muttered as we walked to the other end of the alley.

“O...kay...?” was Trixie’s uncertain reply, and that just annoyed me more.

“Don’t pretend you don’t know what you’re doing,” I muttered as I glared murder at the bouncer who watched Trixie with a smirk. Not that he noticed, because I was wearing sunglasses, and next to Trixie, I was practically invisible.

“Trixie doesn’t know though! Your mother just told Trixie to have larger crown feathers!”

I sighed as another male practically tripped over himself staring at her flank. Fuck, she wasn’t even doing anything and he was bloody drooling. I fucking dare the asshole to try something.

“Well, big crown feathers are... just tone them down a bit next time? Please. My mum was... wrong when she told you to have them.”

“Alright...” Though she looked at me quizzically, she didn’t push the subject any further.

“Fuck me dead...” I muttered as we walked by a guard. “That guy practically has rape written on his face.” I pointed him out to Trixie. “Bloody Celestia, could they at least try to be subtle about it?”

“Oh...” Her eyes widened and she shrunk back to stand behind me. “Next time Trixie sees your mother, you cannot hold Trixie responsible for any bodily harm she inflicts.”

“My point exactly,” I growled. “She has no fucking idea when it’s too far. It’s bloody retarded how hyper sexual she is. It’s a bloody miracle that Grace looked like her, and I looked like dad.” I shuddered. “Ugh, imagine what I’d be like if I was even a little pretty, let alone looking like her. I’d be even more... ‘feminine’ than she is.”

“Trixie doubts that.”

“Why?” I asked her as the inn finally came into sight.

“You? Feminine? Don’t make Trixie laugh.”

I snorted. “Fair enough. And she wonders why we never got along very well.” We passed through the door, and the bouncer eyed Trixie up. I fought the urge to punch him as we walked up the stairs.

“And you are certain it had nothing to do with your loud mouth, rude language and lack of tact?” she asked as we walked into our room.

“Well... those might not have helped, but it wasn’t just my fault,” I said defensively. “I wasn’t always a bitch.”

“Trixie never said it was a bad thing.” She flopped onto the bed and looked up at me with half-lidded eyes. “So... on a scale of one to ten, just how hot is Trixie in her disguise?”

I rolled my eyes. “With one being me, and ten being Grace, twelve.”

The disguise flickered away, leaving behind the blue unicorn I was so familiar with. “And now?”

“Need a new scale.” I smirked at her. “The old one’s broken.”

Trixie laughed at that and patted the spot next to her on the bed. “Good reply.”

“No, I was talking about the scale in the bathroom.” I grinned at her viciously even as I ducked under the flying book. “Seriously, lay off the cake a bit, Trix.”

Like a drop of a hat, a sly grin appeared as she slipped off the bed. “So does this mean Trixie has to exercise more?” On all fours, she began doing pushups with her flank towards me and her tail raised ever so slightly.

“You’re a bloody cheat.” That was the default response, but my heart wasn’t in it as I watched.

Her rump wiggled at me even as she grinned back at me. With a bit of magic, her cape drifted off her body and I swallowed air as I watched it trail along her back and slowly over her head. Once more with that wiggle and tail sway.

“Enjoying the show?” she asked with a smirk.

“Uh...” Gotta be smooth me. Real smooth. “...Yeah.” That’s it Gilda, play it like a pro. “Awesome.” Nailed it!

Trixie laughed, but kept on doing pushups, though after a couple of minutes, the teasing stopped as she concentrated on the actual exercise. Her breathing came in short gasps, her limbs trembled, and I wish her lack of teasing actually made it easier for me, but that’d be a lie. That hot body with sweat? Damn, I really hope I wasn’t drooling.

“Maybe we should exercise together more often...” I stared at her some more. “You know, because it’d help balance out the cooking.” Yeah, cause that’s the reason I was thinking of.

“Of course.” The knowing look she gave me made me flush bright red, like a filly with a crush or something. Before I could think of reply, she stood back up and made her way to the bathroom. “Regardless, Trixie is in need of a shower.” Not bothering to close the door, she leaned over the bathtub and began filling it with hot water.

I stared. Yeah, what of it? That flank was staring at me first. And then she began humming and with the humming came that bouncing. Was she doing it on purpose, like, to punish me or something?

“Need... help...? In there?” I swallowed and avoided her gaze as she looked back at me. Fucking damn it, what’s wrong with me? “I mean... if you need it.”

Instead of replying, she slipped into the bath with a happy sigh. She vanished from sight as she slipped under the water, and when she came up, she was wet from head to tail. I stared open beaked, and it took all my willpower not to rush in there and dive in with her.

“Good goddess, Trix! Close the door or call me in already!” I shouted after she did a wet mane flick in my direction.

She looked back at me with a smile. “Fine. Get in here and help wash Trixie’s back. Oh, and a massage would be wonderful.” She paused for a second before adding, “And if you can have lunch ready for when Trixie comes out, that’d be even better.”

I froze. “You’re mean.” I said flatly.

“Well?” she asked flatly. “You going to wash Trixie’s back or not?”

I walked in and sat down behind her. I took up the brush and began to work at her back. It wasn’t exactly exciting, but it was enjoyable. And as aroused and frustrated as I was, massaging her back was... kinda really fucking awesome.

Without thinking about it I said, “You’re in damn good shape.” My fingers were starting to feel the effort of kneading her muscles like that. “I mean... uh...” I swallowed.

She tilted her head back and looked at me upside down. With both hooves wrapped around my neck she drew me down for a sloppy, messy kiss that I was all too happy to return. “You don’t look half bad either handsome.”

We kissed again. All I could think was:

Fuck... Yes...

When we broke it off, she smirked at me evilly. “So... want to get Trixie that lunch?”

I blinked at her in surprise. “But... massage and... stuff...” After a second I added, “Sex!”

For the first time in my life, I felt an icy glare directed at me. “Trixie thought you said sex wasn’t an integral part of the relationship.”

“... No it’s not, but... I thought that...” Abort! Abort! Get out of there! “Uh... want a sandwich?”

She grabbed me and pulled down into the bath with her. Water splashed everywhere, I swallowed some, but I didn’t care because her lips were wrapped around mine and her tongue was in my mouth. A small groan escaped as I returned it hungrily and after a minute or an hour, we pulled apart.

I stared at her panting, till I said the first thing I could think of. “No sandwich?”

She stared at me. I stared at her. Then she groaned and bashed her head against the wall.

“I mean uh... awesome? Wanna keep going?” I grinned eagerly.

A death glare was directed at me. “Out. Now.”

I slunk out of the room ashamedly, the mood ruined.

“Stupid fucking moron!” I cursed myself as the door slammed shut behind me. “Why the fuck would you mention a sandwich?! ARGH!” I cursed and smashed my head against a desk. “Fuck! Ow!” Rubbing my head, I glared at the newly cracked desk. “STUPID! Come on Gilda! Words are not that fucking hard!”

With a sigh I made my way downstairs to get Trixie her bloody lunch.

Well, not ‘bloody’ lunch because she was a pony. Oh... yeah, that made me realize ponies don’t like to eat meat, so if I got Trixie lunch from here, she wouldn’t thank me.

“Fucking damn it!” I cursed again and one of the bars patrons blanched away from me in surprise. “‘No sandwich’? GAH!”

I sat at a table and glared at the meals coming in and out of the kitchen. Rabbit, venison, pork, nothing good for a pony. If I wanted to get a nice meal for Trixie, I’d have to make it myself.

I stepped past a pretty waitress who seemed surprised that I was going in the kitchen. Inside, I found a fat chef and a ton of kitchen hands. I got a few glares, but I ignored those as I walked up to the fridge and opened it.

I was surprised to see that there were actually a few vegetables in there, but nothing substantial enough to make a meal with.

“You cannot be back here!” The chef shouted behind me. “Get out of my kitchen!”

I ignored him as I stepped out of the kitchen. I checked my pockets and found a couple of bits. Good. Enough to buy something.

A quick flight to the markets later, fast enough to make Dash jealous, and I was on my way back to the inn with a few heads of lettuce and other pony foods for Trixie. The stallion at the stall had given me strange looks, but he seemed honest to me as he recommended different products.

When I got back I walked into the kitchen and laid out the various foods and ingredients I had. With a cutting board and a knife, I set about slicing it all up carefully. A few of the maids gave me funny looks, but no one really bothered me. When it was all ready, I set it in the bowl for a nice salad, and started to make a nice tangy dressing for Trixie. Something with a slightly sour bite. I know that’s how she likes to make it for herself.

“Get out!” The chef shouted at me, and I ignored him as I rubbed my talons clean on his apron. With a snarl, he poked me between the shoulder blades. “You hear me, female?! Out!”

I ignored him and grabbed some of the fruits I’d bought. Those I squeezed and juiced for a smoothie. I grabbed some of the kitchen’s sugar to mix in for sweetness, and the chef practically exploded with rage.

He swung his spoon at me like a sword- Actually no, that gave too much credit to his stance- Whatever, he tried to hit me with a spoon. A moment later, I was using that spoon to stir while he was lying on the ground and groaning. Pussy. He was just winded.

I took one of their serving trays, and left with Trixie’s lunch, while all the maids all crowded around the chef. I made my way back up the stairs just as the guy that owned the place poked a concerned head through the kitchen door.

In our room, I found Trixie on the bed poring over her notes once more. She didn’t even look up at me when I entered the room.

I sat the tray on the end of her bed, and quietly sat down in the corner, watching for her reaction. She’d like a salad and a smoothie right? I mean, I guess it’s more of a summer meal, but... shit I made her a summer meal in autumn. How fucking dumb am I?

With a small push, I nudged it just a bit closer, and with an innocent opening of my wings, I fanned the scent of the meal over to her. Her nose gave a little twitch as her head began moving to the right only for it to snap back to the notes. I stretched my wings again and once more her head turned towards her lunch. After another minute, she grasped the smoothie in her magic and began sipping from it, though she still didn’t pay any attention to me.

I only watched as the cup slowly drained. One small sip after another, barely a conscious decision made, the line of juice gently receded, and she went for a final sip, only to frown when there was none to be had. It was only then that she realized what she had done and with a huff, she returned to her notes as though nothing had happened.

I frowned at her. Damn it, why’d she have to be so stubborn? I’m just an idiot; I wasn’t actually trying to tick her off. I lightly shifted and with my wing pulled the salad closer to me. Using the chef’s spoon I tossed it again, and mixed the dressing in. The sweet, slightly sour lemon lime scent filled the air, and I placed the tray in front of her again. Come on... eat it. You know you want to.

All it took was a second’s hesitation for her will to crumble. Whether she knew it or not, she began eating the salad, humming a happy tune as she went while she made notes on her paper. Within the minute, it was completely gone and she still hadn’t said a word, but she looked happier at least. I glanced over at her, then at the empty tray of food, and made my decision. Shuffling closer, I gently laid a wing over her torso. Trixie tensed up, but considering I didn’t find myself thrown into a wall, I’d say I was safe. After a couple more seconds, she finally relaxed, but the usual snuggling didn’t happen.

“Made any more progress?” I asked after the silence got unbearable. There was no fucking way I was gonna bring up what happened.

“Enough,” came the terse reply.

Fuck, what’s with this silence? “...Anything I can help with?”

“Nope.”

“...Want me to go?” I offered after a moment.

That caused her to pause. As the silence stretched on, I decided to just get out of there and give her some room alone. But as soon as I moved, she grabbed my claw, looking up at me with those big eyes of her. “No.”

“Alright,” I lay back down next to her confused. After another moment of silence I added, “Sorry.”

“You’re forgiven.” Well it didn’t sound like it.

“Okay?” She wasn’t making any sense. Mares are crazy. “Want me to shut up?”

“Nope.”

“...” I fucking hate awkward silence. “So... what do you want then?”

“A date.”

It took me a few moment to get that stupid look off my face. “Huh?” Greeeaaaaat! There I go with the smooth talking again. “I mean... what?” Just... damnit, me.

“You heard me, a date.”

“...A date?” I repeated dumbly.

“Yes. You have heard of a date before right?” That glare of hers was becoming too familiar for my liking.

“But... where? When?” I asked in complete befuddlement. Wait... that’s a word right?. Whatever! My head was tripping!

“Tomorrow night,” she replied. “Trixie expects it to be romantic, and suitably awesome for a mare with the title ‘The Great and Powerful’, got that?”

I nodded. “Yes Ma’am.” After a second I blinked. “But... what about Grace and Ashguard?” The moment I said that, I wanted to punch me.

“That’s tonight.” She grinned impishly up at me. “We need something to fight for don’t we?”

Again I looked completely fucking stupid for a moment. “We’re going to Ashguard tonight?”

“The longer we wait, the worse the situation becomes,” she replied. “So yes, we’re going tonight.”

“Makes sense...” I frowned. “But what if one of us dies tonight?” I winced the moment I was finished. “Sorry, shit, sorry. Forget that I said that.”

“Well if one of us dies, you’ll never get to tap this.” She gestured at herself. “Plus, you’re talking to the Great and Powerful Trixie! She’ll just drag your sorry ass back from Tartarus itself if that happens.”

A dumb blink later. “Where do you want to go then?” I paused and added. “You know, for the date.”

“That’s not how it works.” She licked my cheek playfully. “You decide. Just make sure it’s suitable for a mare of my status.”

“But we have like...forty bits to our name at best.” After a moment’s thought I said. “I suppose I could do a drug run for quick cash.”

“Gilda...” she warned.

For some reason Celestia only knows, I didn’t listen. “Or a hit job.”

Trixie’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

“Or I could rob a store.”

The temperature in the room began dropping.

I could never explain to anyone why I didn’t shut the fuck up right then. “Or I could just break us into someplace nice.”

There was a flash of blue and I suddenly found myself outside the room with the door slamming shut in my face. I went to open it, but a weird glow appeared over the entire thing and before my claw even got within an inch of the door handle, electricity zapped me, knocking me backwards.

After patting down my smoking feathers, I sighed and made my way downstairs. “Damn it, me. Just... fucking damn it. Heck, you don’t even have a couch to sleep on, you dumb bitch.” I glared outside at the sun. “What the fuck is wrong with me?”

I found my way to a corner booth and bought a mug of beer so they’d leave me alone. Then, with my head resting against the table, I closed my eyes and tried to get some sleep.

“Fucking moron,” was the last thing I said to myself.

Chapter 19

My head broke the surface of the water and I gasped in a deep breath of air. I didn’t notice the smell for a few breaths, but the moment I was done sucking air into my lungs, I barely stopped myself from throwing up straight into the water around me. With shuddering breaths, I slowly stroked over to the edge of the pool and pulled myself up onto shore.

The rope tied around my leg went slack, and after a moment I coiled it taut and gave it three tugs, letting Trixie know I made it. After that I just lay on my back and tried to forget the awful smell of shit and who knows what else while I panted for air through my mouth. Not that that helped, instead I now had the taste of this fucking nasty mess on my tongue.

A heard a gasp of air about a minute later as Trixie broke the surface to. Her mane did not look sexy when wet as the fetid shit and piss water dripped from it. I tightened the rope and began to draw Trixie towards the side of the tunnel where she’d have solid ground.

She gagged and vomited after a moment, I patted her back as she cleared her throat of bile.

“Trixie is never, doing that again,” she ordered firmly once she had her composure back.

A weak grin found its way onto my face. “Aww come on, Trix. This is what espionage is all about.”

“Trixie is still never doing this again,” she replied. “Trixie’s filthy!”

“Yeah, that’s what I said my first time too, now look at where I am.” I glanced around the tunnel. “Shit, look at this place.”

“Don’t care,” she replied as she looked around. “This area should be large enough.”

“Large enough for what?” I looked over my shoulder at her.

“For the ritual of course.” Grabbing the ropes she had with her, she pulled out a bag from the water behind us and began pulling out a variety of vials. “The transformation ritual requires Luna’s blood, but the obedience section drawn by Nightmare uses the blood of whomever the beings are tied too. Trixie was hoping she could substitute it with her own blood.”

“So, the ritual we’re casting is for a mind shield, right? To keep the changelings out?” A drip of water from behind me made me glance over my shoulder nervously, but there was nothing there.

“Nope.” She sounded far too cheerful. “It’s a modified ritual designed to help identify locations of changelings, and hopefully to take control of them.”

I frowned at her. “Isn’t that heaps risky? And shouldn’t you have told me that was your plan before we got here?”

“Probably.” Instead of actually listening though, she just began pulling out her notes “But Trixie knew you’d protest. Now give Trixie some of your blood please.”

“Well isn’t that fucking nice. ‘Trixie knows you wouldn’t like it, but whatever, now give her your blood anyway, bitch.’ Nice. Real smooth, Trix.” After a moment I sighed. “Why do you need my blood anyway? I thought we were using yours.”

“Trixie believes that since you’ve already had both rituals done on you, you will have an immunity to any mind reading.”

I just stared at her. “Trix, I know nothing about magic, but even to me that sounds like bullshit.”

“Yeah, well... um...” The unicorn sighed and slumped. “I don’t know alright?”

After another moment of staring I said, “What do you mean you don’t know? You don’t even know why you want my blood?”

“We need blood. The original uses Luna’s blood to bind her to her subjects and to link them together. We don’t have Luna’s blood. This ritual is our best shot at getting rid of all these changelings, and you said it yourself, it’s what Nightmare Moon did back in White Peak. Our best bet is you, but Trixie doesn’t know how the change in materials will impact the overall spell, alright?”

“But, if you’re blood’s in there too, won’t that make you like... bound to me?” I frowned. “I don’t want that. I really fucking don’t want that.”

“Trixie’s blood is meant to... do something. I don’t know!” Her hoof slammed into the wall next to her. “To go any further is suicide.”

“Hey, it’s not that bad. If it comes down to it, I’ll just kill every last mother fucker here one on one.” Even I knew that was bullshit. “Beside, for the ritual to work we need changeling blood. We need to go further in anyway.”

“Fine.” Trixie put everything away again while her horn lit up. “Just hold still so Trixie can throw on the mind block thing.”

I stepped closer to her, and stood stills so she could cast her spell. After a moment I felt... a thing...? Something in my brain. Like this weird itch that I couldn’t scratch. And at the same time it was like there was someone... I don’t know... stroking? Stroking my mind. And there was a strange shuffling... almost like-

“Get the fuck out of my memories Trixie!” I snapped at her and immediately regretted it as I felt the mind magic connection snap. It wasn’t as bad as it was with Nightmare, but I still had to sit down as a dull ringing filled my head.

“What the fuck!” she screamed at me as she swayed dangerously on her hooves. “Trixie barely had the block up!”

“You were in my memories!” I jabbed a claw at her. “What the fuck were you doing in there?”

“Trixie was doing no such thing! She was implanting false ideas in your mind on an infinite loop to cover up your normal thoughts.” Even her glare was tired. “Trixie has no clue how to set up a true mental block, so the best she could do was make illusionary fake thoughts.”

My own glare faded. “Oh... sorry, but it felt like you were in my head. I uh... reacted.”

“Fuck!” I blinked as she swore yet again. “Now this time sit down, shut up, and take it like a stallion!”

“Fuck you too,” I snarled at her. “I’m sorry if I’m a little worried about letting someone in my head after Nightmare Moon tried to possessme! Totally fucking unreasonable right? I mean, shit you’re right, I should just bend over and let you fuck me whenever you’re in the mood!”

“You realize the horn used to be used as a weapon right? Unless you’re into internal injuries, that’s just stupid.”

“I was talking about your magic damn it!” I shouted. “I’m so fucking sick of you throwing that crap around, pinning me down or picking me up or just... argh! I’m sick of it! I fucking hate unicorns!”

“Yeah well, what about you? Is it too much to ask for you to not drink so much or whatever!”

“I haven’t had more than a mouthful in fucking weeks! And sweet bloody Celestia knows I need a drink sometimes.” I jabbed a claw at her. “And last night! I made a fucking mistake! I said something dumb and you threw me out to sleep on a table!”

“You could have just apologized,” she shot back.

“I did!” Maybe I shouldn’t have been shouting with the changeling hive above us, but whatever. I didn’t give a shit. “I said sorry and made you lunch and I don’t even know why I had to apologize; all I did was say something stupid! I didn’t fucking slap you or call you a stuck up arrogant cunt with a retarded inferiority complex!”

“You- You- You- Argh!” The only warning I got was her pulling a dagger out of the bag. Next thing I knew, it was flying towards me, narrowly missing my head.

“You want to fucking fight!” I turned back to her. “Throw your bloody horn around some more? You just need to be the biggest cub on the playground, don’t you? Can’t stand it when someone else points out just how fuc-”

Thrown violently to the side, my head slammed into the wall and my vision blurred. I immediately scrambled back onto all fours, and the entire world spun around me even as blood trickled down my cheek. Fuck that bitch. I’m going to fuck tha-

All anger was lost as I watched Trixie struggle under a gryphon. Twisting her head to the side, the peck just missed her eyes, and just like I taught her, a second knife plunged into his neck. Then with a savage twist, she ripped the blade free, sending green blood all over her face. My eyes immediately moved back down the tunnel and saw the dagger she had thrown embedded in another changeling.

“I fucking hate magic!” I shouted as I threw the changeling off Trixie. “Were we actually fighting, or was that just an illusion?” I asked as I checked her over for wounds.

“Sorry, I missed your face,” she spat at me.

“Well, that answers that.” With one of the vials from Trixie’s saddle bag, I gathered up the changeling blood. After it was full I shoved it back towards her. “Come on, we need to find somewhere more defendable so you can do the goddess damn ritual.”

“You know what, screw the date!” She gathered up her knives, picked up her bag and began trotting down the corridor with her hips swishing at me.

“Fuck that! I got thrown out of the room because I was trying to figure out how to get that to work!” I ran up alongside her. “We’re going on that fucking date whether you want to or not.”

“Oh great, now you’re interested. Well too late,” she snapped at me. “It better be epic and great or you’re in trouble.”

“When wasn’t I interested?” was the reply I growled back. “I’m sorry if I’m a bit occupied with saving my brother’s life.”

We turned the corner and there stood a changeling with its back to us. I simply moved forward and drove my knife through its back before tossing it into the water. We paused at the crossroads while Trixie consulted the map.

“Yeah well, Trixie is sorry if you immediately equated date with money!” The air shimmered around us and three copies of us ran out in three different directions down each of the corridors before us. “Trixie just wants something romantic and normal for once.”

“You think I don’t? A nice night with you and me in a restaurant with music and candles would be completely fucking awesome, but sadly, most of our lives revolve around chasing down one evil wild magic goose after another!” A hiss caught my attention, and soon enough I had another dead changeling as I threw its head over my shoulder. “And I wasn’t just thinking of money, I was thinking of how I could actually make that date happen! Not my fault that we have less bits than a bum.”

“Trixie doesn’t care as long as it’s with you, you idiot.” She moved down the left tunnel and I quickly followed. “And seriously, this is too easy. As soon as we killed one, the rest should have been swarming us.”

“I know, where the fuck are these pricks?” I glared around the room, “I need something to kill.” After a moment I looked back at Trixie. “You don’t get it, do you? I have nothing to give you, so if you’re asking me on a date, the least I can do is give you what I bloody well have.”

“Give me your time and love. Every time we’ve been anywhere near anything remotely resembling romance, it has been initiated by Trixie. All the snuggling, all the flirting, every single damn thing. Just give me your affections!” Once more her illusions went down the tunnels we didn’t use. “Hopefully they will keep them confused for a while.”

“I’m not an affectionate person Trix. I case you haven’t noticed, I don’t like putting myself out there. It’s not that I don’t care about you, it’s that I don’t know how to fucking say it. I have no goddess damn clue how to do romance, and I know if I did you’d just fucking laugh at me!” I paused, before I turned around. “Let’s find another way. I don’t like this tunnel.”

“All Trixie is asking for is the occasional hug and kiss when sad, teary emotions are not involved,” she replied as she consulted her map. “There’s no other way around. Unless you want to go straight up.” Her grin was infectious. “That should be fun.”

“Straight up?” I asked and looked to the roof. “Alright. Up we go then.” I looked back across at Trixie. “Well how am I supposed to know when you want a hug? I’ve been more focused on keeping you alive and dealing with all this shit that keeps getting thrown at us. Do you have any idea how fucking close I was to killing myself at White Peak? I’m fucking terrified of how much I loved that idea, and that’s just one thing that I’m worried about! My head is already filled up with rituals, and shitty brainwashing, and the way my past just keeps biting me in the ass, and goddess awful retarded ancient magic that keeps trying to kill us!”

“Yeah... well!” Trixie seemed to deflate. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine.” I snapped back at her. “Don’t apologize for me being a shitty girlfriend. I know what you want from me, but I can’t give it to you right now. I’m not sure if I ever can. I mean... I’ve told you from the start that I’m damaged goods. That I’m not ever going to be able to give you what you deserve because, emotionally, I’m a fucking mess.”

“Well Trixie isn’t much better.” Both hooves rested on my chest as she leaned in for a kiss. “And you stupid gryphon. If you had died at White Peak you’d have a vengeful Trixie making sure you never got a taste of paradise.”

I kissed her back. It helped me calm down, and my racing heart slowed and the anger stopped clouding my head. When we pulled back I looked her in the eye. “I keep telling you that you should find someone else. Someone that you won’t have to bring back from the dead just to get an ‘I love you’.”

“And Trixie keeps telling you she doesn’t care.” She jabbed me with her horn. “If you dare pull any suicide crap, Trixie will tie you down and torture you for a day straight.”

“I wasn’t going to commit suicide,” I stepped away. “I just went... I dunno... berserk or something. I... don’t know how to describe it. It was like... crap.” A frown creased my beak. “Forget about it. I’m not gonna hang myself.”

Trixie winced at that comment. “Just... don’t pull that crap alright?” We shared another kiss. “Um... we should probably get moving before they find us...”

“Yeah, we should.” We moved forward. “We need to find a place to do the ritual. Where are we going anyway? I’m following you.”

“Trixie doesn’t know. The map is pretty limited, but there is this storage room against the west wall that she thought could be useful. Should be directly above us.”

“Yeah, well unless there’s a ladder leading there, we need to find another way up.” I pointed at the thin pipe hanging from the roof. “We’re not squeezing up there.”

“Trixie was going to blow a hole in the roof.”

“No. Preserve your magic. And you’ll need space to draw the runes. If the floor is missing, then that’ll be a problem. Not to mention all the changelings that would draw in.”

“Where are they anyways?” asked Trixie. “The illusions would have given us some time, but not this much.”

“I have no idea.” I said to her over my shoulder. “Come on, I smell fresh air this way.”

“How could you possibly smell that?” asked Trixie as she followed.

“I don’t know. Bats have good smell, right? Maybe it’s a nightkin thing.”

“Bats have good smell.” She looked at me as though I was an idiot. “Actually, can you scout with the whole shadow magic thing?”

After a moment I paused. “Maybe...” With some effort I tapped into the shadows and started to try and feel them... but no. It didn’t work like that. I couldn’t... feel with them. I was about to give up when I noticed something... the shadows in one direction were... weaker. “This way... I think.” I picked a left-branching tunnel. “At least... I think there’s light down here.”

“See? We make a good team.” The bag on her back shifted as she began walking before me. “Come, we must hurry. This lack of aggression is getting on Trixie’s nerve.”

We made our way through the damp, smelly, shit stained sewers and found ourselves heading upwards. After a moment, we came up to a set of bars blocking our exit. But beyond that I could see Fort Ashguard.

I whistled at the view. “Strongest fortress in the Kingdom .Looks like we’re inside the outer wall. If we come out here we can move through the soldiers’ town and into the inner wall.”

“And we got in how easily?” she asked as disguises came up.

“I know...” I looked through the abandoned streets. “Maybe Luna’s plan worked and most of them are dead.”

“Then where are the bodies?” asked Trixie. “In fact, where is everygryphon?”

“I have no idea... They had guards and patrols and everything at White Peak.” With a shrug I turned to her. “Want to find another way? This has for me feeling pretty suspicious.”

“Trixie thinks that would be best...”

“Alright, let’s find another way in... one with more cover.” After a second I added. “And changelings.”

“Is it wrong that more changelings would be reassuring?” asked Trixie.

“A bit, yeah...” I paused and set out with my shadow magic, trying to find more moonlight. “Nuh, nothing. You got any ideas?” I couldn’t help but notice that Trixie actually looked really hot coated in changeling blood. Was that weird? Whatever. Maybe Nightmare had a point with the whole murder is sexy-

My back arched and I fought the urge to throw up. Oh goddesses, no! Please don’t tell me I just seriously thought that.

“Gilda? You alright?”

I stared at her for a moment before I answered. “I really fucking hope so.” A very slow swallow of air. “I doubt it, but I hope so.”

“Alright... We can talk if you want.” Her eyes twitched as another changeling came into view only for it to receive a knife to the head. “Maybe once we’re somewhere safer.”

“No, shit... Forget it, I’m just being dramatic. Let’s go.” I pulled my knife out of the changeling’s head and cleaned it on its carapace. “Do you have any idea for another way up? Cause I can’t find any more light.”

“Well Trixie could blow a hole in the roof,” she mumbled as she pulled out her map again. “To the left then straight ahead should lead to the... dungeon...? Yes, dungeon. Cell. Prison. Whatever.”

I snorted at the irony. “How many damn dungeons am I gonna wind up in before this mess is over? This’ll be my third just this month.”

“Could be worse, at least we’re not in the dungeon this time,” said Trixie. “And Trixie seriously needs a bath. This muck is disgusting.”

Looking back at her I shrugged and said, “I’ve had worse. I mean, heck, I used to roll in manure just to get out of cooking, right? And you saw me when I came out the other end of White Peak. I was fucking filthy.”

“Well Trixie isn’t you. Trixie prefers not being coated in ichor. And where are all the changelings!” her voice echoed back to us.

“I know, it’s freaking me out. I had to kill like... thirty gryphons at White Peak, and that was before I even got to the lab.” We took the turn Trixie found on her map, and I led the way to a small ladder going up to a hatch. “Up here?” I looked across at her. “With any luck, there'll be a thousand changelings up there.”

“And now that you’ve said that, it will be true,” sighed Trixie. “Can I please blow the door off at least?”

With a roll of my eyes and a gentle smile I poked her on the nose. “Aww... you’re so adorable when you want to blow shit up.” Was I being sarcastic? Why don’t you take a guess. “Look, if you think you can spare the magic, it’s your call.”

“Trixie just wants to blow something up,” she said. “It helps relieve stress.”

“Do you really need to?” I started to climb up the rungs. “I’m telling you Trix, just like swimming through a river of shit, you just have to get past your discomfort and deal with it.”

“Well Trixie was hoping this would be the last time she’d have to do anything like that.”

When I got to the top, I pushed the bottom of the hatch up slightly and peeked through. When I didn't see any changelings I pushed it all the way open and reached down to pick Trixie up. “I’ve actually been thinking about... you know, what we’ll do when all this over.”

She ignored my outstretched claw and climbed out by herself. “And?”

“Well... is life ever gonna get normal for us? I mean... how are wegonna make our bits and... You heard Nightmare, right? I’m like, the first nightkin in a thousand years. Is Luna really just gonna let me walk off? And even if she does, Celestia had all the other nightkin killed, won’t she come after me? At the very least, she’s not gonna let me leave without keeping an eye on things. And then there’s the Wide Eyes. They know who we are now. Can we really just walk away and expect this all to blow over?”

“We can try. There’s no point being scared of every moment you know.” Trixie peered around at the clean prison. “Actually, one of these cells would be perfect to cast the spell in. If they storm us it’ll be messy, but...”

I cracked my neck. “I can deal with a head on charge.” I held the cell door open for her. “Anyway, I’m not saying we shouldn’t try, I’m saying we should... I dunno. Try to come up with some other options?”

“Hm... fake death?” she suggested as she began drawing the runes on the ground.

Pulling the door shut between us, I stepped out into the corridor and looked back and forth for any changelings. “Maybe, but... I dunno. Don’t you think it’ll be a bit hard to do that? We’d need fake corpses and people to witness our deaths... Plus, I’m not sure I want to do that to mum.”

“Well I’m certain Grace will be willing to help with the identification, we’ve got changelings, and Trixie is powerful enough to create a dazzling explosion of the highest magnitude. And, of course, Grace can tell your mother. Done and done.” With a flourish of her brush, the first rune was complete and she immediately began on the one using changeling blood.

“Alright then, say we do fake our deaths, what then? Go back to Equestria and... travel the world as a unicorn and gryphon and... what? No one notices that? I mean... I don’t need to tell you how uncommon gryphon-pony couples are... let alone two stand-outs like us.” My head turned at the sound of dripping water, but there was nothing there so I went back to the conversation. “All I’m saying is... We really need to put some thought into this. I don’t like going in without a plan.”

Trixie snorted, “Could have fooled me.” A bowl suddenly found itself before me, “A bit of blood please.”

I drew my knife to cut myself, but hesitated. “Are you sure this won’t like... make you mine?”

“Trixie has no clue what will happen. All she can give you are estimates and guesses.” She smiled up at me. “And don’t worry, Trixie got a genius moment a couple seconds ago. Modify the spell to locate others with the same... er... ‘taint’ as you, no offense. A scrying spell using your modified blood-slash-magic as the identifying key feature.”

After a moment I frowned at her. “But... my magic isn’t the same as theirs... I mean, their magic is an improved version of what they used to have, my magic is some bastard mix of Luna’s shadow shit and normal gryphon magic. By checking for any similar magic, you’ll only find Luna and any gryphons that are nearby, right?”

“You were both transformed by the same chemicals, therefore there should be some sort of underlying similarities.” Her brush stopped mid stroke. “Trixie knows it’s not perfect, and potentially completely wrong, but it’s the safest option. It’ll allow us to identify where the changelings are and where Luna is.”

I tossed it around in my mind for a minute, before I cut my wrist sideways and held it out for her to get blood from. “Quick, I want to stitch this up real soon.”

After a couple of seconds, she pulled the bowl away and touched her horn to my wrist. A blue glow surrounded the wound, and sure, it didn’t magically heal or anything, but the pain did stop, and a glowing blue band appeared over it as the blood clotted. Magical bandaid, who knew?

“That’ll help with the pain and blood loss, but you better patch it up quickly. There’s a first aid kit in the bag, it should have been magically sealed against water,” said Trixie as she went back to the ritual.

As she scrawled my blood on the floor- Wow. That’s not something I’ll ever say again. Anyway, as she was doing that, I took out the first aid kit and stitched my wrist shut. Good thing I know my blood lines so well, or I might have cut it the wrong way and badly hurt myself.

“That’s enough blood, right?” I asked her as I pulled the last stitch through and drew the wound shut.

“More than enough.” Trixie stepped back. “Grab the large map, Trixie is about to start identifying everything.”

Checking my wrists one last time, I walked towards the saddlebags and grabbed the map. “I can’t stitch for shit. That’s just a mess.” After flattening the map out in front of Trixie I said, “That’s gonna scar.”

“We’ll find someone to do a better job of it,” she replied over her shoulder. “Ready?”

I stepped back out into the hall and looked around again. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

Trixie breathed out slowly as her horn charged up. With the bowl in the center of it all, my blood began glowing as she peered into it like a crystal ball or something. Without speaking a word, she dipped her brush into my blood and began drawing crosses on the two maps next to her, all while acting like she was in some sort of a trance.

If my experience in White Peak taught me anything, it was that these things like to swarm when someone’s busy doing magic. With two knives out, I stood ready and waiting for changelings. The constant goddess damn dripping kept me twitching. My eyes roved over any possible entrance, just waiting for those bastards to appear. One of the cell doors creaked open and I dived towards it. As I rolled to my feet for a fight, I noticed no one was there and in a panic dashed back to Trixie’s cell.

No one was there either.

I tapped into my shadow magic, and swiveled my head around. Nothing. I couldn’t see a fucking hint of anything.

Growling in annoyance, I walked from cell to cell, searching and waiting for some violence. Nothing happened. The feathers on the back of my neck rose, and I found myself twitching uncontrollably at every sound.

Hate and Anger reared their heads in my mind, and without thinking about it I pulled the shadows into me to make a tiny spike of solid black. I began throwing them at every noise as I shouted, “Get the fuck out here! Come on mother fuckers, let’s do this!”

Silence screamed back at me, and I responded with a roar of my own. I blinked after a moment as I realized what I was doing.

“Fuck, I am going crazy,” I mumbled as I padded back in front of Trixie’s cell. I tried to calm down and wait... but no. I just couldn’t bring my hackles down, or release my hold on the shadows. Hate and Anger weren’t in control anymore, but they were watching closely, ready to seize control at a moment’s notice.

Crap. I hadn’t let them out. Hate and Anger had just grabbed me on their own, I didn’t need to call them... shit. That wasn’t good.

I pawed the ground in irritation, testily waiting for violence, but none came.

The glow finally disappeared and Trixie leaned against the wall wearily. “Done,” she panted. “Any troubles?”

“I think I’m completely goddess damn insane, but no. No changelings or anything.” I frowned from one door to another. “Where the fuck are they?”

“Not here apparently.” A mage light appeared, letting us get a better look at the map. “Apart from a single dot here, none of them are in the fort.”

“Well, where are they then?” I fidgeted. “I’m so bloody sick of them not being here.”

“They’r- Oh, we’re fucked. They’re in the castle and... at this location by the river?” She turned the map around so I could get a better look. “Is this site important?”

My stomach took that exact moment to fall off a cliff. “That’s the Rind. The Kingdom pumps water from there directly to Aviana... that’s like, half the city’s water supply. Not to mention all the towns and villages between here and there, and the settlements just outside the city itself. Oh, and it draws water from the single largest aquifer in the entire fucking kingdom! That’s like, a tenth of the population at least.”

“Oh. Oh fuck. Fuck!” And then she continued to swear for the next hour straight.

After the novelty wore off I shouted, “Snap out of it!” And shook her, “We need to move now. Calm down, and tell me where Luna is.”

“I don’t know! All the dots look the same and felt the same to me. But, knowing Luna, she probably went after one while Grace went after the other cluster. Luna’s not so stupid to head to the castle so she must be heading to the Rind.” Trixie paused. “Also we need to get outside. Trixie should be able to set off a flare to draw attention here. With any luck it’ll catch more guards’ attention.”

“We need Luna, she can do the ritual and kill the changelings. We’re currently at the bottom of the fortress keep right? We can either go back down through the tunnels and out the original sewer exit we found, or we can go up through the castle and find our way to the river from there. Which do you think will be quicker?”

“We’re not going into the sewer with your wound.”

“Castle then,” I grabbed her hoof and ran up towards the stairs. “Come on, it shouldn’t be too hard to find our way there.”

“Trixie can’t run on three hooves,” she yelled.

Her hoof dropped from my grip and I bolted up the stairs. We emerged into some room I didn’t recognize, and I paused for long enough to think about where the gates were when I saw them from the outside. After a moment, I picked a corridor and led us in that direction. We emerged into the main hall of the fortress, and after a moment’s thought I ran us up past the main hall and towards the inner wall.

Huh, I have really good sense of direction, don’t I?

“I can fly us to the river faster from the wall,” I shouted at Trixie over my shoulder.

“Alright,” she yelled.

We ran through a bunch of rooms, and I led us higher and higher and further outwards. I got lost once, and had to backtrack through a few rooms, but overall I was able to find my way easily enough. We eventually burst into the general’s office, and I found myself stopping in front of a display case.

“Shit... these are the blades of the Thirteenth Legion,” I muttered as I looked at the goop stained front of the case. “Annibal used these. They have bloody dragon bone hilts.” I glanced over my shoulder and saw Trixie glaring at me. “What? I’ll need some swords if we’re going to be fighting a ton of changelings, right?”

“Fine.” With a burst of magic, the glass shattered and she pulled out every single last weapon. “Happy? That’s your birthday gift by the way, so enjoy it.”

I gave her a kiss on the cheek. “You fucking rock, Trix!” I quickly slid two short swords into sheaths I robbed from another pair of blades, and grabbed the wing blades and strapped those on too. With that done, I turned to Trixie. “Anything you want? Seriously, some of these things are priceless and should probably be in a museum. We’re not gonna get another chance to rob shit like this again.”

“Take it all. What we can’t use can be sold,” she said as she pushed me along.

“Fuck yes!” I snatched up a table cloth and wrapped a bunch of rare and valuable stuff in it. I threw the bundle in my saddlebag and threw open the door. “Come on, the wall’s this way. We should be getting close.”

Running through without waiting for an answer, I proved myself right a few doors and rooms later as we burst into the moonlight and onto the wall.

I scanned with my eyes, till I saw the water processing plant. “There!” I pointed at it. “Where are all the changelings? Probably inside, right?”

“Apparently. Maybe Trixie could just blow the place up?”

“Didn’t we have to forget about the explosives because of the swim? What could you blow the place up with?”

“Trixie can improvise. A bit of magic, some fertilizer, some accelerant...” She waved her hoof in the air. “It’s not as hard as it sounds.”

“Where are we gonna get fertilizer in a fortress? This isn’t a farm.”

“Well can we set it on fire at least?”

I rolled my eyes. “What is this to you? Some Hayly Wood action movie? Not everything’s gonna end in a giant explosion. Our best bet is still Luna doing the ritual. I suppose we can light the town on fire for a distraction, but I’ve gotta tell you Trix, I doubt we’ll be blowing shit up.”

“Shame.” Without any warning, she leapt onto my back. “Now fly! Fly my pretty, fly!”

“Trix... the fuck are you doing?”

“We’re flying to the water works right? So fly!” Her hind hooves dug into my sides in a giddy-up motion.

“...get off my back.”

Trixie slowly slid off me. “Fine.”

With a roll of my eyes, I wrapped my claws around her and lifted her in the air. “Come on, you can’t honestly expect to fly on my back can you?”

“It was worth a shot.” Trixie smiled up at me sheepishly.

“Let me put it this way, Trix. Am I ever gonna bother trying to find out whether you’ll let me ride you or not?” I asked her as I angled down to land on a roof in the soldiers’ town, not far from the water plant.

“Trixie will answer that in a second.” Fireworks suddenly illuminated the area above the fort. “That should draw guards to the fort and the dead changelings should hopefully alert them. Now where were we? Oh yes, Trixie would most certainly let you ride her if it wouldn’t end in her back breaking from your weight.”

I landed us in between two log houses that were cast deep in shadow thanks to the light display, and with a little shadow magic from me, we were completely shrouded in darkness.

“That’s not the point, Trix. I mean... I got a bit of dignity don’t I? Would you seriously let me ride you if I weighed... shit I don’t know, thirty kilos less? Crap. How much do I weigh? I haven’t seen a scale in years.”

“A lot,” replied Trixie as her hooves touched soil once more, “A lot.”

“Hey! I’m not fat.” I poked her in the shoulder. “And you didn’t answer my question. Admit it, there’s no way you’d ever let anyone ride on your back.”

“Depends on the context,” she said, “and we really should be focusing on the job at hoof.”

“You’re dodging the question because you don’t want to admit I’m right.” I muttered and shut up after that. Overhead I could see a ton of changelings buzzing towards the flashes of light. Once the number of them cleared up, I poked my head and saw- “Shit... that’s gotta be at least five hundred changelings.” I whispered to Trixie as I pulled back. “And there’ll be more in the plant. Not to mention we haven’t seen a single gryphon from the Thirteenth Legion. Where the fuck are they?”

“Trixie doesn’t know...” For once, she actually seemed to be taking tonight seriously. “And where’s Luna? By all accounts she should be here, so why hasn’t she acted yet?”

“There’s almost two thousand gryphons in the Thirteenth...” I whispered as I looked back at the teeming mass of changelings that was only growing bigger. “We need to move, I don’t think we’re pulling anymore changelings out with those fireworks.”

“Agreed.” The air around us shimmered. “An invisibility spell to keep us hidden. Where would they dump the chemicals in from? Just from the banks, or is there an ideal location?”

I shrugged. “How would I know? I’m a thug not a mechanic. Um... I guess they’d want to mix it in with the drinking water after it’s processed, so... probably inside, mixing water into the pumps leading to Aviana. That makes sense, right?”

“Makes sense. Now, how do we get in?” she asked as we peered over the top of the barrels we were hiding behind. “And where would that room be located?”

“How the heck would I know where it is? We could probably find a map inside somewhere, and we could get in by one of t-”

“Stupid!” Trixie’s hoof slammed into the wall. “We just cut the pipes. Blow them up! Remove them! Whatever. If we do that, then it doesn’t matter how much they dump in, it will not be able to make it into the city.”

After a moment I smiled, “You’re a genius! If the pump to the city is broken, that water isn’t even gonna reach Aviana, and the chemicals will just be diluted in the stream. I take back what I said earlier, explosions are always the best answer.”

“Trixie thought you would come around eventually.” She began slinking off to the right and I immediately followed. “We’ll need to do enough damage to make repairs difficult or lengthy. Multiple, large sections torn out and we need to be able to get out afterwards. Ideas?”

“Shit yeah. This is a military bastion, Trix. There’s a zeb powder stockroom around here somewhere that we could easily blow shit up with. We just need to know where to blow up. Maybe the pumps? Those things are huge and take ages to repair even with a full work crew and unicorn magic. Something that these freaks don’t have.”

“So when Trixie first announced blowing up the area, you act all innocent and ‘with what?’ and now you’re telling Trixie you’ve got zeb powder in there!?” she hissed. “Just how explosive is zeb powder anyways?”

I chuckled sheepishly and rubbed the back of my head. “Uh... It slipped my mind?” Worst lie ever. Apparently Trixie thought so too with the glare she was giving me. “Well excuse me if I think giving you high explosives is a bad idea with the way you love throwing the fucking fireworks around.”

“Shut up,” she snapped.

Once more we found ourselves hiding behind some barrels as we gazed into the courtyard. There were easily three or four dozen large changelings in the area. Every single last corner was covered, gryphon archers were spaced out on the walls, and that wasn’t even mentioning the wyverns they had, which would no doubt smell us. There was no fucking way in.

I tapped Trixie on the shoulder, and jerked my head back, signaling her to follow me. Silently we padded deeper into the shadows, and I quietly slipped under one of the cabins. After I heard Trixie crawling along behind me, I led us through the bare soil to the other side. After a few more cabins, there was enough distance between us and the gryphons that I figured I could risk talking again.

“I don’t know how to mix zebra powders so they explode hard, but I can get them really hot. Just a stain of it can burn through steel like candle wax.” I pushed her back around a corner, and kept moving cover to cover, and taking a very winding path so if they try to track us with wyverns they’ll go on a wild goose chase and get bored. “Also, we’ll need ash. Or maybe pure alcohol. Whatever. And something to destroy our sent. With the shit all over us, those wyverns’ll pick us up before we can get near the place, invisible or not.”

“Alcohol won’t help much,” said Trixie. “Think we can explode some over the courtyard? Manure? If we can get the entire place smelling the same, then we’ll be able to get in.”

“That means we’ll have to redirect the flow of sewage somehow. Uh... Hey! Remember that grate we decided not to go out of because there weren’t enough changelings? What if we break that open and block up the tunnel so it floods? The sewage will pour out and flood the camp. Remember that spell you cast back in the castle that put a hole in the roof? Could you cast that again? Or, do you think you could collapse the tunnel with it?”

“We’d have to redirect the flow somehow.”

“Well, they had all those floodgates right? If we shut those we’ll redirect the flow of the water, won’t we?”

“Do we have enough time?” We both glanced at the mass of changelings above Ashguard.

“You’re right... Shit, we don’t have time. How do we get shit from down there up here?”

“Is there anything else we could use? Something pungent and easily found?”

“Well... pure alcohol or enough ash will destroy our sent, or... I dunno... Maybe we could lure the wyverns away?” I glanced back at Trixie. “If I showed you the zeb powders, you could get in there on your own while I lead the wyverns to the fortress door.”

“No deal. You’ll get slaughtered,” said Trixie.

“I dunno, I’ve never hunted wyvern before and I always wanted to try it. I hear the meat tastes like snake.”

“No. Deal.” I found myself drawn into a fierce hug. “We’ll get through this together.”

After a second I hugged her back. “I wasn’t trying to kill myself again Trix, just trying to get at least one of us-” I broke off as I caught a whiff of the changeling blood in her hair. “Oh, gross.” I backed away from her. “Changeling blood smells like honey and corpse. You’ve got it all over you.”

Trixie’s eyes widened and I knew I had the exact same look on my face.

“Changeling blood,” I said after a moment. “We coat ourselves in changeling blood.”

“Trixie is already coated in it. You’re not. We need to find ourselves another dead changeling.”

“Yeah you’ve got a lot on you, but you’ll probably need more. Can’t be too careful. If we crack one open there should be enough guts in it to get both of us nice and gooped up.”

“And if we kill one, they’ll know.” Trixie turned and just stared at the mass of changelings above Ashguard. “We’ll have to go back down, won’t we?”

I sighed and nodded. “Yeah, we will.” After thinking for a second I said, “Can you teleport us back down there?”

“Should be able to, though Trixie will need to find somewhere safe to hide the glow. Teleporting takes all her concentration.”

After signaling for her to follow me, I shattered the window into a cabin and helped her into the room. With the curtains drawn, and mattresses from the beds propped over each of the windows, I tapped into shadow magic and darkened the room further.

“Alright, Trix. Go for it.”

Trixie nodded at me, and lowered her horn. Her blue glow surrounded it, and after a few moments of buildup, there was a flash and a pop as the room vanished from around us. When the world reappeared I fell to the floor and tried to keep the half-digested food inside my stomach. After swallowing my pork for a third time that day I groaned.

“I fucking hate magic. Never gonna get used to that.”

“Sorry...” mumbled Trixie as she rubbed her forehead. “It’s not any easier on me you know.”

“No, I mean, doesn’t matter who casts the spell, or how short the distance is, I always end up eating my lunch a second time.” I stuck out my tongue. “Crap that tastes bad.”

“That is... disgusting. Don’t be expecting any kisses.” She stood up on shaky hooves and looked around. “And there should be a changeling corpse somewhere around here.”

“Didn’t one get pinned to the wall?” I asked her, and looked over my shoulder. “Yeah, see it? Right over there.”

Rising to all fours I walked over to it and pulled the knife out. I pointed that to Trixie. “These cost bits you know. Try to get them back when you throw them.” I slung the bug over my shoulder and walked back to Trixie. It slapped to the ground between us with a buggy crunch. “You ready?”

“No,” she replied with a sigh. “But I suppose we have no choice.”

“Story of my life.” I snorted as I dug a talon under a piece of its exoskeleton. With a grunt I ripped it off, and that nasty fucking smell overpowered the goddess damn sewage that polluted the air. “Oh, fuck. Smell that.”

With a wet slurp, I tore the bug open further and my eyes watered.

“You okay, Trix?” I asked her with concern. “You’re looking pretty ‘bugged’. Ba dum, tsh.” I made the sound of a snare drum with my mouth and mimed the motion.

For that I got a face full of goop.

“Worth it,” I muttered as I rubbed my eyes clear. “You ever eaten bug?” I asked her as I took a great big clawful of gunk and slathered it over myself. Oh goddesses the smell! I gagged and covered my mouth. “Ugh... fourth time I’ve tasted that meal.”

“Stop complaining, at least you’re a carnivore,” said Trixie as she slathered herself up in the gunk.

I hated myself for thinking she looked sexy right then. And I utterly despised myself for half wishing the goop was red rather than a yellow green. Turning away and shivering, I said to her, “Bats eat bugs right? You’d think this wouldn’t be so bad for me.”

“You’re not a bat,” she said.

“I know, I know,” I muttered and looked back towards her. “Just saying, we really don’t know shit about this nightkin crap. When we see Luna, if I don’t kill her, I’m making her talk.”

“You couldn’t kill her anyways.” Trixie looked down at her cape and hat mournfully. “Trixie will never get the smell out of these now.”

I shrugged. “Little sacrifices? You can replace them, right?”

“That she can...” She didn’t sound particularly happy about it though. Looks like I know what I’ll be getting her for Hearts Warming Eve. Or her birthday.The one that came first.

“Well, we better move now. We don’t know how much time we have.” I glanced across at her. “First thing’s first, we need those zeb powders. There’ll probably be a warehouse in the town, and it should be pretty far away from the barracks and cabins.”

“And let me guess, it’ll be heavily guarded and locked.”

I shrugged at her. “I’d be surprised if it wasn’t. Like I said, never been to Ashguard before.”

“Great. Very well, let us crawl our way back out then. Hopefully they’ll keep medical supplies there as well so Trixie can fix up your wound properly.”

With a nod, I led us back up the tunnel to the sewer grate we hadn’t left with the first time. With a little pause for a quick teleport, we were out and I was leading us through the soldiers’ town again.

“Where is everyone?” I asked Trixie over my shoulder. “There’s two thousand gryphons in the legion, and we haven’t even seen more than a hundred.”

“How is Trixie supposed to know?” she asked. “Just count our blessings.”

“I don’t believe in good luck, only bad.” I peeked around a corner, before looking back at Trixie. “If something can go wrong, it will, when it’s gonna fuck you up most.”

“Trixie believes in creating your own luck,” she replied with a smirk. “A bit of sleight of hoof, some misdirection, and anything could happen.”

I smirked back at her. “You say that now, but who are you gonna blame when it turns out the entire legion’s been mutated into one giant blood and bone abomination with a thousand barbed dicks that can only scream ‘cunt, cunt, need cunt,’ and it’s heading straight at you?”

“What.” Trixie stopped walking and just stared at me as though I had grown another head. “What.”

With a shrug of my shoulders, I faced the front again. “Hey, if it happens, then at least I warned you. Now anything we run into won’t seem as bad as that.”

“What. You are insane.”

“Hey, it’s not schizophrenia if the world really is trying to kill you. Just saying, I bet someone guessed Nightmare Moon was gonna come back, and they were told to shut up and stop being crazy.”

“Not helping your case at all,” said Trixie as she rolled her eyes. “And seriously, how did Trixie manage to fall for... this? Must have been drunk at the time. Now, can we please focus on the mission?”

“I’m just saying, expect the worst. I always do.” I looked to the front again and frowned. “Now, if I was a warehouse full of zeb powders and rape monster abominations, where would I be?”

“Somewhere non-descript and where if it does explode, it’ll kill lots of civilians and not important gryphons?” said Trixie.

“That’d be near the outer western wall then. Come on.”

It wasn’t long until we found it, and yeah, it was heavily guarded.

“Big surprise,” I muttered. “Got that invisibility spell ready? We’re gonna need it to get in.” With one claw I pointed at the gryphon archers on the roof. “These aren’t the sort of guys that’ll miss either.” Crap, I thought I could see some waster cloaks up there. “Crap, I think they have some of the desert rangers with them.”

“Trixie takes it, that’s bad?”

I nodded. “Yeah, they’re the gryphons that range in the Changeling Wastes and Dragon Territory. Uh... Archers and trackers, supposed to be the best in the world. But we’re gryphons so we say that a lot. Still, even if they’re not the best in the world, they have a real reputation, and I doubt they didn’t earn it.”

“Well we could still try to sneak past as long as we stay invisible, silent and not bump into any of them,” said Trixie as she gazed up at the archers. “Though the door is closed...”

“Well, there should be other doors, and if there isn’t we could try a window.” With a sigh I pulled back into cover and Trixie followed me. “Shit, this is gonna be harder than I thought. Alright, so invisibility can get us close, and if we’re fast and quiet we can get to the storage house, and to get inside we’ll just have to improvise.” I nodded at Trixie. “Stay quiet and follow me. You ready?”

“No, but what choice does Trixie have?” she muttered.

“Hey, just think. When all this is over, we have that date to go on.”

Trixie immediately brightened up. “Lead the way fearless leader!”

“Shhh,” I winced and hissed at her. “Fuck, keep it down.” Peaked around the corner, I was glad to see no change in the guards roving. After glancing back at Trixie I sighed and rubbed my eyes. “Maybe you should stay behind or something.”

“Trixie thinks not. As soon as you’re alone you’ll do something stupid no doubt,” she replied.

“What happened to ‘fearless leader’?” I muttered back.

“Fearless does not mean smart.”

“Well then, why follow me at all?”

“To make sure you don’t do anything that’s especially stupid,” she said. “Now, are we going or not?”

With a frown I nodded. “Just cast your damn spell. Honestly, the way you act, anyone’d think I never survived on my own since I was twelve.”

“Trixie’s just... worried...” She looked away, unable to meet my gaze.

I sighed and squeezed her shoulder. “Relax, Trix. I made it out of White Peak, right? That was almost as bad as this.” In White Peak I had my ass saved by a goddess more than once and almost died. It’s where I got those nice new scars. She must have been thinking the same because she looked down at my chest and drew a hoof along the scar.

“Well none of that matters anyways, since the closer Trixie is to you, the easier it will be for her to maintain the illusion spell.” With her hooves against my chest, she leaned up for a kiss. “So no getting rid of Trixie that easily.”

I kissed her back and pulled away. “Alright, let’s do this.”

In spite of myself, I couldn’t help but feel a little thrill of adrenaline hit me. I can’t deny it, I was excited to be running into another mess like this. A little part of me hoped our cover would be blown and I’d have to fight my way out, test my skills against soldiers and killers rather than citizens and scientists. I really fucking hope Trixie doesn’t learn how to read minds anytime soon.

I waited for the sound of magic, before I padded out of cover with Trixie in tow. Or at least I think she was. I couldn’t really hear her which was a good thing. As we got closer to the building, I didn’t notice any significant change in the way the guards were acting. One of the archers wearing the dusty grey brown cloaks seemed to be getting edgy, but his eyes didn’t track us and I had no real reason to believe he knew we were there.

When I got around the side, I found an open window and climbed up to it quietly. After peeking through to make sure the coast was clear, I climbed back down and groped around till I felt Trixie. Silently, I pushed under so she was on my back and crossed her hooves over my chest. Then, as quietly as I could with a pony on my back, I climbed up again and slid through the window and climbed down inside.

After letting Trixie off my back, I padded through the building till I came to a storage closet and picked the lock open. I pulled Trixie inside and closed the door behind us.

“You okay Trix?” I asked as I turned around. “Sorry I had to pick you up out there, but I didn’t have time to ask.”

“You groped Trixie,” she replied with a glare, though it was clear her heart wasn’t really in it. “The Great and Powerful Trixie did not give you permission to touch her perfect flank!”

I blinked in confusion. “Oh, I thought that was your face.”

“Suuuuuuure you did.” I couldn’t see her, but I just knew she was huffing.

“You were invisible. I was waving my hand through empty air for like a minute before I finally touched flesh.”

“Yeah, her flank. It was on purpose and you know it.”

I rolled my eyes. “Whatever, let’s just grab the powders and go.” I looked at the shelves around the room. “We’re gonna need a way to carry a fair bit of this stuff.”

“Or we could just grab as much as we need, set the place on fire and get out?” asked Trixie hopefully. “A nice distraction as well.”

What was up with Trixie and blowing stuff up anyways?

I paused for a second. “Well, that could work actually.” I looked around at the supply room. “They already know we’re here, and another distraction could be a good idea.”

“Finally. To think Trixie would have been on an adventure, and nothing would have been blown up.” The grin on her face reminded me too much of Nightmare Moon for my liking. “This shall be fun.”

With a roll of my eyes I started grabbing sacks of powder. “Come on, we’re after ones with this symbol, this symbol, and... this one. We’ll need... crap I dunno how big the pipes are so... just grab as many as you can put in your saddlebag.”

“Trixie is far ahead of you,” she replied as she walked down the aisle, her magic grabbing things left right and center. “Like Trixie has always said, anything you can do, Trixie can do better.”

My eyes needed another rolling. So I gave it to them. “So you know your zeb powders then? You can tell the difference between a thirty B and a thirty two B plus?”

“You said you wanted ones with those symbols, so Trixie grabbed the ones with those symbols. Neatly divided also between the three different pouches in her saddlepack. Do you dare doubt the Great and Powerful One?”

“Well I’m just saying, if you don’t know shit about powders and need to follow my instructions, doesn’t that make me... you know, better at this than you?”

“How many bags has Trixie collected? How many have you collected?” Without waiting for a reply, she began marching down the aisle once more. “Trixie thought as much.”

I sighed and started packing my own pouches with as much as I could carry. By the time I was done Trixie was standing behind me and very deliberately examining her hoof with the occasional smug glance in my direction.

“Yes Trixie. You’re better at collecting a lot of shit than I am.” I gave a slow clap. “Congratulations.”

“Silence! How dare you mock Trixie in such a manner!”

“Oh, but I wasn’t joking.” My voice was as dry as I could get it, but I had my pose exaggeratedly innocent with eyelash battering and floppy wristed claw waving. “I was just admitting how much better you are than me at menial repetitive tasks.”

“S-Shut up!” Her tail smacked me in the face. “And if Trixie is better than you, she is still better than you. How does it feel to be beaten by a unicorn?”

I rolled my eyes. “Oh, it stings. Like... ouch. This was something I really had my heart set on. Like... I’m just disappointed with myself.”

“Oh shut up,” she said. “And hurry up!”

I buttoned up my last pouch and turned to her. “Alright, we’re done here. Cast the spell and let’s go... or could we teleport back to the cabin? Might be quicker and easier.”

“Trixie would prefer that she reserve her magic for more dangerous situations.”

“Fair enough. Invisibility it is.” I wave a claw at her. “Well? Waiting on you.”

Trixie rolled her eyes at me, but the familiar shimmering was back. “And this time, ask before you grope Trixie’s flank.”

“Goddesses damn it. You’re not gonna let that go are you?”

“What do you think?” I could just hear the smirk in her voice. “It’s not Trixie’s fault she is so irresistible.”

“I couldn’t even see you, but no... That doesn’t matter because all I could do was stare at ‘dat flank’.” After checking that the coast was clear I pushed the door all the way open. “Just climb on my back when we get to the window, and I won’t have to touch you any more than that.”

“Exactly. Trixie’s flank is so irresistible, that even while invisible, ponies and gryphons alike are drawn to it. And stop talking, the illusion won’t stop sounds.”

I would have pointed out that that was a convenient excuse for her to get the last word in, but she had a point. When we got to the window, I paused for long enough to let Trixie climb onto my back, before I climbed up and through again. Sneaking back past the guards was nerve wracking, because I could’ve sworn those Desert Rangers have a sixth sense or something. They always seemed to be looking in our general direction, and one of them even followed behind us for a few steps before getting this really annoyed and confused look on his face.

After a few pulse pounding minutes, we were back among the cabins and on our way to the water pumping station.

Now that was an experience I don’t want to go through again. Wyverns are fucking scary. Like, holy shit. When one of them started snuffling the earth just where we’d passed I was battling every fight or flight instinct I had. Its handlers walked behind it with a leash, but... It was a snake-dog-thing the size of a bloody tiger with wings. I mean, shit. How is that crap not scary?

The part that really freaked me out was that the entire time I was thinking about just how much fun it would be to take one on. Those half a foot long fangs, the claws that made mine seem blunt and tiny, and the scary fast way they moved all made me just want to throw myself at it and see if I couldn’t take it.

What the fuck is wrong with me? Since when have I gotten so damn obsessed with stupid crap that’ll get me killed? I mean... was it White Peak, or... I was baiting Luna for a long time before that. Was some part of me trying to get her to come after me? Trying to make her attack me like she did in the basement.

Trixie really needs a better girlfriend than me.

The moment we were inside the water works I let out a huge sigh of relief. “You okay Trix?” I asked her as I peeked down the empty hall.

“Trixie is fine,” she said, sounding very scared.

The corner of my beak turned up. “Yeah, did you see those things? That one with the red stripe looked like it knew we were there for a second.”

“Sh-Shut up. That’s impossible, Trixie’s illusions are flawless.” If anything, her voice was even shakier now.

“Relax, Trix. You gotta remember that animals are way more perceptive than sentients. I mean, those things could probably see problems with your illusion that you or I never could. Fuck, they say animals can smell fear, right?” I put my arm around her shoulder. “I doubt it was anything you did wrong.”

Then I noticed how pale she was looking.

“Hey, don’t worry Trix. I’m here, and we made it.” I said feeling a little guilty. After giving her a reassuring squeeze I continued. “Besides, I could totally take them.”

At my hug, Trixie snuggled into me, and when I tried to let go, she stayed by my side. With her body pressed so close against mine, I could feel her trembling like a leaf. “Yeah... yeah you could.”

Holy crap! She believed that? Who the fuck could take one of those things on?! It was twice my size, twice my weight, and armored. Next to that, I am a bloody pussy cat! There was no fucking way I’d even scratch one of those things if it closed with me.

Thank the goddesses she couldn’t read my mind. “Relax, Trix. I’m here, and all we have in front of us is a horde of mutant changelings and gryphon warriors.” After a second I added. “And a mutant penis monster.”

“You are so mature.” She punched my chest, but didn’t make any move to pull away.

“Hey, it’s out there somewhere.” I chuckled and slowly felt her trembling stop. “Crap, I really shouldn’t have brought you here should I? This place is way too dangerous.”

“Trixie wanted to come along.” Grabbing my claw, she began dragging me through the corridors. “Come on, we have a goal to accomplish, do we not?”

I frowned as I followed along behind her. “Trixie, you don’t have to act tough. If you want to stay behind, you can.”

“Trixie is scared, but... Trixie still wants to come.” The only thing I could hear in her voice was determination.

Personally, I wasn’t sure I wanted her to come. “Alright, if you’re sure...”

“Positive. Let us keep moving, we cannot risk getting caught.” A pulse of magic expanded in all directions and she frowned. “There seems to only be one living being in here.”

“Alright, I’m calling it now: The beast with a thousand dicks.”

Trixie slammed her face into the nearest available surface. “How did Trixie fall for you again?”

“Fuck if I know.” I shrugged. “I certainly never tried to pull you in.”

“Tough. Deal with it.” We came to a fork and Trixie turned to me. “So which way?”

After a moment of looking down each path I tapped into my shadow magic and tried to scope things out.

“Uh... the shadows are strongest on the left and weaker on the right... so there should be light down there.” I pointed down the passage. “But then I guess we’re after the pumps which would be in deeper, right? So... into the dark we go?”

“Or it could just be a light bulb,” said Trixie with a flat look.

I shrugged. “What do you want from me? A few weeks ago, my one magical ability was use gryphon magic, or don’t use gryphon magic.”

“So we have no idea where we’re going.” Out of her saddleback, Trixie drew out a bit and tossed it into the air. Catching it again in her magic, she looked at the coin and began walking down towards the dark. “Heads, so down we go.”

“Greeeaaaat.” I said aloud as I followed her. “Let’s just trust the coin and its wise guidance.”

“Better than trusting you,” she replied.

“What?” I muttered as I followed her. “How can you not trust me? Back in the palace we actually talked about how you trust me and don’t hate me.”

“S-Silence foal!”

“Oh, Trixie.You feeling alright? You’re blushing like a school filly.” I smirked. “Of course, the Great and Powerful Trixie would totally never do that.”

The red around her cheeks intensified. Her mouth opened and closed a couple of times as she tried to figure out what to say before she gave up and just huffed in silence.

Yes! Hah! This round of wordplay goes to me. Chalk another one up to the gryphon.

We walked in silence for a while till I spoke again. “Really? There’s only one living thing in here? Why were they protecting it then? I mean, we can’t have seen all the changelings that were here already.”

“Well the spell was designed to identify things with a life-force above a certain amount, and since it’s used in search and rescue, the one Trixie uses is locked to the average pony life-force. Whether gryphons, changelings and ‘brain-deads’ qualify are another matter.”

“So... we could actually be walking towards half a million changelings for all you know.”

“Um... yes...?” Aaaaaaand the fear was back.

I would have slapped myself. “Alright, then. So we know for a fact that there’s one pony in here that’s still alive, that may or may not be brain dead.”

“Luna?” asked Trixie. “Perhaps it’s Luna?”

I sighed. “I knew I couldn’t be lucky enough not to run into her again.” To be honest, I had no fucking clue what I’d do when I saw her. I mean, would I just go berserk and try to kill her, or would I only do that when Nightmare showed up or... “Whatever. If it’s Luna, then we need her to do the ritual she did in White Peak. But if it’s just some pony we can leave them.”

“So we head in the direction of the life-force then.” Once more her horn pulsed. “She’s definitely down, so we’re hopefully in the right direction.”

“...Great,” I mumbled as I followed behind her. “Team Mismatch to the rescue.”

“Team Awesome you mean,” she replied as she picked up the pace and drew her daggers. “We should hurry, there’s no way to know how long we have.”

After that we trotted along in silence. I say trotted because, that’s sort of the pace we were going at, a bit fast than a walk, but not a run. We ran through plenty of empty corridors and came to a few forked roads where Trixie would do that pulse spell thing and take us deeper down. It was actually really boring. No more chatter, and the tension just wasn’t there compared to when we’d been sneaking past those wyverns.

Eventually we got to the point where we were about as deep underground as this place went, and so we were just slowly homing in on the lone pony that was inevitably gonna be the goddess I hate most. After one last pause, and a final pulse Trixie paused in front of a door.

“Alright, it’s just through here.”

I nodded at her. “Great, let’s get this over with.” I padded up next to her, and slowly pushed the door open with one of my new swords drawn.

The first thing that hit me was the scent of chemical smoke, heavy and acidic that choked me up and made my eyes water. Next were the runes on the ground, the symbols burnt into the stone floor, but no longer smoking. Then came Luna, who stared at me with the eyes of Nightmare Moon while staying absolutely still. It was pretty freaky. For a second I thought it was just a statue or golem or whatever they were called, but then her eyes flicked over to mine and her swords appeared.

For some absolutely retarded reason, I grinned as I drew both my swords. I paused just as I was about to charge her though, Hate and Anger halted for a moment. Really, I wanted her to charge me so I could just fucking fight her. But there was that part of me where I kept my brain telling me that I needed Luna, and I might not even be able to kill her.

“Luna?” I asked, though my heart wasn’t really in it.

The alicorn didn’t reply. Instead, she advanced cautiously, moving with jerky motions.

“You’ve been possessed haven’t you? Or partially possessed or something.” Fucking sweet! Please tell me this was gonna turn into one of those moments when you have to kill someone even though you really don’t want to. And by really don’t want to, I mean really fucking want to.

Luna suddenly lunged forward, one blade coming in for a thrust while another aimed at my feet in a sweep. Stepping back out of range of the sweep and deflecting the thrust with one sword, I darted forward and went for the throat. With a sudden jerk, one of her swords knocked the blade out of its path and her hoof lashed out at me. I’d seen this before, so I didn’t get caught out like I did the first time in sparring, and countered well enough.

“Gilda, move!” I heard Trixie shout, and I stepped to the side just as a bolt of magic slammed into Luna.

The deity staggered, and I closed with her again. We matched blades, and even with her off jerky movements, she was putting up a good defense. Even then, her edge was gone, and that hard clinical calculation she used in our previous fight was missing. Instead there was this... I dunno. It just wasn’t there. I tried to keep things short and sharp with underhand strikes and force Luna into a fight where reactions were all that mattered, but even with the weird misplaced movements she managed to keep up. And then there was the fact she was only using two of the swords rather than all six.

For a moment there she caught me off guard, as she side stepped and started using her long sword’s reach to put me on the defense. But another bolt from Trixie staggered her, and I was back inside her guard and trying to outpace her. Slipping through, I went for her throat once more and once more she jerked back. This time though, she suddenly stopped short and her blood sprayed all over me. I immediately moved behind her and buried my sword in her neck causing her to collapse in a heap.

“Was that seriously necessary?” asked Trixie as she stared down at Luna. “Trixie knows you're annoyed, but seriously? Severing her spine?”

“Call it a habit.” I shrugged and frowned down at Luna. “Damn right, I’m annoyed. What the fuck was that? She was barely keeping up with me, and at the end there she just stopped and let me tag her.” I kicked the body in disgust. “Talk about a fucking let down.”

“Gilda...” growled Trixie.

Oh. Shit.

“Uh... I mean... Uh...” Think! Think-think-think! “Uh... sandwich?”

Just... damn it, me!

Trixie’s glare deepened and she took a step towards me. I immediately took a step back and held up both claws in a calming gesture that only seemed to piss her off more.

“I mean, um...” Fumbling for an answer, I didn’t find one. “Like, it was just... anticlimactic? Yeah! That’s it. I was expecting something with more spectacle! You like spectacle, right? Showmareship and all that crap.”

“Except showmareship never has the slightest possibility of someone getting killed,” snapped Trixie as she jabbed a hoof at my chest. “You promised to not try and get killed! You promised!”

Guilt hit me like an earth pony’s kick. “Uh... I wasn’t trying to...” The lie died before it even left my beak. “That’s... uh... I mean...” The worst part was that hurt look in her eyes. “Shit, I’m sorry. I’m really fucking sorry, I mean...” I fell to my haunches and would have given anything to be anywhere else right then.

“Well you should ha-”

“We do not mean to interrupt thy whipping of thou gryph-friend, but perhaps We should concentrate on the matter at hoof?” I looked down at Luna in utter shock. “What? Thou missed our vocal chords.”

After a moment I growled and drew my knife. “My mistake, give me a sec and I’ll fix that right up.” I padded closer to her.

“Gilda. Get back here, I’m not done talking to you,” said Trixie.

I froze up. Crap. She was using first person. I’m so fucked.

Luckily, I have a scapegoat. “But you heard Luna.” I grinned desperately over my shoulder at Trixie. “I missed her vocal chords, I just need to fix that up real quick.”

“Gilda...” This time she used that voice. The one mothers used. The one that promised a lot of pain in my future if I kept pushing my luck.

I coughed into my claw. “I mean... uh...” I looked back at Luna. “She’s right!” I perked up. “Luna’s right! We have more important shit to deal with.”

“There are few things more important than keeping thy marefriend happy,” said Luna. “But We fear that, for once, this does override any words thou may wish to have with Gilda.”

I frowned at Luna as I felt Hate and Anger unwind in my mind. All it took was her speaking for me to want to kill her. “Actually, you know what? Fuck that. Go ahead and lecture me, Trix, after I cut myself a new cloak.”

“Gilda?” said Trixie in an all too sweet voice, “Sit down and shut the fuck up.”

I glanced at her, before I tossed my knife into Luna’s gut and sat down. Though I kept casting glares at Luna. For the life of me, I have no idea how I wasn’t going to kill Nightmare if she got out.

“Thank you,” said Luna. “Though We will admit to being surprised at your sudden return.”

“It wasn’t for you.” I spat. “Grace went missing, and we’re here to find him.” I left out the part where I’d really fucking like to just kill her then and there.

“Grace went back to the capital to warn the king while We destroyed the pump.”

“Great, let’s go.” I stood up and turned away.

“Um...” Trixie looked down at Luna.

“Go. We shall join with thee shortly.” Without so much as a blink, Luna pulled my knife out of her stomach and tossed it to me.

I snatched it up. “Or you could just stay here and we’ll never have to see you again.” I shrugged. “That option works best for me.”

“And who shall defeat the army outside? Or the army the changelings have no doubt amassed from the feeble minds of your citizens?” said Luna. “You need us.”

I laughed, because it was hilarious. “I’d rather die than spend another hour anywhere near you.”

“Gilda,” hissed Trixie in my ear. “She is still a ruler of Equestria, so please don’t piss her off.”

“No!” I snapped at her. “Fuck that. She owes us, Trix. I don’t give a fuck who she is after everything we’ve been through because that bitch decided she needed a few mortal dupes... Fuck her. I don’t care anymore. She owes us.”

“It’s not our fault the gryphons decided to conduct tests on changelings,” pouted Luna. “And you’d rather die than seek our assistance? You’d rather Trixie die for yo-”

“Don’t you fucking dare say another word!” I screamed at smashed my fist into her face pointlessly. “Don’t you fucking dare pretend that my problem should be with the Kingdom! You’re the bitch that dragged me out of that dungeon after threatening to convict me for a murder you were willing to commit! I swear to all that I hold fucking scared, that if you ever threaten Trixie, even vaguely, that I’m gonna be wearing that skin cloak.” My claws trembled as I held them over her eyes. I so wanted to pop those disgusting cat slits. “How you can try to justify yourself after what you did to me...”

“You mean saved you?” Thrown against the wall, I found myself pinned with no way of escape as Luna stared me down from where she lay. “Do not confuse us with Nightmare Moon.”

With a growl I broke her magic hold for a second, only for her to just put it back on me again. “Don’t bullshit me Luna. I know you could have stopped her completely. All it would have taken was one second for you to break out and shout to me or Trixie ‘don’t eat that!’ but no. Nightmare had been in control for two days at that point. That was the longest she’d ever been in charge. What fucking reason could there have been for you to not take control back for long enough to stop me eating her blood and a vial of your own poison!”

“Thou know nothing!” The stone underneath her cracked. “If we desired a nightkin, thou wouldst have been the last creature we selected. A flea is more desirable than thee!”

“Yeah, but it wasn’t a nightkin you were after was it? You said Nightmare was the one who knew how to do the ritual, not you. I’d bet blood that that’s what you wanted. You wanted to know how to make your own bat ponies, and who gives a fuck if Nightmare had to brainwash me for you to do it!”

Silence.

I blinked in surprise. “Holy shit... I’m right, aren’t I?” I thought I was just talking out my ass again. “You fucking whore.”

Luna’s head whipped to the side and a blast of raw magic completely vaporized the wall there. Again her head turned and again this time the pump was blown to bits. Entire body tense, it was obvious she was about to explode as the magic pouring out of her was enough to singe the tips of my feathers. Then, just as suddenly as the outburst began, she vanished in an explosion of light.

I dropped to the ground as her magic disappeared with her. “That... fucking... bitch...” I growled at the space she was in.

“Come on, we have to hurry.” Trixie grabbed my claw and hauled me onto my feet. “The changelings must realize something is wrong and may be coming to investigate.”

I trembled in rage as she dragged me along. I was far from caring about changelings. At this point, Hate and Anger ruled me, and anything that wasn’t Trixie was about to bleed. I blindly stumbled along behind her, until something caught my attention and I found myself looking ahead at changelings and gryphons.

I collapsed to the floor panting with exertion and giggling to myself. Behind me were... so many fucking dead things. Oh, goddesses that felt good. They were soldiers, and I was coated in bruises and cuts and my cloak was patchy in more than a few places, but I didn’t care. The pain felt good damn it. My heart was racing as I pulled myself to my feet and pushed ahead. I stumbled along blindly, looking for Luna. Or a wyvern. Or maybe a few Wide Eyes. It didn’t matter. Anything that’d put a blade through my brain was good.

A sound behind me made me stop, and I glanced over my shoulder at something... blue? No someone. Someone blue. Someone was shouting at me... Trixie was shouting at me.

I blinked and my head slowly cleared as I stared at her. Slowly the sounds came to me, and I heard what she was saying. She was hitting me... sounds were escaping her mouth as she pounded my chest... saying things I couldn’t understand.

“Trixie?” I asked slowly, feeling confused. I pulled her into a hug despite my aching arms. “Are you okay?”

She looked up at me with tear stained cheeks and red eyes. “You promised! You fucking, goddess damn idiot. You promised!” Another blow on my chest.

I blinked at her in confusion, before I looked over her shoulder at... shit that was a lot of dead things.

“Did I do that?” I mumbled as I stared.

“Not all of it, but yes.” Trixie buried her face in my chest and sobbed even harder.

“...I’m a fucking monster.” I stared at the pools of blood and changeling goop. “I’m a mother fucking monster.”

“No, you’re just an idiot.” To my surprise, she leaned up and kissed me. “And even if you are a monster, you’re my monster.”

I swallowed. “I... was trying to die again, wasn’t I?”

“More than once. Be glad Trixie was around to save your stupid, sexy flank.”

“Please don’t stay with me.”

“Are you telling the Great and Powerful Trixie to do something?” she growled.

“Please... You need to go... I’m not... I’m not... I’m... Goddesses, I know why Nightmare wanted me now... Please Trixie, you have to go. I can-”

Smack!

I could only stare at her even as my cheek stung from the slap.

“Just shut up. Trixie isn’t leaving without you, and that’s final.” Magic wrapped around me and lifted me into the air. “And you’re not a monster, so stop saying that.”

“Don’t you get it?” I asked blankly. “I’m just like Nightmare. I’m her without the power and immortality. I’m just a pile of anger and self-loathing and sadness and... That’s what Nightmare is. She’s the emotional baggage Luna’s refused to deal with, and... That’s me. That’s what I am. Hate and anger, self-loathing and sadness, and nothing else.”

“And loyal and kind and heroic and adorable and generous and funny.”Another tender kiss. “And a whole lot more. There is a reason why Trixie fell for you, you realize.”

I stared at her, for a moment, not really hearing her. “Luna’s right. I am just as broken she is.”

“No more broken than Trixie.”

After a moment I said, “Let me down, Trixie.”

“Nope.”

“Please, Trix. Put me down.”

“No.”

“Why not?” I asked her and felt Anger start to slither out again. I immediately shoved it back into its hole and poured acid down it. No. I was not letting those out on Trixie.

“Because you’re going to be stupid again.”

“You can’t stop me from being stupid. That’sgonna happen with or without your permission.”

“Well Trixie can at least try to stop you from killing yourself,” she snapped.

I paused and added after a moment, “Can you? I never wanted to hang myself, but... If I really did I’d find a way.”

“Not helping your case.”

“That’s not the point, Trix. You can’t save me from me. You need to find someone else who can be with you. That won’t die after going into some retarded berserker mode.”

“Don’t care. Trixie wants you and only you and that’s final.”

“Goddesses damn it, Trix! Don’t you get it?!” I snarled at her. “How don’t you get it?”

When she looked over at me, it was with the weariness of an immortal pony. “I get it. I get it alright? But I don’t give a fuck. You’re the best thing that’s happened to me, and regardless of all your issues, I do love you. So shut up and take it.”

I didn’t know whether to laugh, cry, hug her, or punch her right then.

“We’re so messed up,” I choked out a chuckle that felt like a sob. “Oh, goddesses damn it. How the fuck did you ever fall in love with me?”

“You’re loyal, generous, kind, funny, protective...” An impish grin appeared. “Trixie can do this all day.”

“I never thought of myself as kind.” I mumbled. “Or generous. And I’m pretty sure the only times I make anyone laugh is when they laugh at me.”

“Well you are, trust Trixie.” Another light kiss followed by a dozen more feathered all over my face and neck. “And ridiculously handsome.”

“Are you gonna let me down now?” I asked as I submitted to her assault.

“Nope,” replied Trixie as she smashed a window and tossed me out before following.

“Seriously, Trix. I’m about over this.” I frowned at her. “Put me down.”

“Fine,” she sighed and I hit the ground with a thump. “Do something stupid again and Trixie will gag and drag you around. Got that?”

“Where are we going anyway? We’ve saved Luna, so now we just have to take down the pumps, right?”

“To find your brother. Trixie wants to see his face when he finds out we’re dating.” Pause. “Oh, and to save him of course.”

“So... into the fortress then and forget the pumps? That’s Luna’s problem?”

“Luna hit the pumps, remember?” Trixie frowned. “Her stray spell at the end...”

“Oh... I was too pissed off to notice. I was thinking more about killing her than anything. So, we didn’t even need these damn powders anyway.” I rolled my eyes as I padded alongside Trixie. “Fucking typical. I hate that stupid goddess.”

“Please, Trixie plans on blowing something up tonight.” Trixie looked up at me with those big, trembling eyes of hers. “Fly? Can we fly back to Aviana? It’ll be faster...”

“Alright, let’s just get outside, and I’ll see how far I can take you in one night.” I replied as we came back down the path we entered through. “But I’m not sure I’ll be able to fly all the way with-”

A snarling sound down the corridor made us both draw to a halt.

“Trix, get behind me.” That was all I had to say before the door ahead of us exploded open, and a wyvern burst out.

It took one look at us before it snarled and barreled down the corridor straight at us. A hissing mess of teeth and claws that weighed almost a ton. The wyvern was moving at speeds that were just plain ridiculous, and I barely had time to draw my knife before it trampled right over me and charged straight for Trixie.

I didn’t see what happened as I gasped in pain with its claws damn near opening my stomach, though I was lucky and it got caught in my pouches, spilling acrid smelling powder over me. But there was a flash and a discharge of magic and I heard the Wyvern hiss in frustration. Groaning, I pushed myself up and saw Trixie standing alone and trembling in front of the beast as it padded towards her. Her horn was charging up magic, and the cunning critter was waiting for her to make the first move.

There was an explosion of smoke and lights making it impossible to see anything. Just as I scrambled onto my feet, a bolt of magic narrowly missed my head and left a hole in the wall behind me. A high pitched squealing noise filled the air and with an overly dramatic gust of wind, the smoke was cleared away leaving behind a bleeding Trixie standing on top of a very dead wyvern while her horn shot off small sparks of light.

“Trix, you just killed a fucking wyvern!” I shouted in shock as I walked towards her a little unsteadily. “H-how? I mean... what the fuck?”

“Trixie blinded it, and it couldn’t use its sense of smell due to this disgusting goop on Trixie.” A shudder passed through her body. “And, of course, lots of magic,” she winced as her horn continued to splutter, “Maybe a bit too much magic.”

“Hah! We’re skinning that thing, damn it. You just got yourself a new cape and hat. Trophies, Trix. You earned them.”

“Yes, well-” One second I was staring at Trixie, the next I was staring at a scaly angry bundle of murder and hissing. Trixie was pinned beneath it with blood on her arms as it snarled at her face.

Without a second’s hesitation I slammed into the wyvern and barely shifted it off her. It swiped a paw at me, and I blocked it with a sword. It roared in my face and charged me. I barely managed to twist out of its path, but both my new swords were tangled in its claws and pulled out of my grip. It rounded on me again, and I just managed to dig a knife into its palm. It hissed in my face and pulled away before it did another charge. I slashed its face with another knife, and it hissed and stepped back again.

Then it just tackled me to the ground and I was pinned beneath its weight. Both my arms were trapped under its claws and it reached down with its face to tear out my throat. Without thinking, I maimed its eye with my beak and it roared in rage. Screaming in pain it pulled away from me, clutching its wound and hissing at me in rage. I got to my feet just in time for another tackle, and only just managed to shove my knife through its good eye and into its brain. Like any reptile, the damn thing didn’t die instantly, and twisted and writhed as it fell on top of me. I barely avoided its claws as I struggled to avoid getting maimed. Slowly, it finally died and was just reduced to twitching as its whole weight fell on top of me.

“Holy shit this thing’s heavy,” I groaned as I slowly tried to push it off me. With a final heave I shifted it and climbed out from under it. Panting as I rose, I turned towards Trixie. “Are you okay?”

“Y-Yeah,” she said as she clutched her wounded arm. “Thanks.”

“Fuck the trophy, let’s get the heck out of here before more of those things turn up.” Idly, I licked my blood coated beak and blinked in surprise. “Huh, that’s sort of tasty.”

Cue Trixie throwing up all over my feet.

Honestly though, that was far from the nastiest thing to happen to me today. At this point I barely even cared, though I did step back in annoyance.

After a moment’s thought, I started to chuckle. “Heh-hey, Trix. Those were fucking wyverns. We just killed fucking wyverns, with knives.”

There was a moment where she looked at me as though I was insane before she too started chuckling.

“And I barely got scratched!” I poked my shredded pouches. “Look at this shit! One inch off and that thing would have pulled my guts out!”

That stopped her laughter dead and she just glared at me once more.

It took me a moment to realize why she was angry. “Well, at least I wasn’t doing anything stupid.” I chuckled again, too damn happy from the awesome kill and near death to care.

After a second she sighed and wrapped her hooves around me. “Well since you were being heroic and all, Trixie supposes she can forgive you this one.”

I hugged her back before I turned around and picked up my swords again. Or I would’ve. Instead I picked up two sword hilts with broken handles. I stared at them for a second before I realized that they’d broken.

“Goddesses damn it,” I muttered in disgust. “The piece of shit broke my new swords!” I kicked the dead beast. “Those things were bloody priceless! Those were the Blades of the Thirteenth!”

“Pick up the pieces, and we’ll find some unicorn to repair them good as new,” replied Trixie.

With a sigh I began scraped the fragments into the sheaths. When that was done I put the hilts in as well. “At least it didn’t damage the dragon bone handle.”

“Yes, yes, can we hurry now before more of those things appear?”

“Alright, but are you sure you don’t want to check your arm?” I pointed at the wound. “That looks pretty deep to me.

“With what? The medical supplies were crushed by the wyvern.” Trixie hobbled along on three legs. “Trixie will be fine.”

After a moment, I stepped in front of her and turned around to face her. “No, not happening. Wyverns aren’t known for their hygiene. That’s gonna get infected, and you walking on it’ll only make things worse.”

“We don’t have time to stop. We can find some medicine cabinet along the way or something.” A pained expression appeared on her face as she took another step forward.

“Nuh uh.” I put my shoulder under her, and before she had a second to protest she was on my back. “You’re not walking on that, and we don’t have time to search for medicine.”

“Trixie supposes arguing is out of the question?”

I just rolled my eyes. “Don’t act like this is horrible for you. If you wanted to get off my back you could. Come on, you were the one that jumped on me earlier anyway.”

“And you didn’t fly,” pouted Trixie. “Trixie commanded you to fly and you didn’t.”

“Well, since when do I take orders? Come on. There was no way you could have thought I would seriously go for ‘fly my pretty’.”

“Giddy up?”

I just gave her a flat look. Like, seriously. I’m proud of just how flat that look was. You could’ve rolled a wheel across that look I gave her. For her part, Trixie put on one damn convincing innocent look. As a foal, she must have killed ponies with that look.

“I never should have taken you for that first flight,” I muttered as I looked forwards again.

“It was fun!” she protested. “Once Trixie gets back to Equestria, she must see if there are some spells to give unicorns wings.”

I shrugged, and I felt Trixie’s weight shift as I did. “In the legends, Slight was an earth pony before she got bat wings.” Then I realized what I’d said. “Not that you’re getting bat wings. You’re not becoming a nightkin.”

“Oh? You’re forbidding Trixie from doing something?” There was that dangerous edge to her voice again.

I considered my next words carefully. “Becoming a nightkin was... the most awful thing that ever happened to me. And you know that basement we were in? I got tied down and beaten for like, three days there. So, yeah, I am telling you that you’re not becoming a nightkin. I have no clue why you’d want to be one anyway.”

“Well the flying is fun and... well... Trixie figured a second nightkin might make you more comfortable. Less singled out and more accepted? Not by society, but for you to accept who you are now. Plus, those eyes look both great and powerful.”

I frowned at her. “Accept who I am? Since when has that been my problem?” After a moment I looked forward again. I found myself thinking of Trixie with cat eyes, and then I thought about the goddess awful bitch Nightmare. I shivered at the idea and any sexual association with it. “Besides, the eyes are freaky.” Goddesses damn it, I don’t think I could ever be okay with Trixie having Nightmare’s eyes. “Fuck those things.”

“They’re unique. Fierce.” She nuzzled me lovingly. “I like them.”

“I fucking hate them,” I muttered and touched the glasses over my eyes. “I’d fucking kill to get rid of them.”

“Well they got you a sweet pair of sunglasses at least.” I knew she was trying to cheer me up, but it just wasn’t working. “Regardless, Trixie finds you as handsome as she always had.”

I snorted. “Yeah, well you’re the exception. Seriously, I bet the first thing you thought when you saw me was, ‘Damn that guy’s hot’, and then I spoke and you were like, ‘Holy shit! That’s a girl?!’ Whatever. I don’t even want to remember how we met. I shouldn’t have you tracked you down...”

“Well Trixie is glad you did, otherwise she wouldn’t have you.” Her hoof thumped me on the shoulder playfully. “And Trixie most certainly did not think that! If you must know the truth, Trixie found your language absolutely vile.”

I laughed at that, but didn’t say anything else. She might not, but I regret meeting her. As great as it has been to know Trixie, it’s not bloody fair that she’s in love with me of all gryphons. I mean, how the heck did that happen? Seriously.

“Gilda?” She touched my cheek. “What’s wrong?”

“Huh?” I glanced back at her. “Oh, nothing.Just me being all mopey again. Don’t worry about it.”

“Come on, you can talk to Trixie about it.”

“Yeah, and get lectured about-” I cut myself off with a wince. “Nothing. I’m fine.”

“Gilda...”

We were starting to get close to the outside again.

“I’m just wondering why you fell for me. I mean... why did that have to happen to you? How is that fair on you?” I grit my jaw, and I suddenly felt like punching something. “It’s crap, that’s what it is. I shouldn’t have been the first person to care about you in years. I mean... It’s not fucking fair.”

“Life isn’t fair. It’s never been fair, but Trixie thinks getting you at the end leaves Trixie with the better deal.”

“But you don’t have me.” There was a pause as I tried to figure out what I meant. “Shit, Trixie. These days it barely takes anything to set me off, and when I do, I just forget everything and Hate and Anger take over, and then I just... Goddesses damn it. It feels so fucking good too. The killing, and getting hurt, and... I know I could just keep going and going, give in and keep killing and killing till I die, and... that idea doesn’t even scare me. It sounds so bloody great.”

“Gilda...” Trixie almost sounded sad. I waited. I waited for her to something, anything. Some magical speech that’d make me realize how wrong I was or how much that wasn’t me. But nothing came. All there was, was silence.

After a moment I kept walking. “Whatever. Shit, I sound completely retarded don’t I? Like one of those idiots that dies their mane black and cuts themselves while bitching about how bleak the world is.... Uh... what are they called? Elmos or something.” I snorted in disgust. “Fucking idiots. Whatever.”

“Well you have a reason to bitch about it. Plus, if you go off the deep end, Trixie will just have to drag you back.”

I paused at the door that led outside. “You ready, Trix? Cast the invisibility spell, and I’ll have to fly us out of here. We’re not going back in the sewers with your hoof and my arm.”

Blue magic enveloped us. “Done,” she panted.

“Shit, you’ve been using way too much magic. If I wasn’t such a dumbass I’d have figured out more shadow magic and I’d be able to give you a break now and then. Goddesses damn it.”

“It’s fine. Trixie is fine. Keep going.” I wouldn’t have been surprised if she collapsed right then and there with the way her voice sounded. Shit. There I go mouthing like an idiot when she needs to get out of here.

“Alright, just...” I winced at how heavy she was panting and hated myself for my next sentence. “Try to breathe quietly. There’s wyverns out there.” Goddesses, damn it. What a bitchy thing to say. Please try to be less exhausted because I can’t carry my own freaking weight.

“Trixie is not a foal,” she hissed in my ear.

I just pushed the door open before I could say anything stupid again. After padding quietly for a moment, I paused when I noticed something unusual.

“Where are all the guards?” I asked as I looked around. “And the wyverns, and... where the fuck have they all gone?”

The patrols from earlier, the monsters that had been leashed... all of them were just gone... somewhere.

“What the heck...” I muttered as I looked around.

“Perhaps they’ve run away?” Hope and doubt mixed in those words.

I looked around nervously. “What would they have to run from? There were at least five hundred changelings here and we still don’t know where the Thirteenth went. I doubt Luna could have scared them off, given they possessed her.”

“Does it matter? We have to hurry to the capital.”

After a moment’s hesitation I spread my wings and started to fly. “I don’t like this. It’s like fucking White Peak all over again.”

“Well we won at White Peak, right?”

“You got stabbed and almost hung yourself. The entire town got wiped out. I almost died, got this nasty scar on my chest, and that was when I lost control the first time. Then Nightmare realized I was yours and she decided to brainwash me.” I would’ve looked back at her, but I was flying. “Hollow victory if you ask me.”

“Bad example?” she asked hesitantly.

“Nah, that’s the thing. I’m starting to think it’s a really good example.”

“What? Why?”

“Because this isn’t gonna end well. I don’t know how I know it, but... Crap. We’re following Luna into another mess where we don’t know bloody shit about anything. How could this possibly go well? We’re like, the two unluckiest sentients ever.”

“At least we’ve got each other,” she whispered in my ear.

For how long? Of course I didn’t say that. Instead I said, “Never knew you were such a romantic, Trix. Got any more corny one liners?”

“Shut up.”

Chapter 20

“Look at them all, so small and insignificant.” With my hooves outstretched, I pretended to squish them like bugs. “Their acts, no matter how great, are a mere drop in the ocean.”

“The more you talk, the more you sound like me,” chuckled Nightmare Moon.

“We are not thou!” My voice dropped back down a whisper, “We are nothing like thou.”

“Not so according to Gilda, and face it, she probably knows more about you than anyone else, and guess what? She thinks I’m better than you. Ha! Me! How does it feel to be consi-”

“Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up!” High above in the sky, well beyond the reach of any mortal, my voice was swallowed up by the endless void.

“Typical Luna, throwing a tantrum when things don’t go your way.” Eyes wide, I took a step back as Nightmare Moon slipped out from the darkness. “Breaking your toys when they don’t do what you want, tossing their lives away for shits and giggles. Even war was a game for you.”

“Wha- How...”

“Silly Luna, the more you reject me, the more powerful I become.”

A quick shake of my head cleared away the emotions clouding my mind, allowing me to see clearly. Instead of the tall, deadly Nightmare Moon, all that was present a shadowy representation. No substance, no strength. Just a swirling mass of black that took her form and spoke with her voice.

Cruel laughter rang out over the endless space as Nightmare said, “We are thou and thou art I.”

“Silence!” A single blade cut the shade in half, but it merely reformed. “We are nothing like thou. Thou art a monster, a miscreant, a representation of everything wrong in this world! Thy words are twisted upon themselves, a truth so corrupted they are the vilest of lies designed to bring us low. Thou revel in pain, sadness, anger, hopelessness.”

I paused, my entire body shuddering with repressed hate as I spat out, “We. Art. Not. Thou!”

Wings spread, mad laughter came from Nightmare Moon, and before my eyes, her body solidified, taking shape and color. Though she remained translucent, a perfect copy of Nightmare Moon stood before me. Then her eyes opened, fixing me with a stare that struck fear into my very core; I didn’t show it though, to show fear was to show weakness.

“You hide behind excuses and warped truths. Gilda can see it as clear as I, but you’re so far in your own delusions that you cannot even comprehend reality anymore.” My sword sliced at neck, but it passed through harmlessly. “Even Celly sees it. Why else do you think she doesn’t let you rule alongside her?”

“Shut. Up!” I tore at the illusion with all my magical might, but it didn’t even waver for a second. “Thou are an illusion. Thou are nothing more than an illusion! Thy words are lies and nothing more.”

Her hoof slammed into my cheek, sending me across the sky. A quick flap of my wings followed by a twist and I managed to right myself. With slow wing beats, I touched my cheek, the pain of the blow numbed by my shock. There before me stood Nightmare Moon in all her glory.

“This is the truth. This is reality.” She dashed at me and my blade passed harmlessly through her as her buck caught me in the chest, shattering my ribs. Coughing up blood, my magic darted over the wound and began healing it.

“This is your reality, not mine. This is how you perceive the world, and your perception is wrong!” I yelled as magic burst forth in all directions, if any living being had been caught in the explosion, their organs would have been liquefied in an instant. “You look at the world through tainted glasses.”

“And you look at the world through glasses so broken it’d make Discord throw up in disgust.”

Again and again she darted at me, striking from all directions with magic and might in equal measure. No matter how I moved, no matter what spells or tactics I used, they passed through her harmlessly. Every strike shattered bones, punctured organs, and severed limbs. All I knew was pain, a world of endless pain, and for the first time in my life, I was afraid of dying.

Slamming into the ground, I coughed up blood and was forced to use magic to pull air into and out of my lungs. Before a single wound was repaired, Nightmare landed next to me and pressed her hoof against my throat. Windpipe crushed, all my magic was redirected to fixing it, even as she kept crushing it.

“Now, you’re gonna be a good girl and listen, won’t you? Yes you will, because if you don’t, I will inflict even more pain on you, and trust me, I have a lot of interesting torture ideas that I saved up for Celestia.” Though the blood made it impossible to see, her cold smile was clearly visible. “And I do need a test dummy in case some of them cause her to die. After all, an immortal like me needs a pastime, and what’s a better hobby than torture?”

She spat in my eye, but it barely registered with the rest of my injuries. “You’re truly pathetic, you know that? At least I have the ability to admit to myself and the world that I’m a monster, but you? You hide like the scared little filly that you are. You disgust me. Even now, the world around you is going to ruins and you’re sitting up here, not doing a single thing. Life is meaningless to you, whereas for me, the act of taking a life is pleasure. Their mortality is a pleasure. But you? You derive nothing from it.”

A scream was torn from my lips as she stabbed a white hot needle through my eye. If she said anything else, I did not hear it. All I knew was pain. All I understood was pain. A part of me, a small, insane part that was still somehow lucid wondered if this was what death felt like. If this was what all my toys experienced before they died.

Then, she slowly drew the needle out. All that could be heard were my pitiful sobs as I lay broken on the marble floor.

“Oh, and one more thing.” The world around me melted away and I found myself once more hovering in midair above the world. “It was all a nightmare.”

Her mad laughter echoed in my mind and a shudder passed through my body. Dream or not, I could still feel the pain she had inflicted on me. Each blow, each cut, was etched in my mind. When I closed my left eye, all I saw was a blur, just as though it had actually been injured, and when I glanced down at my body, I saw magic dancing over my fur as though it had just repaired something.

“We are one and the same little filly, and don’t you forget it.”

Temperature meant nothing to me, but a shiver passed through my body. I simply hung there, her words echoing in my mind as though she was whispering them in my ear. Eventually though, I closed my eyes and my wings, allowing myself to plummet back to earth.

She was wrong and I was right. We were different. We were completely different from one another and I was going to prove it. Far below me, I felt a warm presence, one that could only belong to a nightkin. With that as my beacon, I began my rapid descent, all too eager and willing to return to the fight. I was going to prove that life actually meant something to me.

“Keep telling yourself that.”

I ignored the voice and instead focused on the target. If only I didn’t have a care in the world, this would have been perfect. I opened both eyes, watching as the ground gave way to cities then towns then little specs that could only have been gryphons. The sound barrier formed around me, but I merely shrugged it off. After all, now was not the time for grand entrances. And there, no brighter than the point of a needle, was a single campfire and two dots.

At the very last second, I flared my wings, throwing dust in all directions as I landed lightly on my hooves. I half expected a shout of rage, or perhaps an instant ill-advised attempt to claim my hide, but instead Gilda was asleep, and barely twitched as the gust I raised ruffled her feathers.

A bolt of magic slammed into my chest, causing me to grunt in pain. I followed the spell back to its source, and there stood Trixie, horn aglow with a scowl on her face.

“That was your one and only warning. Leave before the Great and Powerful Trixie decides to show you just how powerful she is.”

I glanced to the right as the gryphon shifted and mumbled in her sleep, but fortunately she did not rise. My gaze returned to the blue unicorn. “Do thou truly believe thou art able to battle an alicorn and win?”

“Trixie recalls kicking Nightmare’s flank once. A second time shall be simplicity itself.” She spread her legs to brace herself. “Now leave.”

“We are here to help,” I said calmly. “Surely thou do not believe thou can oppose the entire might of the gryphons unaided.”

“Trixie has Gilda with her. That is enough.” A bolt of magic slammed against my shield only to bounce off harmlessly. “Gilda does not want you here, she does not need you here!”

“What the fuck are you doing here‽”

Well, looks like Gilda was awake. Maybe we’ll have another sparring match, that’d be fun. Of course, saying that was just stupid, so instead I put on a smile and turned to face her, “We are here to help.”

“No, you were leaving,” snarled Trixie.

Gilda wasn’t shouting, she was growling levelly. “Unless you’re here to throw yourself on the fire- and goddesses damn it Trix, I said no fires- I don’t give a fuck why you’re here. Piss off.”

“That’s what Trixie was just saying,” replied the unicorn, completely ignoring the other point.

“Why the fuck would we want your help?” Gilda stalked forward angrily, and I readied my magic in case she attacked. “After every goddess damn thing you put us through, after this complete nightmare of a month, after everything you did, how the fuck could you possibly think that I wouldn’t just kill you?”

“Let us phrase this in a way thy single brain cell can understand, the entirety of the changeling army is within those city walls. Included in there are more gryphons than thou can count.” A low growl emitted from my throat as I stepped forward. “If thou care about Trixie’s wellbeing, thou will allow us to come with thee, otherwise both of you will die.”

“And how the fuck am I supposed to know that you won’t just kill the both of us anyway, or sacrifice us for some bullshit instant win ritual.” She jabbed her claw at me. “You’re a selfish fucking bitch who doesn’t care about us, so the only reason you’re here is because you want something. And the last time you wanted something,I got mutilated by your bitch of an alter ego.”

“Thank you.”

“If We did not care, then there would be nothing left. There would be a smoking crater where Aviana once stood, and thou wouldst have been caught in the blast. If We did not care, We would not have saved you from Nightmare Moon’s corrupt influence.” I stared her straight in the eyes and hissed, “Do not accuse us of not caring.”

“Even if it’s true,” smirked Nightmare in my mind. “The only reason you’re doing this is because you wish to prove me wrong. There’s not a fiber in your being that is actually doing this because it’s the right thing to do. And please, you don’t have the magic to blow up the place from the atmosphere.”

“Oh, geeze, you’re right.” Gilda snarled. “You put in the minimum fucking effort to stop me being a pet for the pony you hate most. I mean, I should just fall over and grovel for that shouldn’t I? Never mind the part where you let it happen, or where you were using me, or where Trixie almost died! Fuck you, Luna!” Now her knives were out, and I could feel her hold on the shadows around us tighten.

I simply examined my hoof. “Feel free to try, but thou cannot win.”

She just grinned at that, and out of the corner of my eye I noticed Trixie stiffen.

“Gilda...” whispered Trixie.

There was a slight change in Gilda’s posture at her one word, but a second later it was gone and she was on the verge of attack again. But still, she didn’t cross that line. She stood there for a few moments, half a second from motion.

“What do you want?” She spat out. “Why the fuck are you here?”

“We just told you,” I said.

“Bullshit!” She shrieked, and I had to block her first strike. “Bull, fucking, shit!” She screamed in my face as she tried to use her brute strength to push me off balance. “Why would you help us? Why the fuck would you ever help anyone?!”

“Maybe We are not the evil pony that thou thinks We are,” I replied calmly.

To my surprise, my hooves suddenly sank down and I found my front legs sinking into their own shadows. I barely blocked her next blow before I managed to pull myself out of the mire. Not before her paw slammed into my leg at the joint; if I was a normal pony it would have shattered. We traded blows until suddenly Gilda pulled away from me.

“You’re not evil. You’re fucking cold.” Gilda snarled. “Your only interest is yourself, and everyone else is just a sack of meat with a mouth. You don’t even care enough to be sadistic. Nightmare’s evil, I’m evil, but you’re just an alien. Some damned elder god returned to fuck with pony kind for no reason other than because you can.”

“We merely are,” I replied. “Does it matter what We are as long as We wish to help?”

“Because it’s a goddess damn whim! Because five minutes later you won’t give a shit and you’d kill both of us for an advantage. Or because you couldn’t trust us. Or because you had another fucking whim!”

“Please, when have We ever done that?” It took all my willpower not to smack that look off her face. “We are here to help.”

“How about the day after White Peak? Right after both of us nearly get killed in your fucking fight, you pawned both of us off for a recipe you didn’t even need! Why the fuck would you even need nightkin?”

“Thou wouldst not understand even if we explained it.”

“NO!” Gilda snarled. “Enough of your bullshit! Tell me what was so fucking important to you that it was worth both of us! No more of this it’s ‘over your head’ crap, I want to know damn it!”

“How about We deserve to know? How about, We want to share it with the world? How about, We miss nightkin. It had nothing to do with thee, so stop thinking it does. “

“And there it is!” Gilda shouted triumphantly and pulled away. “Because you wanted it, that’s it. Because you fucking wanted it for some petty bullshit loneliness that’s your own fucking fault. You don’t care at all, and you did the most evil fucking thing anyone ever did to me because you wanted to!”

“Does it matter? We are here to help.” Maybe if I said it enough times, it’d finally get through her thick skull.

“Yes it matters!” Her voice cracked as she screamed that at me. “It matters so fucking much that Celestia’s hiding the entire fucking world from you! Don’t you get it?! You destroy everything you touch! Since we’ve started, you’ve left nothing but a trail of corpses, and I’m the closest anyone’s gotten to you in a thousand years! Do you have any idea how fucked up that is?! How don’t you get it yet?!”

We stood there, staring at each other in silence as Trixie glanced between us, no doubt wanting to say something, but unsure of what to say.

“At least Nightmare actually wanted me to love her, even if the way she did it was completely evil. Nightmare craved the entire world’s love because she lost the one mare who could really give it to her. And if you haven’t realized it yet, Nightmare is you, bitch. She’s all the emotional baggage you can’t deal with, and everything she did is what you wanted. All you are is yourself without anything that ever made you a pony.”

A bark of laughter escaped. “Please, we loved Aurora first, Nightmare only appeared after her death.”

“And?! Nightmare is you! You loved Aurora, and you needed her. When she was gone Nightmare stepped in to fill the void and get you the love you need like a fucking changeling. Why else would it mean anything to you if ponies played at day and slept at night?”

“We are not Nightmare!” The earth cracked beneath my hooves. “And if thou even thinks that again, thou will regret it.”

“Read my fucking mind bitch!” She squared her shoulders. “Take your filthy fucking mind magic and take a peek. Because I’m right, and you don’t want to admit it. You.Are. Nightmare.”

My entire body trembled with rage. I might have felt a bit of remorse, a bit of sadness over her condition once, but now? Now I couldn’t care less. If she wanted to rush off and die, then let her. I was done with her and this world. Flicking my wings open, I leapt up into the air before vanishing with the crack of thunder.

I stood there for a moment, staring at the space where Luna had just been. It took a while, but slowly I realized she was gone. She wasn’t coming back. Luna wasn’t going to kill me right then and there.

“Fucking bitch!” I cursed and paced back in forth. “Filthy fucking whore!” I clenched my knife handles as the adrenaline slowly leaked out of my system. In its place was disappointment. “She was trembling!” My head snapped towards Trixie. “She was fucking trembling with anger! She was so pissed that she could barely control herself!” Walking towards Trixie, I growled in disgust. “Why’d she pussy out? Why the fuck didn’t she do it?”

“Gilda...” Trixie looked at me sadly and stepped back. “I’m sorry, but I can’t do this. I thought I could, but I can’t.”

I froze and glanced at her. All the anger in me was gone in an instant, and the hate went with it. I just stared at her, trying to place her words. “What do you mean?”

“This. Us. I can’t... I can’t take you constantly throwing yourself in harm’s way just for cheap thrills. I thought I could, I thought that you might get over it, but...” She looked at me as tears leaked down her cheeks. “You could have gotten killed. You were provoking Luna on purpose.”

“I...I... I had a point...” Goddesses that wasn’t the point and I know it. She didn’t care about that. “I mean... I....” Words and me were never friends. I’m not surprised they’re not with me now.

“I- I’m sorry...” And with those words, she simply began walking away.

“So... we’re breaking up?” I stared at her retreating figure, and for once I wasn’t interested in how firm and rounded it was.

If she heard me, she didn’t show it.

“That’s... good.” Right? I mean, it’s what I wanted wasn’t it? Trixie to move on and find someone who could be there for her. “Bye.” I raised my voice so she’d hear it but it cracked and kind of sounded like a really loud sob.

After less than a dozen steps, Trixie collapsed on the ground and I took a hesitant step towards her. Was... she hurt? I took another step, but... she wasn’t mine anymore. If she was sad then she had a right to be. Me going after her wouldn’t help, it’d just make this that much harder for her. But if she was hurt then I had to help her. She wasn’t my Trixie, but I couldn’t not help her.

I stood there in indecision, listening carefully for any sound of pain or just her sobbing. My heart was... I dunno. There was this dull ache, and... all I could think about was how much I wanted to hold her right then. Whether it was good for her or not I just wanted to hug her and beg her to stay and swear that I wasn’t gonna rush off again. Goddesses, I can be selfish.

Was this one of those moments? I mean, you hear about them. One important decision that you make that’ll decide the rest of your life and the lives of everyone around you. I mean, the only one in my life right now was Trixie. Heck, my life practically was Trixie. Without her I’d have died days ago, and the only reason I hadn’t was to keep her alive. Could I really just... not do that anymore? Make the decision that separated me and her and... that’s it? Walk into Aviana and meet the changeling horde head on and die?

Yes I could. Quite easily.

I blinked at that thought. ‘Easily’? Was... that the truth? Was I taking the easy way out? The simplest solution to the problem with the least pain in it for everyone? Isn’t that the right answer? The one that causes the least pain?

I knew that wasn’t true. The best answer is the one that fixes the problem the most thoroughly. The one that helps, not the one that does the least damage.

But... Trixie didn’t need to be fixed. She was damaged, but... she wasn’t broken. I wasn’t the one to fix her, I knew that. I couldn’t help anyone. So, was the easy way out the right choice? Leaving Trixie so she couldn’t get damaged or broken any further...

But that wasn’t the answer. Trixie was going to be hurt, no matter which choice I made. If I let her break things off, then of course that would hurt her. I mean... duh? How wouldn’t that damage her? But if she stayed with me... she could get hurt. If I died doing something stupid, then yeah she’d get hurt, but would that make any difference? If I left now, she’d know that I left to just go and die anyway. It’d be out of sight, but not out of mind. If she stayed with me though... what if I didn’t die? I mean, what if I could be there for her? She didn’t have to get hurt.

I’m like Nightmare. I’m nothing but emotional baggage and bad habits, but can’t you change? Couldn’t I change? I’d do anything for Trixie. So why couldn’t I change for her? I could stop being bad news, couldn’t I? I could drop the alcohol, forget the knives and violence, and be there for her. I’m the only one saying that I’m gonna hurt her. I’ve been wrong before. Why can’t I be wrong now?

What if... the best solution isn’t the one that causes her the least pain, what if it’s the one that... fixes me?

I blinked at that.

Trixie wasn’t the one that needed help. She was fine before she met me, she’d be fine after. But even as far back as the bar fight that started it all, I was broken. Damaged goods trying to die. I was the puzzle piece that didn’t fit in this picture. The leg of the table that’s crooked.

For this picture to work, for Trixie to be happy, for me not to hurt her, I needed to be fixed. For Trixie to get out of this undamaged, I needed to change. I needed to let her fix me.

My choices were simple. Accept the situation, accept that I’m Nightmare and hurt Trixie as little as I could. Or I could do the selfless, and at the same time selfish, thing and stay with her. Really give myself the chance to change and undo the damage that was here, and be with her, for her. One way she was getting hurt, the other way she would get really hurt if I fucked up. Play it safe, or just go for it and risk both of us. Calisto always told me to hedge my bets. To be cautious and never get carried away with any one idea. If things could go wrong, they would, and I’d lose everything. If Ilistened to him, I’d do the smart thing and walk away.

Hope is not a plan.

But you know what? Fuck that prick. He’s dead anyway.

I walked the dozen paces to Trixie, and stood behind her. Now it was time for words. I opened my beak to speak, but couldn’t think of anything to say. She needed to know that I was gonna be there for her. That I would be what she needed me to be, even if it cost both of us everything. But words failed me. The bastards weren’t there when I needed them. Like always, my charisma and charm condemned me before it saved me.

Actions speak louder than words anyway.

I lay down next to Trixie, and draped a wing over her shoulder. I didn’t look at her face, because I wasn’t sure what I’d see.

“You’re right, Trixie... and I’m right too. I can’t be there for you like I am. There’s too much that’s wrong with me... but you’re right too. I need help... I always needed help... You deserve someone better than me, but that someone could be me. I can be better. You can fix me, and... could I be what you deserve? I don’t know, but... fuck it. I never had the answers anyway. I’ll be there for you, no matter what, and that means being better than I am. Maybe I’ll fuck up anyway, and you’ll be worse than ever for it, but maybe I’ll get it right... maybe I can change. So I’m gonna try. You deserve someone better than me, but you want me anyway. Fucking fine then. I’ll be that someone.”

We sat there silently for a long time before I got the nerve to look her in the eyes, and when I did, all I saw was joy. I’m not a sap and I’ve never ever read any romance novels, but her eyes were sparkling. Next thing I knew, I was on my back and her lips were pressed against my beak. It was passionate, there was tongue, and claws may have roamed. By the time she pulled back, we were both breathing heavily, but we stayed within each other’s arms.

“Thank you,” she whispered against my beak before moving in for another heated kiss.

I ripped the gryphon before me in half with my magic before crushing another’s skull under my hooves. Skipping back, one sword went for a low sweep and it didn’t matter if he blocked it or jumped over it, another three descended on his neck, chest and flank. With his dead body, I blocked the arrows aimed at me before I leapt forward. Three cuts, three dead soldiers.

“Come on!” I screamed as I took to the skies in search of more enemies.

Stupid gryphons. All of them were idiots! And how dare she. How dare she insult me. How dare she talk back to me. I wanted to rip her throat out and keep her alive with my magic as I tortured her, as I cut off her limbs and made her eat them raw.

I hit the ground at supersonic speeds, creating a crater the size of a building. Before the dust had even begun thinking of settling, the nearby soldiers were dead. Except one. Grabbing one of the broken metal pieces that laid about, I melted it down before forming it into a thin strand. With my hoof against his neck, I began pushing the white hot molten strand into his eye. His screams sent shivers through my entire body and a mad little giggle escaped.

“Do thou like that? Do thou enjoy that?” I made sure to pump magic into his frail body so that he’d stay conscious. “Are We enough of a monster for thee?”

I stepped off his body and black tentacles wrapped around his limbs, hoisting him up into the air before me. For a second, fear flickered behind those dead eyes and a smirk found its way onto my muzzle. The tentacles began pulling in opposite directions and hoarse screams were torn from his throat. Then came the popping as joints dislocated.

“Oh yes my little insect friends, I’m coming for you. I’m coming for each and every single last one of you. This is just a warm up, a test run of all the lovely things I’ll do to you.” My serpentine iris were reflected back to me in his remaining golden eye. “And we shall make thee pay of thy transgressions.”

Blood sprayed in all directions as he was torn apart just inches from my face.

“Do you hear that!?” I screamed into the night. “We shall make thee pay!”

More soldiers rushed at me, but what did I care? I cut them down, I cut them all down. Magic and might working together to obliterate armies just like in the past. Every cut, every wound, just bought more laughter from within me as I let my rage fuel my blows. Why kill when I could overkill? Why be merciful to the merciless?

Some were screaming, others were pleading, and all cried. How pathetic. How insignificant. This was the futility of mortal life. This was the power of a goddess. How dare they question me.

“I couldn’t have said it better myself.”

“Thou!” I spun around, my blade passing harmlessly through Nightmare Moon’s neck. “We are going to tear thou to shreds!”

“Why? Because you can’t face the truth?” A bolt of black magic shot out, consuming the flesh of the gryphon as she screamed in pain.

“We are nothing like thou,” I hissed as I bought a building down on top of her.

“You are exactly like me.” She vanished from sight and appeared right next to me. “You manipulate. You revel in pain. You delight in war. You are a monster, just like me.”

“No!” I reached out to the moon and brought a single pillar of moonlight on her. By the time the light had faded, there was nothing left except a bottomless hole the size of a city block. There was no rubble, no screams, and no gryphons. Sweat dripped from my brow as I panted like a dog. Even the swords in my grasp shook uncontrollably.

“Really? Then look behind you little Lulu. Look and see the destruction that you caused.” When I continued to stare at her, she growled and forced my head to turn. “Look!”

Death and destruction. The streets were painted red, body parts were strewn about, and skeletons littered the streets. No buildings were left standing, no gryphon was spared, not even the young.

“N-No...” I took a step back and collapsed in the river of blood I had created. “W-We... we did no-”

“Oh yes, yes you did,” chuckled Nightmare in my ear. “I particularly loved the bit where you castrated the poor guy and made him eat it; all while you were ranting and raving about Gilda. Loved it. Couldn’t have done it better myself.”

“Lies! We never did that!”

“Yes you did.” She licked my blood soaked cheek. “You will find you most certainly did.”

“N-No...” Even to my ears the word sounded weak.

“You are a monster.” Once more she forced me to look at the destruction I had caused. “Are you not? What other sort of being could do something like this?”

“We’re not... We’re...” Tears mingled with the blood. “We are a monster. We are no better than thou...”

“Bingo kiddo.” Nightmare wrapped a wing around my torso. “Why keep fighting? The world thinks you’re a monster, so you might as well be one. You might as well show them what a real monster can do. Gilda, Blueblood, they all toss the word around as though they know what it means. They insulted you, lied to you, spat in your face. Are you just going to let that slide?”

“No...” I whispered softly, before fixing Nightmare with a glare. “But that does not mean We should act upon our petty emotions. They insulted us,and lied to us, and they shall not be forgiven, but we shall not seek revenge. If we wish to reclaim the throne, we need to learn to let go.”

“But why share? Why change at all?” As soon as I pulled away from her seductive whisper, she hissed at me, “You are a foal! You could have everything you ever dreamed!”

“At the cost of everything We hold dear!” I yelled back and this time, I managed to rip her to shreds with my magic. I simply stood there in the blood soaked street, panting heavily even as more changelings and brain-deads emerged from the shadows.

“While this slaughter is fun, it shall get us nowhere.” It felt weird admitting my own perversions aloud, but also somehow liberating. I took to the air once more and began angling my way towards the castle. “It is time to end this.”

I expected there to be gryphons in the air harassing me, maybe even some changelings, but they all ignored me. Instead, the sky was completely clear except for some dark rain clouds, but that was of no concern to me. Soon it became apparent just why everything was so death still. Down below me, changelings fought gryphons in the very streets, and the closer I got to the castle, the denser the fighting became. Still, why was the air space so empty? That made no tactical sen-

My eyes widened as I focused on the gryphons. Then I let out a long string of oaths in three different languages that would have made Gilda blush and Trixie faint. They had bulging muscles, armored ridges on their shoulders, bone protrusions on their elbows and they had skeletal wings. Some idiot decided to give them the chemicals without the ritual.

Fortunately, they couldn’t take into the air to chase me so I simply flew over the courtyard. I charged up my horn and blasted a hole in the tower wall before landing lightly on my hooves. Six blades were immediately drawn as I began rushing through the halls, quickly making my way to the throne room. But there were no gryphons, no guards, no civilians. All that existed was the echoes of my hoofbeats and my heavy panting.

With a bone shattering buck, the heavy doors of the throne room were thrown open and I quickly made my way in. There before me was the king. His golden feathers were marred with blood, and his brown coat was covered with scratches and burns. His crown feathers were shredded and in tatters, and he seemed to be scratching the floor with broken and chipped claws.

“I’ll save them,” he mumbled, and I realized he wasn’t scratching, he was drawing. With his own claws and blood he was drawing something on the floor. “My gryphons. Mine. I’ll save them. The beasts will die, all of them. We’ll burn them and slash them and kill them, and we’ll protect the innocent. We’ll protect them till our death.”

I eased my way over, my eyes constantly darting around the room looking for any signs of ambush. He didn’t even seem to realize I was there as he kept mumbling jumbled phrases under his breath while he drew. Standing a few feet away, I looked over at the thing he was drawing and my mouth immediately dried up. Those were the runes to the ritual, surely he wasn’t so insane as to perform it with his own blood.

“Grace.” He chuckled. “Loyal, strong. Shame he looks like a girl. He’ll prove them wrong. The weather factory. He’ll make it. No one can stop him. He’ll do what he has to, and the beasts will die.”

“The weather factory? What is so important about the weather fac-” My eyes widened in realization. “Thou art a foal! A useless foal!” I screamed at the monarch and he turned to face me, but my sword was already descending. Beheading someone never felt more satisfying in my life.

Blasting a hole in the room, I immediately raced out, running straight into a thick layer of rainclouds. I forced my way through and when I burst through the other side, the cloud factory was nowhere in sight. Dropping back under, I scanned the area and still nothing.

Damn it!

Gilda, I needed Gilda. She would know where the factory was. That is... if she’d even talk to me. No, she will listen, and if she won’t, I’ll just force her to listen. After all, this was bigger than any petty grudge.

I frowned at the sky as we walked along. “Why are there rain clouds in late autumn? Shit. It’s only a few days till winter starts. Are they trying to freeze the non-gryphons to death?”

“You don’t hear Trixie complaining,” said Trixie from beneath my wing.

Smirking at her, I folded my wing in and let her spend a moment in her own skin. Our breath was frosting as it came out, and the small breeze only brought chilled air from the mountains to the east. Winter was coming, and it was gonna be a bloody cold one.

“Complaining yet?”

“Sh-Shut up.” I blinked and all of a sudden she was under my wing again, snuggled up against my side.

I looked up again and frowned at the sky again. “Seriously, why would they do that? Those are rain clouds.”

“Does it matter?” asked Trixie. “Come on, we have to get to the palace and find Grace.”

“Not to us... but...” After a moment I shrugged. “Whatever. You’re right, we need to keep going.”

We’d been flying earlier that morning, but the air got too cold after a while, and I’m not risking Trixie to hypothermia just ‘cause she likes flying. She offered to cast that insulation spell, but saving her magic for the inevitable upcoming fight seemed more important.

I had other things on my mind too. “Seriously. Why didn’t Luna try to kill me?” I caught her look and hastily continued. “I mean, not like that. I mean, what reason would she have not to?”

“How is Trixie supposed to know?”

“Fair enough,” I replied and we kept walking in silence for a while. Things had quieted down between us since Luna had left and I’d agreed to try and stay with Trixie. It wasn’t uncomfortable silence either, just that both of us didn’t really need to say anything.

The sky was bugging me though. I couldn’t tell you why for the life of me, but my gut just wouldn’t let me forget the rolling grey mass of precipitation overhead.

“Maybe I should fly up there and check it out.” I continued to stare. “Maybe it’s a rogue storm or something.”

“Just hurry back, Trixie will miss her blanket if you’re gone for too long.”

“Alright, thanks.” I told her and spread my wings. “I’ll be back real quick.”

After a quick peck on the cheek from her, I was in the air and making my way to the rolling mass of grey. As I got closer, I noticed that there weren’t any gryphons working this weather. The fuck? This was a wild storm. Why the heck were they letting a wild storm roll on over Aviana? I rose above it after a while, and started searching for any sign of gryphon intervention.

Nope. None.

“The fuck?” I frowned and started to feel up some of the clouds. Not that they could tell me much. I didn’t work in weather.

After a second I flew back down and found myself drawing to halt as I found myself seeing... a pegasus?

“The fuck?”

As the pegasus drew closer to me, I noticed the horn on its head, and found myself touching my knives.

“What are you doing here?” I shouted as she drew to a halt not too far from me.

“No time to talk, Grace is dumping the chemicals in the cloud factory. Thou needs to show us where the factory is so we can stop him,” she said between pants.

I stared at her for a second before I glanced back down and saw the blue shape of Trixie. Remember her, remember her. Forget that Luna just tried to get your help in killing your brother, just turn around and fly away.

With some effort I did, though in the back of my head I could hear Hate and Anger begging me to turn around cut the bitch’s wings off. I steadily made my way back to Trix, and prayed that Luna wasn’t going to follow me.

“Are thou deaf! If Grace succeeds, the rain would render the entire area contaminated! All sentient beings will become monsters!”

I grit my beak as I heard that voice. Shut up, go away. Shut up, go away. Remember Trixie, remember Trixie.

I started to flap my wings harder and pick up speed as I flew back to Trixie. With a firm grip on my magic, drag reduced and I was moving really fast. Fast enough that all I could hear was the sound of wind whistling.

Too soon I had to slow down and draw to halt, as I landed in front of a surprised Trixie. Please tell me she didn’t follow me here.

To my disappointment I heard Luna called out to me again. “This is no time to let grudges dominate thy thinking. This is vital for the survival of a nation!”

I cringed and my talons drew gouges in the soil. “G-g-go away.” Hate was reaching for the control panel. Anger was egging him on. I might have been trembling. “Find someone else,” I spat over my shoulder, and looked back at Trixie.

“As soon as thou point us in the right direction!”

“That way!” I pointed in some random direction, praying she’d leave.

“That’s the opposite direction of Aviana... Art thou certain?”

“NO!” I snarled at her, and realized I was no longer staring at the blue of Trixie, but the blue of Luna. “Are you fucking retarded? Of course it’s not that way!”

“Then which way is it?” she asked completely straight faced.

“The upper end you fuck wit! Just go! Get out of here!” I was dimly aware I was moving closer to her, and I had my knives out, and that I was pulling all the shadows I could towards me.

“Gilda!” snapped Trixie

It was like a lifeline. Her voice slapped Hate and Anger away for a moment, and I came to a halt. Slowly I took a step backwards, though I was aware I was close enough to Luna to pounce and just start ripping in.

“P-p-please just go.” I was begging. Holy shit I was begging. But I needed Luna to go. She needed to leave. I needed to be there for Trixie, and if Luna kept talking I’d lose myself. “Go!” I spat out when I realized I just couldn't bring myself to take another step back.

“Um...” Luna glanced over at Trixie for help. “Just tell us where the-”

I roared and dived at her, both knives out and aiming for her throat. Trixie was screaming my name, and Luna was drawing her six swords as she parried my attack. Her hoof collided with my gut, and I was flung back, though I breathed out to help keep myself from being winded.

Slowly, I pushed myself up, and the hurt I felt spurred me onwards as Trixie’s voice was drowned out by the roaring in my ears and the laughter crawling out of my throat. Oh goddesses, was it great. Luna had been holding back on me. Now she was using her magic and all her swords and... She was so much better here than she was when sparring! I didn’t stand a fucking chance!

Hate and Anger danced in my eyes as Luna slapped me with the blunt of her sword and shouted something at me. I drank whatever it was in and only tried that much harder! It was so, fucking, great. The pain just made it better.

I found myself collapsed on the ground when she swept my legs out from under me. Then I realized something. She was still holding back on me. I was on my back, and sucking air into my lungs as she shouted something at me, and she wasn’t killing me.

I clenched my beak as I rose to my feet. She wasn’t doing it. She wasn’t gonna do it. That. Fucking. Bitch!

“Fucking do it!” I shrieked as I closed with her again.

“Do what?!” She shouted back in confusion. “What are thou talking about?”

I didn’t answer her, as I found my way past her guard. I have no fucking clue how, but somehow between her magic, her swords and my battered and bruised body I cut her. Not deep, not even crippling. Just a stinging bloody line down her cheek.

I have no idea why, but that’s what got me. That. I’d... scratched her. That was it. With everything I had, and even with her holding back that was all I could do. I could... scratch her.

My momentary distraction had me pinned and on my back with her swords at my neck.

“Stop this madness!” She ordered.

To me she may as well have said ‘mwah mwah ma mwah maw’.

My grip on my knife tightened, and my mind darted to her spine. Even then... the other part of me went to... the one thing that actually mattered anymore. I tilted my head so I was staring at Trixie, and I watched the tears rolling down her face. The absolute heartbreak in her face as she watched me end myself.

Luna said something but... I didn’t care. All I felt was this... disgust. This realization of... what the fuck am I doing?

With a kick of my legs, I threw Luna off me and stood up. Slowly, on bruised and hurt legs I trudged back to Trixie. My knives dropped to the ground and I didn’t pick them up as I boxed away Hate and Anger. It wasn’t easy. There was a struggle in my head as they tried to take over again, to push me in the other direction, back towards my painful death. It was what I deserved, yeah. It was fair. Me dying. But... who the fuck said this was about me?

I drew to a halt in front of Trixie. Just staring at her as she stared up at me with tears in her eyes.

“I... made a promise.” I swallowed as I tried to find the words. “I said I was going to protect you, take you back to Equestria and keep you safe.” There was a pause and I lay down in front of her. “I can’t do that if I’m dead.”

She knelt down before me and cradled my head against her chest. “No... no you can’t...”

“There’s something I need to tell you.” I looked up into her eyes.

“Wha-what?”

It took me a moment, to realize what she thought I was about to say. “No, I wasn’t gonna say I love you or some cheesy shit like that.” I caught the look she was giving me and rapidly continued. “Not that I don’t, but... that wasn’t what I was gonna tell you. I mean... uh... Since that night at mom’s house, I’ve been having nightmares. Every single night since then, I’ve been dreaming that Nightmare possessed me, and I was her pet, and that she was making me torture you each and every night. That’s why I’ve been having such a hard time sleeping lately. It doesn’t really matter now... but I can’t keep secrets from you anymore. If we’re gonna fix me, I need to stop hiding what’s wrong with me.”

“You silly gryphon.” She smacked me across the head then proceeded to kiss me senseless. “You stupid, sexy, silly gryphon.”

“Ever since White Peak, I’ve... Nightmare... she told me to tap into my emotions and... I did. I don’t know why, but since then I’ve just... completely fucking lost it. I... can’t control myself. Every time Luna speaks, or I see something dangerous, or... shit a lot of things, I just go berserk. This is the first time since then that I’ve been able to stop myself, and that was only after... You saw. I’m sorry Trix. I’m really fucking sorry. I promised to stop, and I’m trying. I really am.”

“You did stop though.” She hauled me onto my feet and embraced me. “You stopped and that’s all that matters.”

I hugged her back, and wrapped my wings around her. “I’m so sorry. Oh goddesses I’m sorry.”

“Shhhh...” She rubbed my neck lovingly. “It’s alright. It’s fine.”

“W-w-we need to go.” I hugged her tighter. “I can’t stay in Aviana any longer. After we’ve found Grace we’re going home no matter what happens. I don’t give a fuck what it is that drags us back in, we’re leaving,”

“Trixie understands.” With her hooves around me, I felt safer and calmer than I had in a long time.

Slowly I turned around to face Luna, my mind still clouded with anger, but... it was controllable. I wasn’t gonna lose it again.

“Why do you need to go to the weather factory? Why should I help you?” After a second I added, “And what was that about Grace?”

“Grace is putting the chemicals into the rainclouds. It will turn every living thing in the immediate vicinity into monsters,” said Luna.

It took a moment for all of that to sink in. “What?” I asked dumbly and looked back up at the clouds. “What?! Why the fuck would he do that?!”

“We do not know, perhaps he knows not what he is doing. Regardless, we need to stop him before it’s too late.”

I frowned at her, “How do you know that? I’m not helping you kill Grace!”

“Well then thou better hope thou can talk him down,” snapped Luna. “We have no time for arguments! We need to move, now!”

“What about survivors?” asked Trixie. “We cannot leave them to die!”

“Trixie’s right. This shit is fucked. We need to do more than just stop Grace, he could have already mixed it in with the clouds, and it just hasn’t started raining yet.”

“Very well, We shall stop Grace while you two find survivors and lead them away,” said Luna.

“Fuck that!” I spat. “Grace is my brother, I’m not letting you kill him.”

Luna opened her mouth to say something, only for her to close it after a second. “Very well, as long as thou believe thou art capable of defeating thy brother in armed combat.”

I hesitated for a second. Actually, I really wasn’t sure if I could. Grace was a fully trained Wide Eyes and the king’s hand. You don’t get that rank without experience on the field.

“It won’t come to that.” I said firmly. “I’ll talk him out of it, and if it’s too late then it’s too late.”

Luna scrutinized me before sighing. “Come here. We shall transfer some rudimentary knowledge of your new powers to you so you can at least put up a decent fight if it comes to that.”

“Fuck that,” I spat. “You’re not getting in my head ever again.”

“Then we cannot let thou go alone. We shall accompany thou,” she said.

“No! Goddesses damnit, Luna. We can’t rely on us stopping him. What if it’s already in the clouds? Having both of us there won’t change anything. If that happens you need to save as many gryphons as you can.”

“What if it’s not in the clouds already?” asked Luna.

“Shut up!” We both stared at Trixie in surprise. “Trixie is going with Gilda. As a last ditch, we can at least blow up the cloud generator. Luna, you go and save as many as possible. Happy?”

After a few moments I shook my head, “No Trix, Grace is a trained killer. I don’t want you coming if there’s the chance he might attack. You still have the powders from Ashguard, right? Give me those and I can destroy the cloud generators myself.”

“Thou hath zeb powders? Very well, thou hast the duty of taking care of Grace. Trixie, with me.” Luna flared her wings and immediately began searching from above. “There seems to be some survivors this way! At least they don’t look like monsters.”

“Pass them over, Trix,” I held out my arm to her. “I swear I’m not trying to run myself down again.”

“You better not be.” She shoved the bags into my chest before giving me a lingering kiss. “A little something so you’ll come back to me.”

“It’ll be fine,” I promised her. “It’s Grace we’re talking about. He’s not gonna try and kill me.”

“Well then you just got a free kiss,” she smirked at me and turned around, giving me a perfect view of her assets before her tail smacked in the face. “Mind on the job.”

“Right sorry,” I mumbled as I belted on her saddlebags. It was tight and an awkward fit, but whatever. After another second’s hesitation I said, “Bye,” before I spread my wings and took to the air.

Chapter 21

“Trixie! We have seen somegryph to the east!” I called down as I began angling to the right. “A large building, perhaps a warehouse of some sort.”

Down below me, Trixie kept running along, barely able to keep up with the speed I was moving at. I flared my wings and landed lightly on the ground before the building. With my magic I began probing the surrounding area, looking for any signs of life or movement, and almost immediately, I found something in the building before me just like I had expected.

“This better not be another false positive,” panted Trixie when she finally caught up.

“And if thou moved a bit faster we could have saved many more by now,” I said as I blasted the door down.

“Even Trixie has to admit that was a tad excessive. Have you ever heard of knocking?”

“Silence.” I began walking forward, tossing a glowing sphere of light into the building as I went. “Hello! We mean thou no harm!”

Still no response.

“If there was anyone in there, you’ve scared them,” sighed Trixie.

“Well what did you ex-” All the warning I got was movement from the corner of my eye before an arrow embedded itself in the doorframe next to me. “Thou missed.”

“That was a warning shot,” growled a voice from one of the dark corners of the room. “The next shot will not miss. Now leave, these gryphons are under my charge.”

“Thou dare threaten a goddess?” Just as I began reaching out with my magic, Trixie placed a hoof on my shoulder and I sighed. “Very well then, I won’t castrate him where he stands.”

“Luna...” warned Trixie and I rolled my eyes. “Remember what we said about things being done differently now?”

“We do not have time for being nice!” I said. “As soon as it starts raining, everything will go to Tartarus. The quickest and most efficient manner to do any of this is to just forcibly teleport them out of here.”

“Oh no you don’t, if I see either of your horns glow, I’m going to put an arrow through your eye.”

“Silence knave!” He suddenly found himself before me and a sword at his throat. “Thou was not spoke to, so do not speak! Now where were We? Ah yes.” I turned back to Trixie. “We do not have time to be nice. We need to act quickly and efficiently to save as many as possible.”

“Luna, behi-”

I caught the arrows without a second thought. “Really, We would never hath though manners could degenerate so quickly in a thousand years. Can none of thee see we are trying to have a civil conversation here?”

“Luna, drop the fo- cub! Trixie means cub. Drop the cub.”

“Does thou promise the behave?” The whelp nodded his head and I released him.

“Now the sword. This is a civil conversation after all.”

“The sword is for self-defense,” I replied.

“You don’t need a sword for self-defense, you’re a fucking alicorn!”

I eyed her critically. “Thou sound more like Gilda every day. Very well.” I dispelled the sword. “Now can you please tell those whelps to drop their toys?”

There was a moment of silence.

“Or do We need to disarm all of thou personally?” The sound of weapons hitting the floor was heard. “Now, was that so hard?”

“Oh Tartarus, once this is all over, Trixie needs a drink. How did she get saddled with you?”

“A drink! Oh yes, a drink would be absolutely superb.” I smiled happily, that seemed to only disturb the whelp. “And what art thou staring at?”

“You killed my father,” he said while glaring at me.

“Oh.” A shrug. “Join the line cub, We hath killed many. Perhaps once thou art older We shall give thou the privilege of fighting us in a duel. Regardless, today it is our duty to save all of thou from a fate worse than death.”

“I don’t believe you.”

A groan of frustration escaped. “We do not care. You are coming, and that is final.”

“No we’re not!” yelled a voice from behind me. “We’re not going with a monster like you! You killed daddy and mommy!”

“Yeah! We’d rather die than go with you!” yelled another.

Somewhere, another cub began sobbing, crying out for her parents and sisters.

“What did my brother ever do to you? He was just working for the king and doing ex-exper-”

“Experiments?” supplied Trixie.

“Yeah! That! He said it’d help everygryph, and how it’d improve our lives. I didn’t get it, but it sounded important,” said another.

“We took you into our castle,” whispered the one before me. “And in return you killed everygryph! You’re a monster!” With tears in his eyes, he lunged at me and I conjured my sword. At the very last second though, Trixie grabbed the cub and pulled him back just before he could impale himself. “You’re evil! I hate you!”

“Trixie frankly agrees. Luna is evil, there is a reason why she was banished to the moon for a thousand years.” The showmare glared at me, but I just rolled my eyes.

“Just leave!” A more mature sounding voice called out from the darkness. My eyes tracked a soldier emerging from the shadows, and though it was empty, he kept one claw at the sheath on his hip. “Whatever help you’re here to give us, we don’t want it.”

“And to think thou wouldst let the child speak for thee.”

The soldier shrugged. “He had something to say to you, I let him to say it.”

“You allowed a child talk to a mad, sociopathic filly.” Trixie sounded caught between anger, exasperation and disbelief. “Luna could have killed them all!”

“Don’t tempt us,” I muttered under my breath.

“I’m a soldier, not a parent.” It was at that time I noticed how young he looked. “If that mad bitch wants to kill us, then she’ll do it. What the fuck do you want me to do about it?”

“How about you follow us out of Aviana? We’re trying to locate survivors and take them out before things start getting really bad,” said Trixie. “Those clouds are being loaded up with poison, we’re trying to stop it, but better safe than sorry.”

He snorted. “Really bad? Lady, since this morning I’ve seen my regiment butchered, my C.O. torn in half by my dad turned into a monster, and found myself looking after...” He glanced over his shoulder. “Shit, I don’t know how many cubs.” He fixed his gaze on Luna. “Excuse me if I don’t exactly believe you when the insane god that attacked the palace shows up and offers to save us all while threatening to kill us if we don’t go with her.” At this distance I could smell alcohol on his breath. “Why should I trust either of you?”

“Do you have anything to lose?” countered Trixie before I could say anything.

He glanced around and shrugged. “Shelter?Pride? Any chance of survival I had?”

“And if changelings finds thou?” I asked. “Does thou think thou can hold them off? What if those monsters find thou? We are the best chance of survival thou has.”

He shrugged again. “So, we can hide in here and maybe not get spotted, or go out there with you and definitely get spotted. I doubt I’m the only one that doesn’t want to put their life in her hands.” He tilted his head at Luna. After a second he corrected himself. “Hooves, whatever.”

“Very well.” I turned around and began walking out the warehouse. “Their deaths shall be on thy head.”

“H-hold on!” He shouted out at me. “You say we should trust you, but then you just turn around and walk away? Give us a reason to trust you, damn it. Of course we want to fucking live.”

“We hath wasted enough time here. There are others to save,” I snapped.

“Luna! Come on, we have to at least try,” said Trixie.

“Then thou can speak to them, but We are leaving,” I said.

“Five minutes. Just five minutes,” Trixie pressed on and I sighed, waving at her to get on with it.

The soldier stepped closer to Trixie, and stood there waiting for her to present her case.

“If you don’t come with us, I’ll have Luna bind you and drag you out with us against your will,” she said. “You will die in here, but if you come with us, Luna can at least protect you. Think about it, she fought her way out of the fucking palace. If she can do that, some monsters won’t pose a threat at all.”

“Lady, I don’t doubt she can fight, but what if she turns on us? What if things get hard and she decides to cut her losses? The entire Thirteenth Legion is going through the streets and killing or capturing everyone that’s not already a monster. Is she really gonna even bother trying to protect these cubs if that comes at her?”

“The entire Thirteenth did thou say?” A smirk crossed my lips. “That should be fun.”

“Agreed, but if it comes to that, you’ll need my help.”

“Perhaps, perhaps not. Every single time we have trusted thou in the past has led to thou taking control for longer than the appointed time.”

“Trixie is just glad Gilda’s not here,” she sighed. “Though Trixie would prefer to be with Gilda right now. As for your concern, you have no guarantee that she won’t do that, but neither does Trixie.”

He frowned. “Who’s Trixie, and what’s she got to do with this?”

“Enough! Trixie, we are leaving.” I turned and immediately stormed out the door.

“Alright, alright!” He shouted at me. “Fuck it. We’re dead anyway.” There was a pause before he added. “Fine, we’ll go with you.”

“What! But big bro-”

“Shhhhh, it’ll be fine little sis, I promise. I won’t let anything happen to you. To any of you. I swear on my duty as a guard.”

“Finally,” I growled as I took to the air. “Trixie, stay with them and send up a flare if thou runs into trouble.”

“Running away?” asked Trixie. “Why is Trixie not surprised? You finally come face to face with the consequences of your actions and you run away like a scared little filly.”

“Do not test our patience,” I snarled. “Keep the children away from us or face the consequences.”

There was a pregnant pause before the guard said, “She’s a real bitch, isn’t she?”

“We heard that!” I called down from the sky as I slowly began circling. “Also, get the guard up here, as well as a child. Seeing them might draw more out of hiding.”

“You want to put a cub at risk?” The guard shouted up at me, before he drew level and began circling around. “You aren’t my C.O. No way I’m letting that happen without orders.”

“Save more or save less, the choice rests with thee.” I turned a critical eye to the clouds above us. “We also have to hurry, these clouds are beginning to reach critical mass.”

My back slammed into the wall, and a gryphon the size of a carriage roared at me. I barely rolled out of the way in time to avoid being made into pulp. The clouds may have been as soft as anything, but the brick of the weather station was as hard as, well, brick.

I scrambled to my feet and bolted up the stairs, that beast’s lumbering footsteps just a second behind me. What the fuck did it take to kill these things? I’d cut its throat, damn it! It was spurting from arteries and leaking at veins and it was still coming. All I can say is I’m glad the fuckers can’t fly, or I’d really be fucked.

Ahead I saw a supply door, and with a burst of speed I smashed through it and into the sunlight. I didn’t wait for my vision to clear, before I spread my wings and tried to fly out of its reach. Not fast enough, because a talon wrapped around my leg and I was slammed into the wall like a cub’s toy. It raised its arm to do that again, but even dazed, I snatched onto the railing and the sudden jerk yanked me out if its grip. Looking across from me, I saw a dead, brain-dead soldier, lying next to a changeling that had been torn in half. Reaching out desperately, I snatched up his longsword and turned around just in time as the beast reached for me again.

It jerked back with a scream of pain and rage as it’s hand went flying off, and rearing on its hind legs like that, it was easy to shove the blade through its throat and out the back of its neck, cutting its spine. I allowed myself a moment to relish victory, as the beast tottered unsteadily, but realized my mistake only after it started to fall towards me.

“Oh shit.” I gasped out as it collapsed on top of me. All the air was smacked out of my lungs, and I my eyes bugged as I was crushed beneath its weight.

With a grunt of exertion I started to push it off, but fuck me, that thing had to weigh a ton. I tried to wiggle out from under it, but I was bloody pinned. I shoved as hard as I could, but I wasn't able to do it. The thing was too fucking heavy. My arms gave out, and the little bit that I’d raised it was undone as it fell back on top of me.

I would have laughed at the situation, but I was having trouble breathing. Where’s a unicorn when you need one?

Suddenly the creature was rolled off me, and in surprise, I shielded my eyes from the sunlight as I caught sight of my savior’s silhouette.

My ‘savior’ roared at me in incoherent rage.

“Mother fucker!” I rolled backwards away from its lumbering first strike, and with the sword, I slashed its chest as it charged past me. The beast slammed into the railings, and they bent out of shape. I charged the creature, and my momentum was just enough to push it past the point of no return. It flailed its arms and grabbed mine, dragging me over the edge with it as we fell from the top floor of the weather station. With a soft whump, we landed on the clouds below and separated for a second as we were thrown apart. The wind being knocked out of us made us both slow to stand, and the sword I’d been using had fallen through the cloud cover.

“Oh, come on!” I shouted in exasperation as I realised I’d have to fight this thing with just my knives again.

With a roar it charged at me, and despite being smaller and faster, I still struggled to avoid it. When it overreached, I ducked inside its guard and tried to cut through its muscles to cripple it, but my knife just got caught in them. I had to let go as the beast swung at me again. The thing didn’t give me time to separate, and it charged straight at me again, though one of its arms was a bit jerky. I dropped low to avoid its attacks again, and tripped it over as best I could, but it felt like I’d been bucked by an earth pony.

Still, I was on my feet before it was and I noticed that we were nearing the edge of the cloud. Without the weather being properly managed, the cloud cover was a little patchy and incomplete at points, so a massive crack was forming near us. Without time to really think it through, I shoulder charged the beast and shoved it just enough to get one foot over the edge. Scrambling for grip, its weight proved too much for the cloud to hold, and it fell over the edge with a roar of rage and fear.

I was satisfied by the thought that about a minute from now, a thousand feet below, some gryphon would randomly see the beast splatter on the streets and wonder what the fuck was happening up here.

Putting my sunglasses back on and chuckling at the idea, and not at the near death, I flew back up to the top floor of the weather factory. I’d been slowly working my way through the building, trying to find Grace or some part of the cloud production that was vital enough that me breaking it would stop the rain. No luck, and I ran into those two things. The call of Hate and Anger was there, telling me to just let go and kill those things or die trying, but I was gonna make it back to Trixie one way or another. No way was I letting myself die in a berserk rage as I charged one of those with a tiny knife.

When I was back in the station, I starting searching around again, but this time I took it slow and cautious in case I ran into more of those. Thank fuck I didn’t. I went deeper and deeper in, knowing that the building was creating the cloud it was hanging on. All twenty floors of it. Eventually I found a map, and from there I made my way to the weather production chambers.

I had a close call with some brain-deads and a changeling, but a little detour later, I’d evaded them and was back on track to where I wanted to be. When I got there, I slowly pushed the door open and padded into the room. It was dark in here, but my eyes adjusted quickly thanks to Nightmare being a bitch.

“Grace?” I called out as I moved further in. “You in here?”

A head popped out from behind a machine, and I was so damn relieved that it was him.

“Gilda?” he asked in confusion and came towards me. His eyes were nightkin, and his coat had darkened to match mine. “What are you doing here?”

“Don’t worry about that, I-”

“Your eyes.” He frowned as he checked me up and down. “She did change you.”

“Yeah, I know, and she did the same thing to you too, fucking bitch.”

“I volunteered for it, we needed the edge to make it through Ashguard.”

“Well the bitch still shouldn’t have done it!” I snapped. “Did it hurt for you as much as it did for me?”

He shuddered a little bit. “Yes, it was thoroughly unpleasant, but it lasted only a minute. She told me that Nightmare Moon forced the ritual onto you.”

“Yeah, she did, but I’m fine. Listen-”

“You shouldn’t be here, Gilda. Aviana's gone to Tartarus.”

“I know, but-”

“Just stick with me, I could use your help and together we can fix this. Maybe even earn you a pardon so you can live in Aviana again.”

“No, Grace, listen-”

“Come on, Gilda.”

He turned away and I shouted out at him, “The king is dead!”

He froze in his footsteps. Slowly he turned to look at me. “What?”

“He went insane and Luna had to kill him.” I continued, and the look of hurt on his face was enough to make me feel guilty for telling him like that.

“Then the divine whore has much to answer for!” He spat vehemently.

“Yeah, she does, but-”

“I must carry out the king’s last orders then.” He turned to walk away. “Come, you can help-”

“Grace!” I shouted over the top of him. “I’m trying to tell you not to mix that shit in with the rain.”

He paused again. “What?”

“That shit’ll destroy Aviana completely. You can’t mix it in or it’ll turn everyone into a monster.”

“Well I’m afraid that it’s a little late for that.” He tilted his head at a machine. “It’s already been done.”

“Fuck!” I swore. “Well then turn the damn thing off!”

Again he shook his head. “I’m afraid not Gilda.”

I blinked at him in surprise.

“Aviana’s gone, done for. Everyone in it is doomed already, but with this rain, we’ll be able to use their deaths for a greater cause. Against an army of monsters, the changelings will be crushed, and the ritual will allow us to control the beasts and stop this from ever happening again.”

I stared at him in complete shock, my mind unable to process what I was hearing my brother say.

“This is a national tragedy, and not the intended purpose of the research, but in the end, the legacy of the Temple of the Stars will be used to protect the Kingdom.”

Slowly I shook my head. “You can’t do that. There’s still survivors down there and...” My blood ran cold. “Trixie’s down there.”

He hesitated. “I’m sorry to hear that, but-”

“But what?!” I interrupted him with a shove. “Trixie is down there! Shut those fucking machines off right now!”

“Gilda, be rational,” he protested. “The good of the Kingdom comes before your-”

“Goddesses damn it, Grace!” I interrupted him again. “There won’t be a Kingdom left if you do that! We can’t use the ritual, we’re fucking gryphons.”

“Gryphons with magic, Gilda.” The shadows around him deepened, and he raised a talon as a thin webbing of solid shadow formed over it. “We can do the ritual.”

“No we can’t! We’re just using shadow magic! That’s just one school, never mind illusion or mind magic or all the different goddess damn fields!”

He just shook his head sadly, not believing me. “We can do this, Gilda. I can do this. When the new king is raised, he’ll have an army the size of Aviana’s entire populace at his beck and call. We’ll march on the Changeling Wastes themselves, burn the hives to the ground and claim more territory for our people than we’ve ever held before!”

I just swallowed. “Trixie’s down there Grace. That’s the end of it, you’re wrong, and you’re putting her at risk, so turn those fucking machines off, or I’ll do it myself!” I snarled and jabbed his chest with my claw.

He tilted his head at me for a moment before he sighed. “I’m sorry Gilda, but the Kingdom comes before your... partner.”

I looked at him for a moment, before I shoved past him. “Fucking fine then. I’ll just destroy the machines myself.”

I felt his claw on my shoulder, and the strength in his grip as he drew me to a halt. “I can’t let you do that.”

I looked over my shoulder at him. “Grace, this won’t save anyone. It’ll destroy the Kingdom and kill the best goddess damn pony I ever met!”

There was a pause, and I recognized reluctance in his eyes. “You’re in love with her, aren’t you?”

My lack of answer was answer enough.

He sighed sadly. “For what it’s worth, I’m truly sorry. I would have loved to be the best man at the wedding, and I only respect anyone that could help you.” His grip on my shoulder tightened, and before I knew what happened I found myself being body slammed into the ground, his arms around my neck tightening and my vision fading. “But this is for the good of the Kingdom.”

My elbow slammed into his gut, and the momentary weakness allowed me to break free of his grip. I came to my feet, and found myself in a standoff with him. My brother between me and the weather machine that would kill Trixie.

“I’m sorry Gilda. I truly am.” The sound of a chime to his left made him turn his head, and I followed his gaze to a readout. “It’s raining already. You’re too late to stop it.”

I shook my head, and blinked away tears. “No! No I can still stop this!”

He gazed at me forlornly, before slowly he drew the long sword strapped across his back and smoothly drew up into a stance. “So be it.”

I grit my beak and blinked the tears from my eyes as I drew my knives. Without anything more to say, I charged at him.

“Hold that left line!” I yelled as I dropped down from above, crushing a bug beneath my hooves. “They are almost out, just another five minutes!”

I skipped to the side, my blade coming down even as another two protected my flank. Beside me, another guard went down, but before the changeling could break the line, another stepped in to fill the void. I released a shockwave, tossing the enemy back and liquefying their insides in the process.

“Trixie! Hurry it up!” I bucked the guard beside me out of the way, just as an arrow narrowly missed his head. “And someone kill that sniper!”

Another guard went down and I swore. If guards kept getting slaughtered at this rate, we’d be overrun in a minute. I glanced up at the sky, a growl rumbling in the back of my throat. My spell was managing to keep out the rain, but if I used too much magic it would collapse.

“Come on, just let me out. We can clean this up together.”

“All thy words are lies.”

“Let me slaughter them all.”

“We do not require thee to win.”

“Fall back,” I said. “We shall hold them long enough without thou.”

The guard nodded and signaled the retreat while I tossed out an expanding barrier. It was nothing more than a wall, but it pushed the enemy back, crushing some against the buildings in the process. Gryphons all around me began scrambling back, more than half of our meager force requiring assistance to even walk. Before the first wave had dissipated, more monsters and changelings filled the void and were rushing towards us. I tossed down another barrier before tapping my earth pony magic and raising the ground around us to block off the streets. It’d buy us time, but in a minute or two they’d probably be able to climb over the barriers or bust their way through the buildings.

“We want those hurt on bows, those who can still move to scavenge as many arrows as possible, and those who are unhurt shall be on melee at choke points. Are there any demolition experts?” A couple of claws came up. “Seal off entrances, weaken the building. Trixie! How much longer!” I glanced over my shoulder at the walls I had made. “We do not have much time left!”

“One more minute!” came her yell.

“Thou has thirty seconds.” The first gryphon crawled over the top of the wall. “Make that ten seconds!”

I conjured up a bow and began laying down as much suppressing fire as possible, which didn’t amount to much considering the horde that was descending on us. All I could do was decrease the radius of my spell to let more rain in in order to get one last shockwave out. I still had some pegasus magic left, but against clouds that thick and an army this large? Useless.

Unless...

“Showmare!”

“Trixie has done! It’s done! The orphanage and hospital have been evacuated!”

I glanced back at the advancing army and realized the changelings had been using the gryphons shields. Clever tactics if I do say so myself, and something I would have done in their position. Sure, the constant loss of units was not ideal, but they could afford the losses, while we could not. If I was not around, it would have worked and been over in a minute.

Looks like I am a monster after all.

“Everyone, get underground now!” I leapt into the air and began reaching out with my pegasus magic. “Now!”

The ragtag group began dropping back into the building and through the hole that Trixie should have blasted in the floor. If she didn’t, this wasn’t going to work, but I had no reason to doubt her. With my magic, I called down a two tornados to wreak as much havoc as possible. A part of me mourned the fact that two was all I could manage, and that they’d last less than ten seconds, but it would be enough.

Once the tornados dispersed, I hit the ground with a dull thud as the last of my magic was used up. The weather shield collapsed and I felt the cool rain trickling through my fur. Eyes barely open, I watched as the mass advanced and some part of me noticed the building behind me collapsing.

Hopefully that’d buy them enough time to escape.

Maybe I was a monster, maybe I am evil, maybe...maybe the world would be better without me. Regardless, if I was going to go down, I was going to do down fighting.

“That’s my girl, I knew you’d come around eventually. Now just let me out and we can end this once and for all.”

“No. We do this together, or not at all.” Grim determination filled every word.

“What!? You foal! You’re going to get us both killed!”

I struggled back onto my hooves, before collapsing once more. “No, thou art about to get us both killed.”

“You’re wrong!” I could hear the fear in her voice.

“Thou hast said we art a monster.” The first arrow pierced my flesh and I felt pain course through my body. “We have denied it with all our might, but We were lying to ourselves. Gilda... Gilda called us a monster. Those gryphons viewed us as a monster. An ally, yes, but still a monster. Trixie thinks of us as a monster. We hath hidden and sought shelter with excuses of the past, but no longer.”

Another arrow and the first gryphon reached me, his sword going through my shoulder. The following kick cracked my ribs and tossed me across the ground. They weren’t planning on killing me, this was going to be torture. If I could have, I would have smiled.

“You’re wrong. You’re not a monster! Shut up! S-Shut up!”

“When thou said our denial made thou stronger, We wondered what our acceptance would do.” In the pool of blood beneath me, I saw Nightmare Moon staggering back, clutching her head. “We are a monster.

Four simple words. Four measly words that had so little meaning apart, yet so much when uttered together with conviction. Saying those four words was the single most difficult thing I have ever done. It meant nullifying every single accomplishment. It meant admitting I was weak, pathetic, useless. It meant so much. To think four words could have such impact.

“Thou art a shadow of the true self,” I whispered into the pouring rain as more blades impaled themselves in me.

“Thou art the anger, the sadness, the frustration, the jealously we sought to hide from.” Slowly, I forced myself onto my hooves, ignoring the pain of having a dozen blades in me. “Thou art us. The bloodlust, the need for love, the... the...”

I opened my eyes, flooding the square with bright white light.

“Thou art us.”

A wave of magic expanded outwards, throwing everything back.

“We are thou.”

A second wave, stronger than the first, causing the ground to crack.

“Thou came from the sea of our soul, and back to that sea thou shalt go.”

The air began cackling with raw power, the electricity danced across my every being. Pressure weighed down on me from all directions, squeezing me until I threatened to pop. But I did not stop. I kept drawing magic in, I kept pumping it out. I did not know where it came from, what crevice such raw power could have hidden in, but I didn’t care. Mad laughter erupted forth and I drank in the sight of all those enemies. All it took was the lightest touch and I could make one explode.

But redemption always starts somewhere.

They would die, they had to die, but they did not have to suffer. Yes, this is where my redemption would start. I was a monster, but that did not mean I had to remain one. This one act, this final act would be my redemption.

“We art Princess of the Night, the guardian of desires, the giver of dreams.” I condensed all that magic down into a single point, collapsing it in on itself again and again. “We are also thy darkest nightmares.”

The sheer weight of all that energy finally tore itself free from my grasp, setting off a chain reaction, and all I knew was pain.

Grace took to the air with a flap of his wings, and I barely dodged his downwards swipe. I pushed off the ground, and charged him, but he had the high ground and his longsword made it hard for me to do anything other than duck out of range when he used it.

Good. I didn’t want to kill him anyway. I changed direction, and charged the big machine that was the weather production system. One of my knives returned to its sheath as I reached for the packets of powder, and I barely came to a halt as Grace materialised out of the shadows in front of the machine. His sword swipe was just fast enough to stop me and force me to draw my knife again, but slow enough to not actually hurt me. His free claw turned into a fist, and almost caught my face before I dodged at the last second and had to back away again to get both my knives out.

I stared at him for a second, and he stared at me. “You learned how to use shadow magic?” I asked in shock.

After a moment, he gave a small smirk. “No. I started reading some of the old myths and legends about the bat ponies and their properties. You know, the ones you loved about Slight.”

After a moment I growled, and threw myself at him. He wasn’t trying to kill me, and thank fuck for that. He was better than I was. Not by a lot, but he was. He fought like Luna did, thinking his way around the problem and past his enemy’s guard. I just relied on my speed and strength and instincts to land a quick cut that’d win me the fight after a while. Problem with that was that he was faster. I only ever knew one pony that was faster than me, and one gryphon, but I had a new name to add to that list. Even though I had knives and he had a heavier longsword, he was still keeping up with me, and I thought he was holding himself back a bit.

My suspicion was proven right when his fist met my face, and I slammed into the ground with a grunt. He took a step or two back from me, and gave me the space to climb to my paws again. Or not. With speed to match Dash, he blitzed towards me again, and I barely avoided his kick, and even then I was forced to dodge and parry for all I was worth as he threw me off balance and a step behind with a perfect series of slashes using his talons and blade.

My back hit a wall, and if he was trying to kill me, he would’ve done it right then. Instead his pommel cracked my beak, and his knee rammed into my gut. Ignoring the pain, I dropped low and charged him for a straight up tackle. We crashed into the floor, but he rolled with the momentum and kicked me off him with his hind legs.

I scrambled to my feet and snatched up my knives, just in time too. His technique was completely fucking perfect. Whoever taught him was a bloody master, and I was pretty sure Grace was too. I found myself tiring as the fight wore on. Even though I didn’t take any more blows after that, I was still bruised and aching, and my breath was starting to catch in my throat. Only my reliance on instinct allowed me to capitalize on it when he overextended slightly, and I slipped past his guard long enough scratch his underarm. Normally that would’ve ended the fight, with an artery bleeding they’d wear down and I’d finish them quick, but hesitation stopped me from cutting those vital blood points, and in the end, the most damage I did was a surface scratch, and smashing the hilt of my knife against his skull.

We separated again, and he blinked in surprise as he stared at me. After a moment though, he returned to cool calculation, and a he smirked slightly. “It’s easier to kill, than take down safely isn’t it?”

I didn’t answer him for a moment as we circled each other again. I resisted the urge to glance at the big weather pumps, because that’d give him an opening. I needed to destroy those, and quick. Trixie didn’t have a lot of time. But... I couldn’t kill Grace. One of us had to take down the other non-lethally... and at this rate he was gonna do that before I did.

“Grace, don’t do this. Don’t make me do this.” I swallowed as I realised, if I didn’t move soon the rain would reach Trixie outside the city. “Just stop and fucking think!” I shouted.

“Gilda... You don’t need to do this.” Grace reasoned carefully. “It’s already too late, and your lover is-”

“SHUT UP!” I shrieked and charged again.

Tears blurred my vision, and if I stopped to wipe them away Grace would have me. My knives clashed with his long sword or caught with air as he nimbly ducked out of the way or parried. Apparently I overextended, because I tripped over his paw with the aid of his claw on my back.

I scrambled up as fast as I could, but I was on the defensive and he had the edge as he pressed me. I kept losing ground, and almost as soon as it started, it stopped with me disarmed and Grace forcing me into a choke hold. My face was rammed into the weather readouts and as my vision started to dim, I read the valve as its precipitation dial turned higher and higher. What number was it that the chemicals would spread beyond the inner city? Start to cross into the poorer districts and criminal sectors where Trixie probably was. I didn’t know, but the thought was enough to push me that much harder.

Grace’s face smashed into the dial as I broke his hold, and as we separated again I gasped in deep lungfuls of air. Panic made thinking hard, because all my mind was screaming at me was that I needed to destroy that machine. I needed to save Trixie.

“Stop it Grace!” I shrieked at him, my voice cracking. “You’re killing everyone! You’re killing Trixie!”

He leveled his sword at me again. “They’re already dead. For the good of the Kingdom, I will make this tragedy into something other than the deaths of thousands for the sake of some alicorn whore.”

“It’s too fucking late for that!” I shouted at him. “You’re just gonna wipe out the entire fucking Kingdom!”

He just shook his head in denial. “The King’s last orders-”

“Fuck the king!” I shouted and charged again.

We danced across the room, neither of us gaining the edge over the other as our blades met again and again and again. Every second of it, I was aware that seconds were ticking by and if I wasn’t fast then Trixie could die. The Kingdom could die. Everyone could die, dammit!

In the back of my mind, I felt the tempting call of Hate and Anger. Offering me the speed and the ability to zone into the fucking deadly mindset that I might be able to beat Grace in. It was right there, a resource waiting to be used. It’d be alright, wouldn’t it? I was doing it so save Trixie and she’d never know...

With a snarl, I slammed that mental door shut and tapped into my magic. The energy from the shadows streamed into me, and I found myself less tired. As I did it, I noticed similar streams of energy sliding into Grace from all corners of the room. That’s why he wasn’t tiring out!

With a growl of frustration at my own stupidity, I tried using my own shadows to trip him up, but in the precious milliseconds it took me to focus the shadows, he was inside my guard and I barely managed to escape with only a new bruise. I found myself using shadow magic just to increase my endurance.

Oh goddesses, this was taking too long. Way too long.

“Stop this Grace!” I begged. “Fucking stop!”

He didn’t answer, just kept fighting in silence.

Oh... please... fucking please, I needed to end this. I really needed to end this.

Feeling like fucking traitor, I surrendered to the call of Hate and Anger. Grace blinked in surprise as my attacks changed tempo, and he found himself reeling in reaction to the kick I landed on his gut.

How. Fucking. Dare he? HOW DARE HE! He wanted to hurt my Trixie? MY TRIXIE! Anger coursed through me, and I felt indestructible. It felt like a wildfire in my blood, burning away all my chaff and leaving me focused and directed.

He saw me coming at him, and the shock in his eyes was oh so fucking satisfying. He attempted to draw the shadows into him, to use his own body as a filter to direct and purify the energy into solid constructs that would halt or slow me, but my own grip on the shadows was stronger than his. The energy that was directed at him was drawn to me, and he only had a thin stream of left as I closed with him.

And the hate! Oh the fucking hate I felt as every part of me screamed in disgust and horror at myself for trying to kill my brother. I was trying to kill Grace. There was so much wrong with that, and that hate pressed me to hammer him relentlessly as I stared into his eyes and begged him to put me down. To hurt me and end me before I could end him.

My fist in his face shattered that hope, and tears of rage and sadness blurred my vision as I kicked the legs out from under him. He barely rolled away from my follow up, and only just made it up in time to block my next strike.

At that second, I knew the fight was over. In that split moment, I realized I had a choice. As he desperately drew the shadows in, planning to vanish into the dark and reappear away from me, I knew that this was it. The final step in this tango. Every millisecond was precious, every moment was enough to decide whether or not Trixie would live or die. There wasn’t any time left. I had to end it now, or risk losing Trixie. I could fumble it. Stop right here, and press on for the non-lethal takedown and lose Trixie. Or... I could end it now. This very second.

The shadows Grace was drawing in consumed him. His entire body faded to black and vanished, and I whirled around just as he reappeared. With one knife I knocked his sword away, and my other knife stabbed into his heart.

We stood like that for a second. Him staring at me in shock and betrayal, and I stared back at him with tears in mine. Hate and Anger roared, and the light faded from Grace’s eyes. The sword tumbled from his grip, and he fell.

I wish I could say I stopped then. That after killing my brother I gazed at myself in horror and disgust and pondered what the fuck I’d done.

But this wasn’t about me. This was about Trixie.

The zebra powders burned white hot, and nearly blinded me as the white hot fire burnt through the metal piping and raw weather magic was unleashed in the room. More pipes followed suit, and soon there wasn’t any tubing left without a gaping still-glowing hole in it. A glance at the read out told me that the pressure was gone from the system. The factory would produce no more weather, and the only rain would be the rain that had already fallen.

My talons started trembling as I flew out of the room. I couldn’t even see as I just flapped my wings, and left my brother’s corpse in my wake.

I needed to find Trixie. I needed to know she was fine and that I’d saved her. If not... if she was already dead and Grace had died for... no reason. None. If I’d killed Grace for... I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. I didn’t know if I could live with myself now, but I knew if Trixie was dead, then I’d die. I’d take my life.

Trixie needed to be alive, and I prayed she could still love whatever was left of me. That when she saw the dead shell that I was, she wouldn’t know I was dead inside, with no chance for redemption or recovery and decide to take her own life.

I’d killed Grace. My brother. The best gryphon I knew.

He was dead. Because I killed him.

“May the goddesses damn me for eternity,” I choked out between gut wrenching sobs.

A second after that, they answered my prayers. A blinding white light flashed, and with sunspots in my eyes, I barely had time to see the billowing dusty shockwave that radiated from its source. Unable to see, I was tossed around like a ragdoll in a storm. More than once, a slab of something would slam into me from the side, sending pain through my body.

I was thrown I don’t know how far, but by the time I right myself in the air I was screaming in pain from a broken wing. Spiralling out of control, I flared my wings as far out as I could, and I slowed enough to slam into the ground hard enough to only break one of my arms and... I have no fucking clue how many ribs.

I lay there... sobbing from pain and sorrow for... I don’t know. What the fuck does time mean anyway? Eventually I opened my eyes and tried to stand up. Buildings were collapsed all around me and right beneath my battered body, the earth cracked open. I looked down, and realized I was standing at the edge of a massive crater. It was... huge. I felt dwarfed standing there. It was... goddesses damn me, it had to be as big as the upper-class end of Aviana.

Limping, I turned around, and behind me was destruction. Wave after wave of broken building and collapsed housing and buried corpses. A cub’s paw was sticking out of a pile of debris, and the only things left standing were the cloudhouses and weather factory of the sky district. Thousands of meters in the air above all the death down here.

Looking out across the wasteland though, all I could care about was one thing. Fuck the dead city, screw the dead cub, and I couldn’t give a shit about what had caused this.

“Trixie!” I shouted as loud as I could as I began to limp into the wasteland. “Trixie!” I called again, but my lungs were sore from all the dust I’d breathed in.

I was exhausted, bruised and battered and every part of me ached. I needed rest. I needed sleep and food and medicine. But fuck me. This isn’t about me.

I tried to ignore the pain, to shut it out and focus on the thing that mattered. But fuck me, I’m such a selfish bitch that I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t push it to some corner of my mind and spur myself on just that little bit faster.

“Trixie!” I shouted out again, looking for any sign of blue in this barren wasteland. Anything that proved she was still in this world.

I don’t know how long I walked for. I was in constant pain, exhausted to my core, and my muscles ached and screamed at me to stop. I ignored the whiney fuckers and kept going. It had to be weeks, no months, that I spent walking in pain and desperation, screaming for Trixie.

Some part of me complained that I was dying. That if I kept going I’d kill myself.

I shut that part of me up. A growing numbness spread from my insides to every part of me. It didn’t stop the pain. No the pain was still there. But every ounce of warmth I had was gone, and my body was collapsing on itself.

“Trixie...” I croaked desperately before my front leg gave way from under me. I hit the ground, and panted desperately. “Trixie...” I shouted one last time before I didn’t have the energy for that anymore. Not a muscle in my body was paying attention to me, and I could control anything as I did nothing but gasp in air. My body was shutting down as I slowly faded from consciousness. “Trixie...” I repeated as I stared at the soil.

A blue hoof touched the soil in front of my face, and I looked up again. It took me so much energy just to crane my neck and look up into the face of a blue pony... a unicorn...

“Trixie...” I repeated, before I gave out again and my head fell to the ground. “Trix...”

The world faded to black.

When I woke up, I was a little disappointed to learn I was waking up at all. Not just because of what I’d done, although that was the biggest part of it, but also because I was aching all over. Every part of me hurt, and my brain felt like it was caught under a wagon wheel. Every time I drew breath, there was a strained pain in my chest, and my muscles were all sore from fatigue and overwork.

“Uhhhuuuuur,” I groaned, any real words completely beyond me.

My eyes opened, and I realized I was indoors. I would’ve craned my neck, but I was too sore for even that. Just moving my eyes, I looked around and figured out I was in a bed, coated in bandages. Someone had found me apparently. Movement caught my attention, and I glanced across to see a gryphon soldier standing up from a table in the corner with a book on it.

I didn’t get a chance to look at him, because a moment later he left the tent and I was alone with a body that was doing its best to make me want to kill myself. Not that I didn’t already want to do that.

Normally I’d have taken the time to think about the soldier, and if that meant I was captured or something, but even though a part of me screamed to try and think things through I didn’t give a shit.

For me there were two places in the world, places where Trixie was, and places where Trixie wasn’t. Apparently this was the latter.

I tried to sit up, but my muscles gave out before I even lifted myself a millimeter. All I could do was sit there and try not to think... Which wasn’t actually that hard when I just focused on the pain.

“Gilda!” The greatest voice in the world sounded outside the tent, and a moment later, in burst the one face I wanted to see. And then she decided to do a flying tackle hug of doom.

“Fuuhhuck.” I groaned in pain. “Trix, stop.”

She immediately let go and hopped back, a guilty look on her face. “Sorry...”

Slowly though, I got over myself and I remembered the one important part of all of this. “Oh, you’re alive. Thank fuck you’re alive.” I gave a silent prayer of thanks to Celestia as I stared up at the roof of the tent.

“Y-Yeah.” She scooted back, as though she was hiding something. “We lost some gryphons in that explosion, but most of us got through fine...”

I didn’t care. At all. As long as Trixie was okay. “What was with that explosion?” I asked, my mind finally stirring from it miasma of pain and emotional baggage.

“That wasn’t you?” asked Trixie. “Then it must have been Luna...”

I snorted, but the suddenness of the action made wince in pain. “I stopped the rain, Trix. I broke the machine with the powders.” After another moment's pause, I added. “It’s done. I’m done. There’s no more. There can’t be any more...”

“W-What are you talking about?” her panicked words made me wince.

“In the cloud factory... I went there and there were monsters... and I killed them...” That didn’t matter, I was just stalling. “And I found Grace. In there, I found him...” I choked out a sob and tears formed in my eyes. “I killed him... I fucking killed him!”

“Gilda...” A pair of hooves wrapped around my neck. “I’m sure you had no choice.”

I swallowed. “He was my brother... My fucking twin brother, and he didn’t even want to kill me... he was just trying to delay me, hold me off until the rain started, and I...” I couldn’t finish that sentence. I just couldn’t say it again. “And the look he gave me at the end... He didn’t say anything but... I betrayed him. I took it too far, he wasn’t trying to kill me and every second mattered and all I could fucking think about was you and how you’d get caught in the rain and...” I trailed off into painful sobs that racked my aching chest. “I killed him. I killed Grace, goddesses fucking damn me!”

“Shh...” I felt her hooves run through my crown feathers. “Just let it all out. You saved hundreds you know. Maybe even thousands.”

“I don’t care!” I shrieked and gripped her tighter. It hurt so fucking much, but I needed to hold her right then. “I don’t give a fuck about them, they can burn!” I let go of her, because my arms simply wouldn't stay around her any longer. “He was my brother and I killed him and... I don’t know if I can keep going anymore... at all...”

“You save so many though. You saved me. What he was doing was wrong... evil. Would you want anyone to go through what you had to?” A tender nuzzle from her. “I’m not saying you shouldn’t feel bad about it, but it had to be done.”

A chuckle made its way out of my beak. “You can justify anything. It doesn’t mean shit that I killed my fucking brother as long as I can balance that out somehow...” I couldn’t keep the bitterness and sarcasm out of my voice. “How many could actually do that? How many could ignore everything they know is right and what they feel, and just kill someone that means that goddess damn much to them?”

“I’m not saying that at all!” She repositioned us so that we were lying down with my head on her shoulder. “What I am saying is that you saved a lot of gryphons. Without you, we would have been in a lot of trouble. Or are you saying you should have let us all become monsters?”

“Of course not,” I mumbled. “I’d die, but that isn’t saying much, whatever... I’d fucking do anything to keep you safe. But that’s the worst fucking part... That I could do it. That in the end, I had it in me to kill my brother when he wasn’t even trying to hurt me. I could fucking murder anyone... I always thought I had a limit, that at some point there’d be something I couldn’t bring myself to do... but no... I’m a complete monster. Just a fucking killer.”

“No you’re not!” Her hoof slammed into my chest. “You were protecting me weren’t you?”

I didn’t answer her, because she already knew it. Of course I was protecting her.

“Gilda, I... That is...” A bright red blush appeared on her cheeks and she looked away. “I’d do anything to protect you. Alright? Absolutely anything.” Her gaze caught mine and there was an intensity there that I hadn’t seen before.

I paused. “Why... what have you done?” My mind immediately went to the darkest place it could. “Where are we?”

“We’re safe,” she replied as she kissed the corner of my beak. “We’re safe. And you’re not deflecting that easily.”

“Who’s deflecting now? Where the fuck are we? Where did all this medical shit come from?”

“We’re outside Aviana with those we saved,” she replied. “Now, back to what we were originally talking about.”

I leaned back, feeling a little more relaxed but I still had the feeling in my gut there was something she wasn’t telling me.

“Of course I did it to protect you,” I said after a moment. “All I could think about was you and how if I didn’t stop him you’d die and... It wasn’t about me then. It didn’t matter what happened to me as long as you were safe.”

“Did it feel wrong at the time? You were given two evil choices, do you feel as though you made the wrong one?” One hoof was placed over my heart and she gave me a smile. “What does your heart say?”

“It says you’re putting too much weight on it.” I winced. “I’m really fucking sore.”

Trixie rolled her eyes at me. “Answer the question, then hit on me.”

“I don’t know Trix...” I answered after a moment. “I don’t know anymore... I’ve always been an emotional mess and... I couldn’t fucking tell you if I made the right call or not. I know I’d do it again, but... I have no idea... all I know is I killed him. It was my call and I killed him.”

“It’s fine, give it time, you’re probably in shock.” Once more with those light kisses. “For what little it’s worth, I think you did the right thing. It was wrong, but considering the alternatives?”

“Shock?” I repeated. “I think I was in shock when I was walking through Aviana on three broken legs and screaming your name till I collapsed from exhaustion. Now I think I’m thinking clearly.”

“Still shock. The doctor said you’d still be in shock.” Trixie held me close. “At least wait another night before starting to think about all this.”

“Doctor?” I repeated. “Where would you find a doctor? You dodged the question, Trix. What are you hiding?”

“Trixie is not hiding anything!”

I stared at her, trying to fight through the pain and emotional edge and figure out what the problem was. “Please, Trix. Don’t lie to me... whatever it is, I’m beyond caring. I mean, I wouldn’t give a fuck unless you sold yourself into slavery or something.” I fixed her with the most tired and hurt look I could. “Just tell me.”

It seemed to work for she sighed and snuggled into me. “You were pretty damn banged up when we found you. You’ve been out for almost a week.”

“A week?” I repeated. “Then... why are we still at Aviana? Shouldn’t the survivors have moved on, or the government from one of the other cities stepped in by now?” After a moment I added. “Fuck, the ponies in Equestria would’ve been able to get here in time.”

“The capital was destroyed, the government was destroyed. This is an emergency shelter the military set up while they look through the rubble of Aviana and... well... all the changelings are dead, but we’re still finding monsters. You were too injured to move safely and... yeah...”

I snorted and leaned back. “Why would they help us? We’re like... wanted fugitives. Even if they don’t have the time to arrest us, why would the patch me up?”

“Well...” Trixie examined her hoof. “It may have gotten around that a certain unicorn rescued a sizable chunk of the survivors and said unicorn may just be a very good actor...”

I nodded leaned back into the bed. “So why did you bother hiding that from me?” There was a pause as I ticked it over. “Unless you’re still not telling me everything...”

“The worst damages were to your wing...” she whispered, looking away.

I stared at her. “How bad is it? I mean... will I ever fly again?” I resisted the urge to stretch my wings and check them myself. If it was really badly damaged, I’d just make things worse.

“You’ll be able to fly eventually,” replied Trixie. “Though there was a period of time when the doc thought of amputating it...” She kissed me, forestalling anything I could have said. “Apparently your unique... condition also gives you better and faster healing.’”

I nodded and felt exhaustion starting to creep back over me. “So... there’s nothing wrong then?” I settled back against the pillow again, and had to fight the need to close my eyes. “Other than killing Graciano, there’s nothing wrong?”

“Y-Yeah.”

My eyes had been fluttering closed, but her sudden stutter caught my attention. I opened my eyes and looked at her. “There’s something wrong...” I said as I stared at her. “There’s still some more bad news, isn’t there?” A small smirk touched my beak. “What is it? Am I carrying Luna’s baby or something?”

“No, you’re carrying mine,” she replied.

“What?!” I sat bolt upright and winced at the sudden pain. “I mean... what?!”

Trixie merely rolled her eyes. “You are too gullible. We haven’t even had sex yet.”

I blinked at her slowly. “Oh... right.” I fell back against the pillow again and closed my eyes. Before I remembered something and looked back at Trixie. “You still haven’t told me the more bad news.”

“Because there isn’t any.”

“But...” Goddesses it was getting hard to think. “But...” The detail I was searching for finally came to me. “You stuttered. When I said nothing was wrong you stuttered. And you only do that when...” I was losing consciousness. The world was fading again. “Something’s wrong...”

“Trixie’s just tired. Now sleep, you silly gryphon.” A light kiss was placed on my forehead.

“But... but...” My eyes closed, and I couldn’t open them again. “... wrong...”

“Nothing’s wrong. Sleep well Gilda.”

Epilogue

I was in a suit... for the goddesses’ sake I was in a suit. Again. I fidgeted uncomfortably, one wing and one arm still in a cast. The cracked ribs were healed, but it was gonna be awhile before I’d fly again. About a month apparently, but at least the cast on my arm would be off this weekend.

Some of the ponies in the restaurant were giving me odd looks, but whatever. They could fuck themselves. Not my fault I got my bones broken saving a bloody nation. Trixie though, she looked completely fucking gorgeous in a sexy ass blue dress. I looked like a damn penguin. Seriously, I don’t care what Trixie thought, I looked retarded all dressed up like I was. I mean, a business suit and sunglasses? It was like I was trying to look like a Con Mane villain or some shit. Especially with all the broken bones I had.

But still... it was kinda hard to keep my eyes off Trixie. Something about a pony in clothes... No clue why, but everything just looked better when it was hidden away.

“So, what are you ordering?” I asked Trixie to get the conversation going. I’d gone through the menu, and the only meat they offered was fish... so that was what I was having.

“The orechiette with broccoli rabe and chickpeas,” she replied happily.

I glanced at the menu again before I tried to wave the waiter over again. “So, how are we paying for this anyway?” I glanced over at Trixie.

“Worry not, Trixie has a plan, feel free to order the most expensive dishes on the menu,” she whispered before turning to the waiter. “A bottle of your finest Canterlot Belair, and Trixie shall have the orechiette please.”

“Of course Madame, and for your...” he glanced at me before looking back to Trixie, “Bodyguard?”

“I’ll have the marinated salmon, dick cream.” I told him pleasantly. “And just water.”

He blinked and glanced at me, before he looked back at Trixie, as if for permission.

“The salmon and a bottle of your finest whiskey,” she said with a polite smile.

I held up my good hand. “No wait, just the...” But he was already gone. My shoulders slumped before I looked back at Trixie in annoyance. “I said water.”

“Sorry, I figured you’d prefer scotch, but didn’t want to annoy me. If you want, I can call him back and change the order...”

“I’ve been trying to quit drinking, remember?” I scratched the back of my head. “Remember, after that time I...” I trailed off. I wasn’t going to talk about the time I tried to slash my wrists with a broken wine bottle. “I mean... I know I haven’t made things easy on you since...” Crap. I couldn’t even say Grace’s name anymore. “Uh... sorry, don’t worry about it. I’ll just not drink anything.”

“No.” She forced me to look at her, and ignoring all the eyes on us, she leaned across and kissed me lovingly on the beak. “You stay right here and I will order some water for us. And you’re worth it, alright? So stop apologizing.”

With that she stood up and sauntered after the waiter. When I say sauntered, I mean walked like she wanted everyone to know she was the hottest damn thing in the room. I wasn’t the only one watching. A couple stallions were not-so-subtly drooling, a couple of others were watching more discreetly, and if any of them tried anything I’d break so many of their bones that the boners they have will be the only solid thing on them.

When Trixie came back I was still busy death staring every male in the room. And that one mare in the corner. I wasn’t sure she was a fillyfooler, but I wasn’t taking any chances with her butch mane cut. As Trixie sat down, she tossed me that smile of hers before making it very clear to everypony present that I was hers and hers alone with a passionate and lust-filled kiss.

When we separated, some ponies were gaping in horror, others were looking away in disgust. That mare in the corner just seemed too shocked for words.

I smirked back at my Trixie. “You’ve got no shame, do you?”

“What can I say? You corrupted me.” She leaned in and whispered in my ear, “Not to mention some of these ponies look as though they have a silver spoon permanently lodged in their plot.”

I glanced around the room again before I looked back at Trixie. “Some of them? They all look like pricks to me.”

“No, some of them look like they’ve got a firework up there, not a silver spoon.” Before I got the chance to reply, she licked my cheek and sat down.

The waiter came back over with our food and drinks, and we both began to eat. Even before we started, I knew it wasn’t as good as it looked.

“Ponies. Cannot. Cook. Meat,” I muttered as I forked in another mouthful. “Seriously. How much do you think this’ll cost?”

“Some ridiculous amount no doubt,” replied Trixie as she took a bite out of her own dish. “Look on the bright side, Trixie is improving at least.”

I nodded. “Well, how’s your... thing.” I still couldn’t even get that dish’s name right.

“It’s... passable...” A snort escaped as she looked around. “This place sucks.”

“I know!” I relaxed and shoved the plate away from me. “I could cook better than this.”

“Agreed. At least the wine is good.” A smirk appeared on her muzzle. “Time to blow this joint.”

I stared at her for a moment. “We’re not paying are we?”

“Of course!Especially not with such terrible food.” She took another bite out of the dish before corking the wine bottle. “You ready?”

I rolled my neck, and glanced at the waiters in the room, and bouncers by the door. “Please. With everything we’ve been through, do you even have to ask? I could be tied to the ground and this’d still be easy.”

“Smoke and mirrors,” said Trixie as her horn began glowing again. “Window to our right, try not to hurt yourself too much getting out.”

I rolled my eyes. “Even with my leg broken I can outpace you any day. Me, hurt myself? Please, not unless it’s deliberate.” I grimaced the moment I made that joke. Classy me. Really classy.

“But you won’t do that again, will you?” she asked pointedly.

I opened my beak to promise her not, but... just last night I made myself a noose from some bath towels. I didn’t use it, and I burned it before Trixie saw it, but I’d spent half an hour setting the damn thing up and just staring at it.

I had no answer for her, and painful silence was all I could give her. After a moment I shrugged.

“Oh Gilda...” Despite the table between us, she hugged me tight. “I’m here for you, you know that right?”

“I know... and if you weren’t...” I sighed. “Some mornings it’s just... All I can do is lie next to you and cry and pray that you don’t wake up. And...other times it’s so bad, when I look at you all I can think about is how I killed him to save you and...” I let out a deep breath of air. “And I’m still having those dreams, but they’re worse now. I... Goddesses, I’m a mess.”

Trixie cradled my head against her chest as she ran her magic through my crown feathers in the way that I liked. All the while, she hummed a soft song under her breath so that the only one who could hear was me.

“And... and... and... sometimes I see him. I don’t know why, but... I see him standing there and smiling and acting like we’re just cubs again... like nothing ever went wrong.”

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I wish there was something I could do to help...”

“You’re doing everything you can.” I assured her. “Without you I wouldn’t have made it past the first week.” I swallowed. “I mean... you talked me out of that...” Goddesses I hate that there are so many fucking things I can’t say anymore. Just fucking say it and get it done. “That time I tried to drown myself!” I practically spat it out, like it was poison. Even though there was nothing there, I could still feel the stone I’d tied digging into my wrists.

A couple of ponies looked at us oddly, but one glare from Trixie shut them up. “Come on, we might as well get going.” The grin she gave me was infectious. “Time to blow this joint.”

I smiled back at her, till a thought crossed my mind and the smile dropped for a second as I remembered one detail about Trixie’s idea of fun, and one thing that did make her smile. “You mean we should bolt, right? Not blow this place up?”

“Please, the food here isn’t that bad.” If anything, her smile became wider. “Maybe I should take up the food critic job. If it’s perfect then Trixie pays, if it’s bad we bolt, and if it’s crap we blow the joint up!”

I blinked at her. “I’m not sure that’s something you could get paid for, just arrested.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever, it was a great idea and you know it.” Grabbing her cape from off the back of the chair, she tied it around her neck. “Ready? I think we’re starting to attract attention.”

I nodded at her and stood up. “Let’s ditch this shit-hole.”

We both turned stepped away from the table towards the front door, just as the waiter came over and blocked our path.

“Madame, you’ve forgotten the cheque.” He bowed at Trixie while keeping an eye on us.

We exchanged a look before we both bolted for the door. The waiter shouted out in surprise, and the two bouncers stepped out to block us, only for their flying tackles to pass straight through Trixie’s illusions.

The real me, the one that was invisible, put a chair through a window and dove through. I heard Trixie laughing beside me as we ran, and I glanced over my shoulder at the two confused bouncers chasing after us. Damn, they were moving kinda fast. Or maybe I was just moving slow because I only had three legs to use. I snatched the shadows around their hooves, and they tripped onto their faces.

We rounded a corner, and I drew to a surprised halt. In front of us was a line of Royal Guards. I turned to run the other way, when a line of pegasi blocked that exit. Trixie immediately stepped forward and began bowing.

“Thank you! Thank you all! The Great and Powerful Trixie will be performing all week.”

Immediately, she was surrounded by the auras of several unicorns, and cut off from her magic. I didn’t bother putting up a fight as magical chains were slapped onto us, and bulky white earth ponies stepped in to stop us struggling.

“Really? Royal Guards for a dine and dash?” I glanced over at Trixie. “Seems like a whole lot of guards for just two petty criminals.”

“Obviously the skills Trixie demonstrated awed them into seeking her out to name her Court Magician.”

I just stared at her. “Really, Trix? Really?”

“What? It was worth a try.” She smiled sheepishly as she tilted her hat back. “Plus, it could happen.”

“No it couldn’t.” One of the unicorn guards stepped forwards, and snatched the sunglasses off my face. “Hey!” I glared at him, and he blinked in surprise at my eyes. “You want to get fucked up the ass by your own horn?!”

The unicorn glanced at my eyes before he turned around, and said to some officer I didn’t recognize, “It’s them.”

I scrunched up my eyes and wanted to facepalm. “Fuck... They’re here for us, Trix.” I wanted to punch someone right then.

She seemed to feel the same way as me for she lowered herself into an aggressive stance and a small growl came out of her mouth. “Touch her and Trixie will personally rip off your horn and fuck you with it.”

The unicorn glanced between the two of us before he turned around. “Definitely them.”

They started pushing us towards an armored sky wagon, and I winced in pain as something touched my bad wing. “Watch it asshole!” I snapped at the earth pony that was shoving me.

He didn’t answer us, and slammed shut the door, a heavy bolt locking it in place.

With a sigh, I sat down, and Trixie sat on the bench next to me. I leaned back against the wall, while she rested her head against my chest.

“Mother fucker,” I cursed to no one in particular.

Though the castle walls had been soundproofed, Celestia could still hear the sounds of argument just outside her chambers. It wasn’t a rare occurrence, so the alicorn merely turned a page with an idle hoof as she continued reading the fascinating psychological study on-

With an ear cocked, she glanced over at the door in surprise. Usually it took an hour before the noble could be convinced to leave. Perhaps the guards deserved a pay rise after all. With a shrug, she returned to the article only for the sound of metal clashing on metal to reach her ears. After a second, all was peaceful once more.

Celestia glanced over the clock and sighed. Really, was it so hard to keep appointments these days? She even left the window open and decreased the guard in order to help, but no. Somehow, just somehow, she managed to be late.

Of course, that’s exactly when the door decided to burst open, slamming into the wall with enough force to crack it. In flew one guard, quickly followed by the second and without even looking up from the page, Celestia teleported both back to their barracks and closed the door.

“Really Lulu, I left the window open for you.”

There was a moment of silence before the hood was lowered. “Really Celly, dost thou need to steal all our thunder? And thou could at least greet thy sister properly.”

Celestia lowered her book and looked up. “I thought you would appreciate the chance to talk about a few things in a more businesslike manner. I know you’re not fond of the more open affections my little ponies enjoy these days.”

“Things change sister, a fact thou have sought to remind us of at every opportunity.” Luna walked past and strolled out onto the balcony. “Things change. The Equestria of today is not the Equestria of a thousand years ago. Times change, and so do We.”

“Speaking of changes, I love your new mane style... or should I say, your old one?” Celestia gave a small smile. “In either case, did you enjoy your trip to the Kingdom?”

There was a moment of silence as Luna stared at her sister in complete shock before she burst out laughing. “Of course, it was rather foalish of us to try to hide our actions. Our trip was informative.”

“Oh, of that I have no doubt.” Celestia sighed. “It will take years to find suitable leadership for the gryphons again. The only other tribe with the power to really hold the clans together is the Great Scars, but they lack the...” She waved a hoof, “Ambition to take on the role of the Black Eyes.” After another moment, Celestia stood up from her throne and trotted to her sister. “So, where did you learn the ritual from?”

“Does it matter? The nightkin will return, and this time, they will be embraced by the populace.”

Celestia fought the urge to groan. “Luna... you remember the last nightkin, don’t you? I certainly do. Why would you want more of them? What possible place could they have in a modern Equestria?”

“The last nightkin were ruled by Nightmare Moon. This new generation will have free will, independence, and us.” For a brief second, anger flashed in her eyes. “Thou will not deny us this.”

“Free will, independence,” Celestia summoned up a collection of files and displayed them before her sister, “And a criminal record. Honestly Lulu, surely you could have picked a better first nightkin than a murderous alcoholic with ties to foreign intelligence?”

“Thou make it sound as though We had a choice.” Luna examined her hoof in the moonlight. “And Gilda will make a fine nightkin, provided she gets over her... issues.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Provided she gets over her issues,of which she has many. That’s also assuming I don’t have her executed for twenty two counts of murder. I wasn’t even aware we had a multiple murderer living in Canterlot until I did some research into her. Not to question your judgment sister, but perhaps the new nightkin could start with a less... troubled, pony?”

“Of course, but Gilda will still make a fine nightkin. Almost as good as Slight in fact.”

Celestia winced. “And that might just be what I’m worried about sister. Slight was... far from a paragon. I’m not sure if you ever read Curse of the Everfree, but it is quite the disturbing little collection of stories. Though they are all exaggerated, there’s a reason she’s remembered as a demonic madmare.”

“Driven to insanity by loss and love,” replied Luna. “We imagine Rainbow Dash would be the same if pushed far enough and thy personal protégé would be more destructive if thou were exiled to the moon for a thousand years.”

“True...” Celestia conceded. “But Gilda is not a potentially dangerous individual, she is a dangerous individual.”

“And? She does not wish to cause harm except to those who endanger those she loves. She does not wish to overthrow us or attack us. As long as she is left alone, she will be fine, and even then We can take her down.”

“It’s not our safety I’m worried about, dear sister, but the safety of my little ponies. So pardon me for not being enthusiastic about more nightkin. Even if what you say is true, and the ritual did not turn them into deranged sociopaths, I’m unconvinced you even need to reforge the nightkin. Why not just select regular ponies and leave it at that? Do you truly need to grant them abilities beyond their natural gifts?”

“We could rework the ritual to take out the gifts if thou insists, but We wish to retain their... aesthetic appearances. We understand We no longer require the extra abilities to keep Equestria safe, so we shall concede that point.”

“It’s not the powers that concern us Luna, it’s the ritual in and of itself. Even its origins are bathed in blood, and speaking of blood, it requires blood magic to work. Something I went to great pains to outlaw. This research has yet to produce anything good. It transformed you into Nightmare Moon, it created a horde of monsters, it created the nightkin, a race of remorseless zealots and murderers, and it created Slight. I’m not sure how much you remember of her, but if you remember anything, you’ll remember just how much damage she did.”

“Celestia,” Luna spoke in an icy whisper, “Shut the fuck up.”

Celestia blinked in shock and stared at her sister. “Lulu?”

“The ritual did not create Nightmare Moon, the nightkin are not a race of remorseless zealots and murders, and Slight is a pony comparable to Rainbow Dash or Twilight Sparkle. So please, shut the fuck up.” There was a beat of silence before Luna began giggling. “Oh dear, ‘fuck’ is such a nice word isn’t it?”

There was another moment of silence, before Celestia shook her head and turned away. “I hope you don’t plan on using it in public. In any case, why do you need the nightkin in the first place?”

“They deserve a place in society as much as any other race. Plus, we are rather fond of them and their bat wings.” Luna leapt off the balcony, hovering in the air with the moon to frame her. “And excuse us while We go and rescue two certain beings from thy dungeon.”

“Actually, that was something I was meaning to discuss with you.” Celestia called out to her. “Just what to do with those two. Trixie seems harmless enough, but Gilda has committed numerous crimes, and on her own, presents a significant threat to the wellbeing of my little ponies. What would you have me do with her?”

“Thou shalt do nothing of course. In fact, thou shalt find they shall be released on the promise of seeking psychological help, funded by the treasury of course.” She smirked down at Celestia. “After all, who wants another crazy nightkin running around?”

“The easier solution would be to have her executed.” Celestia sighed. “She’s done more than enough to earn one.”

“We think thou shalt find executions are now illegal.” After a second she added, “And with thoughts like those, thou wouldst get along with Nightmare Moon splendidly.”

Celestia grit her jaw and gazed up at her sister. “I would prefer not to joke of that. I care for my little ponies more than anything, more than even you sister. Whether they be earth pony, pegasus, unicorn, or even gryphon, or minotaur, -”

“But not nightkin,” she snapped. “Thou love them as long as they love you. As long as they worship thee. We hath already given thou various concessions and reassurances and yet thou still fights us. Why?”

“Because I don’t want to lose you again!” Celestia hissed. “I don’t want to lose you to the whispers in your mind for the memory of a dead mare! Because anything to do with that wretched substance has only brought pain and misery! Because if it turns you back into Nightmare Moon I’ll have no choice but to banish you again! The stuff was what killed Aurora, Lulu. Don’t you remember her, and what it did to her? Why do you need to bring it back! You like their appearance? Then simply cast an illusion spell on some pegasi!”

All that could be heard in the heavy silence was the sound of metal hitting stone. Looking down, Celestia blinked in surprise at the engagement ring that landed at her hoof.

“Oh yes, We remember Aurora. She was such a feisty one, she treated us as though We were just another pony and not royalty.” Luna turned a tear stained and very angry gaze at Celestia. “Apparently thou felt keeping us safe justified thou keeping our memories from us. At any moment thou could hath told us about our past, but thou did not. Thou preferred to keep us in the dark to save us from ourselves.”

The dark alicorn spat on the ground.

“This is about love, something thou probably do not understand. Whether that is due to thy cold heart or the fact that thou hast the love of all our little ponies is another question. This is thy one and only warning, the nightkin shall return whether thou wish it or not. Welcome with open hooves or hostility, it matters not, but they will return.”

There were a few moments of silence. “Lulu... I’m sorry. I should not have mentioned Aurora, that was... tactless. But yes, I kept the memory from you. Because that was the memory that turned you into Nightmare Moon in the first place.That, and the chemicals that to this day you insist on flirting with. I would do anything to keep my little ponies safe. I would do almost anything to keep you safe. In this case, both those desires were one and the same.”

“Regardless, We hath said what We wished to say. How thou act is thy decision.”

Celestia sighed. “If thou are going to create the nightkin again, of course I will help. They can be outfitted from the Royal Guard’s forges and trained as you see fit, but if something goes wrong again, they are not returning. This is their last chance. And you better take a strong interest in their wellbeing, I will not tolerate it if you abuse your ‘pets’. And you will control their breeding. Call it a probationary existence if you like, but until they prove themselves, I will not have a fourth pony tribe.”

“We will not control their breeding.”

“Why not?” Celestia sighed.

“Do thou truly need to ask?”

“No, but I would still like to hear your reasoning.”

“Invasion of privacy, negative right to reproduction, the fact that no other species anywhere has ever been under the same restrictions, racial equality... Need We go on?”

Celestia rolled her eyes. “Well the nightkin surely count as an exception if no other race does. And they’re not a natural born species. Do they even have a right to exist?”

“Does a child born from magic for same sex couples have a right to exist?”

“Of course it does, but a child from a same sex couple is not a magically charged monster dredged from the nightmares of small foals.”

“So if said child looks ugly then it doesn’t have a right to exist?”

“Now you’re just being ridiculous. An ugly child is not a nightkin, Luna.”

“So... if Twilight Sparkle was born to a same sex couple via magic and she was ugly she doesn’t have a right to exist?” asked Luna with a confused expression on her face.

“There are no issues with the ugly child, or the same sex couple!” Celestia snapped. “The nightkin is the problem here!”

“Thou said they are not naturally born hence the magical child comparison. Thou said they are apparently the thing of nightmares hence the ugly comparison. Oh, and just for the record, We find them adorable.”

Celestia sighed. “Fine then. Of course, the nightkin were nocturnal, so a foal born to them will have trouble attending regular schools and acquiring a normal education. But fine. If you refuse to control their breeding until they prove themselves, I doubt I will be able to convince you otherwise. That still leaves the matter of just what to do with this gryphon.”

“Psychological help provided by the state.” Luna coughed into her hoof. “We might be responsible for some of the damage done...”

Celestia frowned. “What did you do?”

“Nightmare Moon might have lusted after Gilda, and she might have performed the ritual on her without consent, and it might have bound the gryphon to Nightmare Moon’s will, and we might have allowed it to happen so we could figure out the actual ritual before freeing her, and Trixie might have almost died trying to save Gilda.”

Celestia just stared at Luna before she put a hoof to her face. “I think she’ll need more than one psychologist.”

“Agreed.”

“Are there any more issues I should know about?” Celestia shook her head in annoyance. “She didn’t happen to get molested by a minotaur, or witness her family’s death, or anything as severe as that?”

“Hm... She might have killed her twin brother?” For once, Luna actually looked sheepish. “We are not clear on the details, but it might have happened?”

Celesta looked up at Luna. “Remind me again why we should be helping someone who would murder their own kin. And this was after she became a nightkin, or before?”

“After she became a nightkin, when the gryphon king decided to load up the weather factory above Aviana with the chemical, without the blood mind thee, to change the entire poulation into monsters to fight the equally monstrous changelings that they had been experimenting on.” Pause. “Yes, that sounds about right.”

Celestia sighed again. “For some reason, I doubt she will be accepting any help that you would offer.”

“Which is why thou shalt be offering it, and why thou shalt tell the showmare,” smirked Luna.

“In any case, it would be better than letting her go free.” Celestia muttered. “Very well then Luna. But I have to ask, are you helping her because you want her for your guard, or are you helping her because you actually feel responsible?”

“We help her because she deserves it.”

Celestia blinked in confusion. “Deserves it? As near as I can tell, her personal history has earned her a prison sentence.”

“She deserves it,” growled Luna.

“She’s a murderer, Luna. Once we started to look into her more closely, we discovered her involvement in a string of missing pony and unsolved murder cases. It’s possible she killed her first pony at age thirteen.” Celestia shook her head in irritation. “Why aren’t we convicting her?”

“Because We said so.”

“Can you provide any better reasoning that?” Celestia groaned. “Or is this really just a whim?”

“Our reasons are of no concern to thou.”

“Yes they are Luna.” Celestia growled. “Of course they concern me. I’m your sister and I’m worried for your wellbeing. Of course I’m worried when you want to pardon a murderer and not give me a reason why.”

“Underneath all that, she is a good gryphon. Perhaps if thou talked to her rather than just read some facts off a page, thou wouldst know that,” Luna snapped.

Celestia sighed. “Fine. We shall let justice go undone, but she is not leaving Canterlot, and she’s certainly not being permitted near Ponyville again.”

“They both hate Ponyville anyway.”

“Yes, the trained and experienced killer despises Ponyville and its residents. That does not comfort me.”

“Stop being so dramatic, they will be fine.”

“I certainly hope so. The wellbeing of the Elements weighs on my mind far more heavily than the wellbeing of some nightkin.” She sighed. “Truly, why her? Why on earth would Nightmare choose her to be a nightkin?”

“Because she loved the gryphon.”

Celestia blinked. “Truly? If it was love, then why would she steal her free will? Or transform her at all for that matter. It’s hardly a romantic gesture.”

“This is Nightmare Moon we’re talking about.”

“True.” Celestia sighed. “Very well, go do as you see fit. But you are going to have to explain to me just what happened on your trip in full detail. I am curious to know the full story.”

“Of course dear sister, as if We would do anything else.”

“Well given that you hid the existence of Nightmare Moon from me for so long, you can understand why I felt the need to say so.”

“Yes. Well. Er...”

“Just go. Do what needs to be done.” She sighed. “Despite all this, I am truly joyful to have you back. And I mean actually back, not as a petulant filly, but as you once were.”

Luna laughed at that and nodded. “So are We sister dearest. So are We.”

My second stay in a Canterlot dungeon was different from my first. This time, I was conscious when I got there and I wasn’t woken up by a scuffling rat and a pounding hangover. Also different? The eight Royal Guard unicorns watching my every move. It was really fucking creepy with the way they were standing there. I would’ve thrown something at them if I had the chance, but short of crapping in my hand I had nothing to work with.

Speaking of shit... “Hey, what if I need to go to the bathroom?” I asked, and a few of them blinked in surprise but didn’t answer. “I mean, are you going to take me to the toilet or just watch while I crap on the floor?”

There were a few coughs and shuffles, but no answer.

I sighed and rolled my eyes. “Fucking great...”

Awkward silence! Gotta love it.

“So, uh... why’d you guys arrest me anyway? If it’s for that dine and dash, we were totally going to pay that guy back.”

I knew that wasn’t why we were under arrest, but I was also really bored.

“I’m gonna jerk off right here, if any of you want to join me, just open the cage and hop right in.”

That got a few coughs and uncomfortable shuffles. One of them actually seemed kinda interested so I glared at him.

“Fuck, you thought I was for real? You’re either fucked up, or retardedly desperate.”

He glanced around, before he realized I was talking to him.

“Yeah, that’s right I’m talking to you shit brain. I saw you looking interested.”

“I wasn’t-” Another guard hit him over the back of the head.

“Shut up. No talking.” The second guard ordered both of us.

I rolled my eyes and sat back down.

Just then, the sound of door opening reached us and a moment later Trixie appeared, surrounded by some more Royal Guards.

I stood up and stepped up to the bars. “Trixie! They didn’t hurt you did they?” She didn’t look hurt. “What did they want? Do you know what’s happening?”

“We’re not being arrested and we’re free to stay in Equestria,” she replied as she smacked one of her guards with her tail. “Though there are some strings attached.”

“Bull shit!” I spat. “After the crap we’ve been through, how the fuck is that fair?”

“Well the conditions are actually reasonable, and Trixie may have already agreed to them.”

I blinked at her. “What? Why should we have to agree to anything?”

“Because part of the deal is you seeing a psychologist three times a week. A very famous, well respected psychologist.” Trixie began walking towards me, her eyes daring me to interrupt. “And it’s all for free as well. Paid out of the royal coffers.”

“I... what?” I blinked in confusion. “Why the heck would they want me to see a psychologist?” After a moment I added, “Or is that something you negotiated in?”

“It was something they offered. The deal was the psychologist and not being bothered, and in turn we have to live in Canterlot and stay outside of Ponyville for now, not tell anyone about what happened, keep your... unique situation on the low, and not stir up trouble.”

After a moment’s thought I frowned. “Why would they do that? They could just send us to jail, or slit our throats and dump us in a back alley. Seems easier to me than having to put up the cash for a decent shrink three times a week.”

“Because We convinced Celly to not execute thee.” The moment I heard that voice, I felt Hate and Anger rear in my mind. It was easy to slap them back down, but that reaction was still there.

I grit my beak and glanced over at... “Who are you?” I asked the big blue alicorn with the starry wavy mane and Luna’s cutie mark. “Luna?”

“Correct.” She turned to the guards. “Leave us.”

They hesitated. One of them spoke up. “Princess, we’ve been instructed by Celestia that this gryphon is to be watched at all times and-”

“Leave us,” she repeated, except this time, echoes of power bled into her words.

This time they didn’t hesitate, and left the room pretty damn quickly.

“Pussies,” I muttered.

“Agreed.” Luna looked back at me. “We came here to apologize for what happened. For now, this is all We can do, but We wish to let thee know that We are in thy debt and that thou can call on us if thou art ever in danger. Furthermore, We shall be providing thee with a monthly stipend and a place of residence of thy choosing. We know this will not make up for what happened, but We hope it is a start.” A pause and just as I was about to get over my shock, she added, “Thy marriage will also be paid in full and We shall preside over it if thou wishes.”

After a moment I said the first words to come to mind. “Fuck off.”

Luna merely burst laughing. “That can be easily arranged.” She tossed a bottle at my feet. “That’s dragonfire in there. Uncork it and let it burn any parchment and it shall be immediately transferred to us.”

I snatched up the bottle, and pitched my arm to throw it against a wall. “Fuck. Off.” I heaved it as hard as I could, but it just clunked into the wall and bounced to the ground.

“Very well.” With a simple nod to Trixie, she left the cell. “Thy first appointment with the psychologist is tomorrow. Do not be late please.”

“No, I mean let me the fuck go!” I shouted at her. “I don’t want you help, I don’t want anything to do with you! Let me and Trixie go, damn it! What more could you possibly want from me?”

“Nothing. Except our sister wishes to kill thee, and this was the only way to convince her otherwise.” Luna paused just outside the jail door. “But both of thou are indeed free. Though thou could try to run and hide, it is unwise, and Celly will kill thou without a second thought. We suggest staying and seeing this through.”

I seethed and grit my beak. I stepped into the shadows on the wall, and stepped out of them between Luna and the exit. “Why the fuck does Celestia want us dead?”

“Slight and Nightmare Moon.”

“What have they got to do with anything?”

“One’s a nightkin that she remembers as being evil and the other may have been from Us ingesting the chemicals.” A small chuckle echoed through the room. “Neither of which are true, but that’s Celly for thou.”

I took a step back. “And what if I’d rather die? What if I’d prefer to get my throat cut before I take handouts from you?”

Trixie cleared her throat very loudly.

Oh. Shit.

“I’ve got a point, don’t I?” I asked Trixie. “Neither of you even bothered to ask me about this before both of you decided I needed to see some stupid prick shrink.”

“Okay, so maybe I should have asked first, but seeing you like this hurts alright?” Trixie sighed and hugged me. “I just want you to get better.”

I hugged her back, and swallowed. “I know I need help, but do I really need a shrink? I don’t want to have to deal with some shit brained egghead trying to ask me about stupid shit like feelings and what a crap stain looks like.”

“Well it can’t hurt to try right?” Trixie glanced over at Luna. “And Trixie can go with her right?”

Luna merely nodded.

“Why’s Trixie a part of this deal?” I asked Luna suddenly. “Why can’t she go? She’s not a nightkin.”

“She can go, she just does not wish to,” replied Luna.

“Why are you even trying to help anyway?” I muttered at her, but didn’t really care about the answer. I hugged Trixie closer grateful for having her with me. “And why the fuck would we even invite you to a wedding, let alone have you preside over it?” If Trixie wanted me to see a psychiatrist, I was gonna see one. I was still gonna fight tooth and nail to get out of it. “Fuck, who even says we’re getting married?”

“Our reasons are our own,” she replied. “And it was merely an offer. Nothing more, nothing less. The decision lies with thou.”

“What’s Nightmare think if this?” I asked. “This some other damned plan you’ve got cooked up to get more shit out from us?”

“Nightmare no longer exists.”

I blinked. “What?”

“Nightmare Moon no longer exists.”

“How?” I frowned. “What happened to her?”

“We became one, as was proper.”

After a moment of staring I snorted. “So I was right? You were Nightmare, Nightmare was you.”

“Yes. Yes thou were.” She almost looked annoyed at that.

I chuckled. “And I was honestly just trying to convince you to kill me.”

“Gilda...” warned Trixie.

I frowned at her. “I’m sick of dancing around this shit. From now on I’m just saying it. If I nearly fucking killed myself, I’m just gonna say it.”

There was a moment of silence as Trixie’s mouth opened and closed wordlessly before she sighed and her shoulders slumped. “Fine.”

We stood in awkward silence for a moment. “Speaking of which... I should probably tell you that last night I made a noose.”

“You what!?”

I stood my ground. “I ripped up some towels and made a noose while you were asleep. I burned it before you woke up.”

“I-You-Bu-Wha-” I suddenly found myself pinned to the ground as Trixie pounded my chest with a hoof. “You foal! Y-You worthless piece of scum! I can’t believe you. You-” Hot tears splashed down against my cheek.

My bad wing was killing me because I was lying on it, but I didn’t stop her from hitting me. “Sorry,” I mumbled, and shifted so most of my weight wasn’t on that limb. “It’s just... really hard some nights when I’m alone and you’re in bed.”

“I’m always there for you. Just wake me up or something you silly gryphon.”

I stood up, and put my arms over her shoulder. “And sometimes I think that if I wake you up you’ll just stop me, or you’ll just see it when I...” Trailing off, I jerked a thumb across my neck.

“Gilda...” If anything she began crying harder now. “This is why I agreed...”

I swallowed as I stared at her. “I might need help after all...”

“Yes, yes you do.”

I sighed and rubbed my eyes. “Alright Luna,” I looked over at her. “I’ll see the fucking shrink. But if that prick asks me about my childhood, I’m punching him in the face. Or about Grace, or about Calisto, or about Dash or that pink bitch, or about you, or... Shit. I should just write a list, shouldn’t I?”

“Yes.” She looked way too amused for my liking.

“Anyway, so... what next?” I looked at Luna. “That’s it? We’re free to go as long as we don’t break those rules, and I’ll never have to see you again?”

“Yes.”

“You’re not gonna show up on my door ever again, and I’ll never get roped into another fucked up mission, and you’re not gonna make me kill anymore of my family? I’m never, ever, going to see you again, unless you’re walking down the street or some shit, and even then you’re gonna turn around and walk the other way without saying a damn thing? I’m absolutely never going to have to see you again?”

“Yes,” she replied with a smirk on her face.

“Good.” I turned around. “Come on Trixie, let’s get the fuck out of here.”

“With pleasure.”

I glanced over my shoulder at Luna, and she was still smirking for some reason. Looking ahead I just shook my head and ignored that feeling in my gut. “Bloody goddesses.” Whatever, I was just being paranoid. Forget about it.

Was it pride I was feeling? Or perhaps it was love. Emotions had never been my strongest suit, but whatever it was, it bubbled away inside me as I looked down at the pony fondly. A part of me wanted to believe this was what mothers felt when they first gazed upon their foal for the first time, but I knew that was sheer stupidity. These weren’t my children, but at the same time I couldn’t help but gaze upon them fondly.

Sure, he was a quivering wreck, unable to even stand on his own four hooves, but still. There was something there, a yearning, a desire to reach out and hold him close. But that would be un-princessly and I still had an image to maintain. Perhaps at a later date, once I had caught up on what was permissible in this day and age.

So instead, I simply inclined my head to the doctors on standby and they immediately rushed to his side, bundling him up in a layer of blankets and giving him some sugary drink to get his energy up. Maybe it was just my imagination, but I thought I saw him mouth a ‘thank you’ to me. Though that might have been directed at the doctors. Still, he had volunteered and seemed rather eager in the interview, so perhaps...

Sighing, I shook my head.

“Princess Luna, that’s all the applicants,” said the guard beside me. A Celestial Guard. A Day Guard. Sometimes having an overprotective alicorn who rules a nation as a sister was seriously annoying.

“Three.” There was a faint hint of surprise in my voice. “Three more than We expected. Very well, leave us be.”

She hesitated for a brief second before bowing. With a gesture to all those in the room, they began filing out. There was little doubt in my mind that every single last one of them was a secret operative of the highest caliber sent to keep an eye on me and each of the new nightkin. A couple weeks ago I would have been angry, but now it was just tiresome. She meant well, even if it made me want to slam my head into a wall.

With a touch of magic, I locked down the entire room before teleporting back to my room. I reappeared on my balcony, overlooking the city below me. To think all those small moving dots were ponies out at night. And there, off in the distance, was a house lit up like the sun. From what Celly had said, a certain DJ Pon-3 worked there. I shall have to pay the establishment a royal visit sometime in the future just to see what it is ponies do at night.

A small giggle escaped at that thought. To think! Ponies actually enjoyed spending time out at night now.

A sad sigh escaped.

“We wish thou could be here to see this Love. They like the night now, they enjoy it, they do not fear us.” I held out the engagement ring before me. “Thou made this possible. It was thy intelligence, thy wit, thy brilliance. Thou were the mastermind behind the project, thou gave me that spark. Without thee, we would be nothing. Aurora, my love, We wish you could be here to see this all happen. The nightkin shall be our gift to the world. Something born from our love.Something that thou could be remembered by. Perhaps thou were right and We hath gone ‘sappy’ in our old age, but...”

I teleported a champagne glass before me. “A toast to our love and to a bright future for our children.” I raised the glass towards the stars that made up The Lady. “Wherever thou art, We hope thou art proud.”

Chapter 1

“You know you cannot escape.”

I ignored the voice and kept walking down the hall, my hoofbeats echoing through the desolate landscape. There was something here, something lost, something important, but no matter how hard I searched, it remained hidden in the dense haze of my memories. Ever since I had turned into Nightmare Moon, remembering anything before that time was an impossibility. All I could see were cloudy figures and shadowy structures that flowed out in all directions.

There was something here though, something that called out to me. Its song sent chills down my spine, but still I lumbered towards it, heedless of the alarms in my brain. Was this a place from my memories? Or a mere construct from a fragmented mind? It was impossible to tell, and with each passing second, the possibility of insanity grew in my mind.

“Ask her about your temple.”

My… my temple? I had a temple once? That- That didn’t sound right, and yet it struck a chord within me. A temple. The Lunar Temple? No. That sat uneasily on my tongue. The Temple of… of… something. It was there, just waiting to be spoken, but no matter how I used my mastery of the Equestrian language to twist the sounds coming from my muzzle, it all sounded wrong.

“If thou knowst so much, then tell us the answer and cease with thy games!”

“Do you truly believe I know the answers? My memories are just as fragmented as yours, little Luna. Now, I believe it is time for you to awaken. Till next we meet, my fair maiden.”

“No! We demand answers from thee! Thou shalt not escape this time!” With a feral snarl, I lunged forward into the murky world only to come crashing onto the floor in a tangled heap of limbs and bed sheets. Heart pounding, I simply lay there, staring up at the ceiling as a sense of helplessness crashed down upon me. After a deep breath, I untangled myself before Celly could find me in such an undignified position and quickly tidied up.

With a simple flick of my hoof, I brushed a stray lock of mane out of my eyes and sighed. There, standing before me, was my reflection. No, it wasn’t a regal alicorn looking back at me, and no matter how I wished otherwise, it never would be. Instead, it was a little filly. A weak, pathetic, useless filly. No taller than an adult pony, without a celestial mane that billowed in the solar winds, and most certainly lacking any form of power that could be claimed.

Before I knew what I happened, my hoof slammed into the mirror, shattering it into a million little shards. What was that? The third mirror this week? I groaned in annoyance as my horn flared to life, easily repairing the damage that had been done. I didn't even bother bandaging my hoof, after all, I was immortal. Death was impossible so what was a little bit of blood to me? Slit my throat and I’ll still be standing there with a grin on my face. Well, not a grin per say, but I guarantee that a little scratch won’t stop me from ripping the attacker limb from limb.

"The Temple of the Stars!" There was a moment of silence before I began prancing around the room. "Huzzah! We have remembered!"

"Luna!" The door crashed open as Celly came scrambling in. "What's going on!?"

"Most glorious of days, dear sister! We have remembered something!"

"Luna, please, inside voice."

"We are sorry sister dearest, we momentarily forgot in our jubilation." Settling back down on the bed, I grinned up at Celly. "But we hath remembered something!"

"Really?" With a bit of magic, Celestia soothed down her ruffled fur and closed the door behind her. "What? What did you remember?"

"The temple! We remembered the temple! Oh, it was such a glorious temple with the vaulted ceiling and ionic columns. On the wall was a mural of us raising the moon. Us!" A happy little giggle escaped. "And on the ceiling was the greatest artwork thou hast ever seen. Each star replicated with such precision and dedication! Oh sister, we must visit again sometime soon."

"Lulu, you don't... you don't remember what happened?" asked Celestia with a frown on her face.

"What happened? What dost thou mean?"

"Luna, something happened there. Some sort of outbreak or monsters. I don't know what happened for you were the one who took care of it, but according to you, all the ponies went mad and were attacking each other. You said you were forced to bury it under an avalanche to stop it from spreading, but even then it was already too late. It appeared again to the south in one of the major cities and we were forced use a containment spell. We called it ‘Tartarus’." My eyes widened with each word she spoke. "It happened just a year or two before you became Nightmare Moon so we never got to examine what happened there."

"And... And the land it was built upon? The Valley of Dreams?" I whispered.

"Gone. It's in gryphon territory now."

"No..."

"I'm sorry Lulu, but I had to give the land away to stop war from breaking out."

"No!" Was I screaming? Such a silly question. "That land was ours! That temple was ours! It was the only thing we had. Thou hast it all! This city is the City of the Sun is it not!? Canterlot, the greatest architectural achievement ever accomplished, just to praise thy name!"

Wings shaking, my entire body trembled with barely contained rage. All the while, Celestia sat there calmly with a sad little smile on her face. "I'm sorry Lulu, but I did it for my little ponies. We always knew the dangers of having something so close to the gryphon border."

It took all my willpower to not buck her in the face right then and there. Sure, she meant well, but look at me! Any other pony would’ve been in hospital by now.

"But can we not visit?"

"I'm sorry Lulu, but we're not welcome within the gryphon territories. Not after that little... prank... I pulled last time. I'm sorry. I'm really, really so-"

"Leave."

"Lu-"

"Leave." I leveled an icy gaze at her. "We wish to be alone."

Sigh.

"Very well." Standing up, Celestia somehow managed to give me a condescending, yet loving look. She’d mastered all sorts of looks in the past thousand years, but that one was the most aggravating one of all. Somepony needs to wipe that smirk off her face. It’s amazing how a thousand years as the only deity can inflate one’s ego. "I am sorry, but if you wish, I am sure there are enough funds to recreate the temple." When I didn't give a reply, she sighed and walked out the door.

My temple! It was my temple. It was the only thing I had that was dedicated to me! Celly had her cities and her citadels and her fancy, super special parties. What did I have? Nothing! That’s what. Well I had a temple, but some stuck up, know it all, goddess just haaaaaad to give it away. Why not give away her own things for once!? It was never her temple or her valley or her mountain or her lake. No. It was always mine. Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine!

Once her hoofbeats were out of earshot, I stood up and locked the door. Then, with a deep breath, I walked up to the mirror and touched my horn to its cool surface. It rippled and wavered and once it was done, a dark grey pegasus looked back at me.

"P-Princess Luna!" He immediately snapped to attention, spilling black ink on himself in the process. “I take it you’re calling in for the daily inspection of the jails?”

“That would be correct. Any news to report?” I sighed as I prepared myself for the one word answer of ‘no’. After all, this was Equestria where everything was sunshine and lollipops. Really, Celly must be getting old, otherwise what was the point of giving me a job that took five seconds when it was meant to keep me busy and keep my mind off things? She took care of most crime before it even started. It was almost like having me maintain the dungeons was a way of saying ‘look Lulu, look! See how perfect I made the world while you were gone!’ It was so damn boring!

“Just one item. A gryphon, your Highness.”

“A... gryphon...?” Gears turned in my head at that bit of news.

"Yes ma'am! Gilda, female gryphon, aged eighteen, possesses a hunting license and immigrated to Equestria at the age of twelve, previously spent a year in Cloudsdale under Celestia's student exchange program when she was a chick. Arrested three nights ago for starting a bar brawl. Put five patrons in hospital before the guards arrived."

Well that was... interesting. Those background checks certainly w ere thorough.

"Injuries to the ponies?" I asked.

"Broken wing, broken rib, broken muzzle, broken... well, lots of broken parts actually," he chuckled before suddenly straightening up. "Sorry for that lapse of formality Princess, it will not happen again."

Resisting the urge to roll my eyes at the way the respect, as always, seemed to jump past me and skip straight to Celly, I simply nodded in reply. "We wish to speak to her."

"P-Princess?"

Those gears in my head clicked together. When one goes on holiday, one hires help, do they not? And Celly has been saying I need to relax more, that it would be better for my mental health. I hear the Gryphon Kingdom is particularly nice this time of year. Maybe a little adventure to save me from this boredom. Hopefully before it kills me.

“Captain?”

“Yes, Your highness?”

"We believe thou hast been searching for a showmare? One that caused significant damage to Ponyville if we remember correctly...?"

"Yes ma'am! Trixie Lulamoon, female, aged se-"

I held up a hoof and he immediately stopped. Sure, they may not have experience in the field, but they were well trained. "If thou manages to capture her, please inform us."

"M-Ma'am?" The unspoken question was obvious enough. My only reply was to fix him with a cold glare and he immediately gulped, snapping back to attention. "Yes ma'am! When would you like to see Gilda, Princess?"

"Immediately." Cutting the connection, I threw my black cloak around my shoulders and trotted out the door. "Guard! Accompany thy Princess, we have an appointment within the city."

"Yes ma'am!" Two pegasi immediately dropped in line behind me.

The rat scurried its way out of its hole in the corner. Its paw darted forward and twitched its whiskers, before it skittered to the centre of the room. The bowl loaded with oats just sat there, waiting for it.

You know what the worst thing about the royal dungeons is? Pony food. I mean seriously, is it that hard to consider you might have someone in your dungeon who isn’t gonna do too well with grass? Still a bowl of oats had its uses.

With one last hesitant pause, the rat scooted the last few steps to where the bowl rested on the edge of my claw. I lay perfectly still on my belly, waiting for it to make its move.

The first night I’d been here I decided I fucking hated this rat. It had gotten used to the idea that this was its territory, judging by the way it wasn’t scared of me. Its scurrying feet were annoying enough to keep me up, and complete boredom led me to obsess over that little rodent.

The rat brought its paws forward and took a tiny milky piece of oat from the bowl.

I flipped the bowl with the tip of my fingers and moved forward to press it down. I smiled to myself as I could feel the little bastard banging against the sides of the bowl. I jerked the bowl from left to right a bit to rattle him up, before scooting one side up and dipping my talons under the rim. I caught him in my grip and dragged him kicking and squeaking out of there. Holding him in the air in front of me, I stared at it for a second before squeezing hard. Its bones cracked satisfyingly and its struggling stopped.

I smirked and tossed it out of the bars before leaning back and lying on my bed. My claws were a little bloody so I cleaned them on the bed sheets. It took about five minutes for boredom to kick back in.

You know, for a dungeon this place was surprisingly clean and well lit. I mean, I’ve never been in a dungeon before... Well except that one time- Whatever! The point is dungeons aren't supposed to be clean and stuff. It’s supposed to be mouldy and dank and stuff. Dungeons in the Gryphon Kingdom weren’t prissy. Stupid ponies.

Goddesses damnit. How long were they gonna keep me in here? This was bullshit. Racism is what it was. I mean, it was a bar fight! And yeah, I may have started it. And yeah, I think I did a bit more than bruise some pride, but still! In the dungeons three days, no trial, no lawyer. What the fuck?

Stupid lameo ponies.

The sound of hoofsteps made me sit up. I could hear someone, -And no I’m not saying somepony, because unlike those lameo ponies I don’t assume everyone in the room is my species, sure they’re hoofsteps, but it could be a goat or cow out there- moving closer to my cell. It wasn’t long until I saw the shadow of a unicorn and what could be an earth pony or pegasus on the wall opposite my cell.

“It’s about goddess damn time,” I called out.

“We hope thou realizes that thou speakst to thy Princess.” Wow, a voice that sounded like it was straight out of a bad play answered me.

I raised an eyebrow. A princess? Not likely. I’d believe it when I saw... Oh...

My brows rose as what I’d thought to be a unicorn’s shadow turned out to actually be an alicorns. She looked like a filly. I mean it was weird, she looked like a child, but she was as tall as the pegasus by her side. You know, I’d always imagined that a goddess would be a bit more impressive...

I sat there in stunned silence for perhaps a moment too long because she spoke again. “Thy name is Gilda?”

I nodded. Knowing my charm and charisma, it was probably my best bet to say as little as possible and hopefully not get my head taken.

“Leave us,” she instructed the pegasus at her shoulder.

“But your highness-” he wisely shut the fuck up when the royal filly turned her glare on him. He swallowed pretty obviously and bowed. “Yes your highness.”

Once his hoofsteps had faded into the distance she turned her gaze back to me. She tilted her head and just seemed to examine me for a moment.

“Uh, is there something you want or what?” I asked after a moment.

“Does thou know we can execute you for lack of respect?” Let me tell you it was bucking weird to have a filly threaten me like that. I wasn’t sure whether it was supposed to make me d’aw or bow.

I swallowed back my laughter. No way. Was she serious? “Dude, any law like that hasn’t existed since... Tartarus I don’t know, years before I was born?”

“Oh, is that so?” She examined her hoof in the dim lighting. “Tis a shame then, that none felt it necessary to inform us of such an important change.”

“Important?” I asked incredulous. “How’s it important that someone gets their head lopped off if they don’t curtsy the right way?”

“In order to properly rule, respect is necessary. If there is not enough respect for a mere curtsy, then we will have to settle for fear,” she replied calmly. “Have you ever ordered a pony to be beheaded? I assure you, it is rather... fun... once you get past all those pesky morals.”

Well that was... interesting. Let’s just say I’m glad that I wasn’t alive when she was in charge. Well, except that she’s in charge now... Huh. Equestria had a grim future ahead of it.

I nodded and agreed. “Yeah, those pesky little morals.” I shrugged. “So uh... what do you want, lady?”

“We require thy services and we are willing to make this little... predicament thou is in, vanish.”

I was still caught between thinking of her as a deity who enjoyed the occasional execution, and a filly that needed a good spanking. I decided to just settle for talking to her like she was a normal pony since that rested somewhere on the line between murderous goddess and naughty foal.

I tilted my head to the left. “Wait a sec. So you want a favour from me, but you start out by threatening to axe me with some old law?” Heck, I’m the biggest bitch I know, and even I don’t start a chat with a death threat.

Her jaw tightened and she took on a pouty expression. Yep, I was now leaning towards the filly side of this goddess.

“So uh... What is it you want, your godliness?” I couldn’t resist a sarcastic little bow. Probably not a smart thing to do, what with the causal death threat from earlier, but I did it anyway.

It was a good thing her wit was apparently a bit rusty after a thousand years on the moon, because the bow seemed to satisfy her.

“We wish to embark on an...” she waved a hoof in the air as if searching for a phrase. She looked like a filly trying to copy the way her parents talked, but I was still getting mixed signals from her so I decided not to comment. “Expedition. Yes, we wish for thy assistance on an expedition.”

I raised an eyebrow. “What sort of an expedition? And why do you need my help for it? I mean, if you want to try some fine gryphon cuisine or something then I can do that, but I don’t think there’s much else I can do for you.”

She actually looked a little grossed out by that. “By Harmony, no.” No need to act like I suggested murder or something. “No, we wish to visit the Gryphon Kingdom.”

That caught my interest. “What?”

She ahemmed. “We wish to-”

“No I heard you, dude.” I interrupted her. “I mean are you for real?”

She seemed confused. “We are sorry, we are unused to this phrase ‘for real’?”

I rolled my eyes. “I mean, are you being serious?” I asked her.

“Why would we jest?”

I stared at her for a second. “Listen filly, you should-”

“Do not call us filly,” she growled and her magic enveloped the bars of my cell.

They immediately froze solid and snapped like twigs in a storm, leaving nothing between me and this child with the powers of a deity. I’d decided that thinking of her as an adult probably wasn’t going to work out too well. It was obvious that she was trying to frighten me, but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t working. I took an involuntary step backwards. Yeah, I was definitely leaning towards thinking of her as a deity.

I held my claws palm outwards calmingly. “Hey, woah! No one thinks of you that way.” I decided to deflect the conversation. “Uh, you do know why going into the Gryphon Kingdom’ is a bad idea right?”

She glared at me. “Yes we are aware of your race’s rather guarded views on their borders.”

“Yeah, then you should know that no alicorns on gryphon soil is part of whatever treaty it is that-”

“Yes, yes, we aware of all this. We are not a child.” She cocked an eyebrow at me. “Or wouldst thou like to test our patience further? We have heard that red is a fabulous colour to paint the walls with.”

I took another step back. “Oh me? Test patience? Nah, who was doing that?” I chuckled trying not to sound nervous and probably failing. “Uh, you mentioned a job?”

She seemed satisfied with that and her face looked less murdery. Either she had a mood swing, or she’d just dropped a bluff. Either way, no way was I gonna call her out on it.

“Why yes, that is indeed correct. Dost thou take us upon our offer?”

“Uh... I need to know a bit more before I take it. I mean seriously, you haven’t even told me what I’d be doing for you.” One part of me was tempted to make a joke about foal sitting rates, but the more dominant part of me, the one that didn’t want to decorate a room, stomped that shit in.

“Thou will merely be acting as a guide. It will be thy job to escort us safely to a location and back. That is all.”

I raised an incredulous brow. “‘That’s all?’ Um, dude I don’t know if you know or not, but what you’re asking me to do is basically treason... And, how do you know I know anything about the Gryphon Kingdoms? Couldn’t you find someone else?”

“Thy choice is simple, rot in this dungeon for the rest of thy life or help us in an endeavour that will take no more than a week.”

That sounded pretty simple, but I was still unconvinced. “The rest of my life?” I shook my head. “Dude, there’s no way a bar fight is bad enough to hook me into a life sentence.”

“It is, if one of the ponies you injured died of their wounds.”

I froze.

“Even if thou is not convicted of murder, a charge of ponyslaughter is still twenty years, and a jury will have no second thought convicting a gryphon.”

“I... killed someone?”

Luna merely gave a coy smile. “Not yet.”

It took me a second to process that, and then another second to realise that she’d just threatened to kill someone to get me a sentence. Add another to decide whether or not she was for real. And a final one to decide I didn’t want to find out.

I smiled and held out a claw for a bump. “A week of my time doesn’t sound so bad. When will we be leaving?”

“Huzzah! Joy and jubilation!” There she goes, acting like a foal again. These mood swings were getting concerning. She cleared her throat and settled back down as though nothing had happened. “There is one more pony we must collect before our departure.”

I lowered my claw because I don’t think I’d be getting a hoof bump anytime soon. “Alright, how do we meet them?”

“Why, the same way we met of course.” Her grin screamed ‘I get off on your pain’ a bit more than I was okay with. “Though we will have to hunt her down first...”

I blinked. “Hunt her down? What, is she on the run or something?”

“Yes, she is in fact.” She turned and trotted out of my cell. I hesitated a second before padding after her. “Thou possess a hunting license, correct?”

“Uh, yeah...”

“Then thou shalt use thy skills to track down our wayward friend and together we shall convince her to accompany us on our journey.”

By ‘convince’, I assumed she meant blackmail.

“Uh... Okay, I guess...”

“Come,” she said. “Thy fear is misplaced; no harm shall come to thee on our adventure together.”

So says the murderous foal goddess of mood swings. Nothing in the world could be more reassuring.

"You know, I was expecting a goddesses room to be more... godish...”

Does that gryphon ever use proper Equestrian?

“Such ornate rooms are a frivolous waste of both money and energy,” I replied. Energy that I did not have to spare. Thanks to that little outburst in the dungeon, I could already feel a headache creeping up on me.

“Well no... I mean, like... Your room is your space I guess. I think I always thought a goddess would have a...” She waved a claw in the air, searching for a word. “You know, godish space or whatever.”

With a groan, I resisted the urge to perform what modern ponies called a... a... a face-something. Apparently it was a signal of exasperation, despite how foalish it looked.

“I still say you should have used her to paint the walls.”

With a glare at the mare in the mirror, the glass shattered yet again, for the fourth time that week. At this rate, I will end up with enough bad luck to last a thousand years.

Gilda stared with her eyebrow raised. “So... was the mirror... dissing you or something? Or did you just do that for fun?”

I turned my glare onto Gilda and she immediately shut her beak and returned to a casual position. It was a shame I needed her, Nightmare Moon’s suggestion did have merit after all. Maybe I could use a mind controlling spell? Just enough to ensure proper use of language and an inability to utter such disrespectful phrases. It’d be so simple too. Just reach out and worm my way in-

No! What was wrong with me? That was an immoral act, an act that should not be committed ever. It was a perversion of all Equestrian values to steal someone’s free will.

With a snarl of frustration, I slammed a scrying glass into my saddlepack before trying to force the bag closed. “Stupid object! The Goddess of the Night shall not be impeded so! In, I say, in!”

“Uh... You want hel-”

“SILENCE!” Panting heavily from my use of the Royal Canterlot Voice, I stared at the upside down, very much ruffled and newly deaf gryphon. “We do not need help with a task as trivial as this. Art thou suggesting we cannot handle packing our own bags? That we are a foal in need of help over the most basic acts?”

Gilda rolled over and got to her hoo- paws? Claws? Regardless, the gryphon stood up once more. “I was just offering a claw dude. Wasn’t saying anything.”

“Ha! A likely story.” I forced the pack shut and leashed it together using some magic. “Come, we must depart. If Nocturne’s source is correct, she was sighted just outside Cloudsdale in the Unicorn Ranges.”

“She? You still haven’t told me who the buck we’re even looking for. If you want my help it might be best to help me a bit? You know?”

“Thou shalt know in due course.” My horn sparked to life. “Come, thou must stay in contact with my body-”

The gryphon snickered.

“-at all times or a body part may be left behind in the teleport.” Did I say something amusing? Last I checked, losing a limb was considered a serious affair, but then again, with all the other changes that happened these last one thousand years, I would not be surprised if it was considered a blessing.

With a shrug, I opened a wing. “Come, stand under our wing.”

Gilda looked at me like she was about to burst into laughter. “Dude, if you wanted me so bad, I was already in your dungeon.”

I tilted my head to the side in confusion.

She chuckled as she walked over and stood next to me. I immediately draped my wing over her to keep her in place.

“Goddesses, to think, from this day on I can brag about touching wings with a goddess.”

After yet another shrug, I began channeling the teleportation spell only for a polite knock to break my concentration.

“Lulu? You in there?”

“Lulu?” Gilda echoed with a smirk.

Eyes wide, I picked Gilda up in my magic and threw her into the closet before binding her up so that she could not speak or move. Her muffled curse made me far happier than it should have - that will teach her to ever call me that name.

“Celly!” I threw open the door and put on my biggest, brightest smile. “What a pleasant surprise. We thought thy presence would be needed for the entire meeting.”

“If I have to spend another minute in the same room as those short sighted bigots, I will end up doing something I regret.” She tossed her crown onto my writing table and slumped down. “What about you? How has your day been?”

My eyes immediately narrowed. Did she take me for a fool? Such idle questions may work on her little ponies, but I was her sister and equal, something she had obviously forgotten. She must have had some sort of information regarding my actions today.

“Nothing at all, dear sister.” I deliberately turned away to stare out the window so that she couldn’t see my face. “We hath been reading about modern society all afternoon.”

The sound of muffled snickering was heard from the closet.

“Did you hear something?” Celestia’s ear twitched ever so slightly.

“Of course dear sister, that was the poor pony we have tied up in our closet, with the full intent of ravaging at a later date in a frenzy of primal lust that has been repressed for the past one thousand years! She is quite a specimen, would thou like to partake?”

The closet became very silent.

“Well... er... Luna...” Celestia opened and closed her mouth soundlessly a couple of times before her eyes widened. “Was that... was that sarcasm? Oh Lulu, I never thought I’d see the day! My dear little sister, using sarcasm! You know what this calls for, a party!”

The silence from the closet was thundering.

“Um... yes... a... a party.” My jaws ached from how fake my smile was. “Could we have it next week please? After all, thou hast a series of very important meetings this week and we would hate it if thy productivity was compromised by us.”

“Oh. Right.” Her wings drooped a little. “I promise you, it will be the greatest party ever! I wonder if Twilight’s friend would be willing to throw it...”

A shudder ran down my spine. A party was one thing, but a party thrown by that monster? Nightmare Moon still had nightmares over what that pink one’s song. Nightmares that I, unfortunately, got to share.

“Now, now, dear sister, there is no need to be hasty. We are sure there are other less... extreme... measures thou couldst take. Perhaps a night’s rest would grant thy mental capability some... relief.”

“I suppose you’re right. Dealing with those nobles is worse than foal sitting.” After a light kiss on each cheek, Celestia made her way out of my room. “Unfortunately, this was just a recess and if I don’t return, they are likely to declare the sky pink or some other foolishness. Goodnight Lulu.”

“Night Celly, we shall send thee some sweet dreams.” With a sharp buck, the door slammed closed and I let out a sigh of relief. “Any closer and we would be a manticore’s next meal.”

I threw the closet door open and there sat Gilda with a smile on her beak. The moment the gag was undone she spoke. “Dude, if you want to ‘ravage’ me-” She did claw quotes in the air. “-I’ll need some booze and a deer carcass first.”

“We have no intention of doing such things.” I tossed my mane to the side. “Thou art not... pretty... enough for our tastes. Too bulky and...” I swirled my hoof in the air as I tried to come up with the right word. “Fat. Yes, that’s the word we were looking for. Too fat.”

She gave me a flat look. “Says the mare that gets fed chocolates while she gets her hooficure. Tell me princess, when was the last time you went for a jog or a hard flight?”

“Three months, four days, six hours, twenty-three minutes ago.” Though it was my voice that spoke, they were not the words I had intended. “I trained on the moon for one thousand years so that I could defeat Celestia and those accursed Elements of Harmony once and for all!”

“Didn’t train very well then ‘cause you got your flank kicked.”

There was no hint of acknowledgement or even any sign that what had been spoken had been heard. But a second later, I had her pinned against the wall, my muzzle inches from her face. “Listen here you piece of filth, I can and I will kill you without a second thought.” Though I struggled against whatever had a hold on me, it was no use. My body was a mere doll, controlled by the will of another. “Got that?”

She didn’t say anything for a second. After a moment she stiffly nodded.

“Good.” It was as though a spell was suddenly broken and I could feel again. I could feel her pulse under my hoof, the bitterness in my mouth, and the faint scent of lavender. Instead of stumbling back and gasping like some clichéd novel, I simply and calmly let her go and stepped back. There would be time for figuring this all out later. For now though, we needed to move before Celly could come back.

“Come, we need to leave. Now.”

The polite thing to do would have been to wait for a reply; instead I wrapped my wing around her body and teleported. I have fought dragons, killed manticores, destroyed entire armies, but nothing ever comes close to a really bad teleport. It felt as though my entire body was broken down to its base components, chewed up, stampeded over, and then spat back out. The world was blurry, colors bled together and it felt as though the ground was disappearing from under my hooves. And then I decided to empty my stomach, all over my hooves too. Good thing cleaning the royal accessories was not something I had to do. That fell to the servants.

The gryphon staggered around for a moment before collapsing to the ground. “Warn me next time,” she muttered and clutched her head. “Or better yet, let’s just fly there next time.” She swallowed a beakful of what I assumed was vomit. “Yeah, let’s not do that again.”

“Agreed.” I gazed off into the forest around us. “We are looking for a blue mare with white mane. Wears a cape and hat with stars on it, though it is highly like she has lost it.”

“Give me a minute,” she answered as she staggered back to her claws. She shook her head clearing it. “A mare?” she asked. “What height, what weight?”

All she got in response was an enigmatic smile. Reaching into my saddlepack, I pulled out the scrying glass I had shoved in there and held it before her. “Watch. Keep an eye out for the mare I described.” All it needed was a bit of magic and the glass misted over, before being replaced with an image of the mare in question standing before a wooden caravan before the unmistakable paw of an ursa minor smashed it to bits.

Gilda watched with interest. “What was an ursa minor doing in the middle of a town?”

“That is why she is on the run from the law. Will thou be able to track her down?”

“Uh... maybe. This is her last known location right? When was she here last?”

“We were given the information two hours ago,” I replied.

Gilda nodded. “Alright, and we know she was here, in this spot?”

“We assume so. Nocturne told us it was a pair of nature enthusiasts who reported it in by sending up a flare.”

“Where did they spot her? Right next to them, or up on that ridge over there or what?”

“We thought thou were an accomplished tracker,” I growled. “Surely when thou hunt, thou does not sit down thy prey and ask them nicely to die.”

Gilda rolled her eyes. “What the buck do you know about tracking?” She turned and began looking around until she came to a particular patch. “Alright here, let me show you.” She pointed a claw at the ground. “At least three ponies came over this patch in the last hour. One of them was a unicorn or pegasus mare about the same weight as Trixie, but there’s damn near a thousand mares the same weight as her. I could follow these tracks for hours and just find some random pony.” She turned and waved a claw at the hills all around us. “To track, I need the tracks of the pony we’re looking for. How many ponies pass through these hills and how often? How many hills around here would I have to check to find tracks? Of those tracks I find, which ones would be Trixie’s?”

She turned back to me in time to see my scowl of annoyance.

“I guess you don’t know anything that’d help me?” Gilda shook her head and continued without waiting for answer. “Whatever, have you got a map?” The saddlepack was thrown in her face. She glared at me before opening the pack and digging around for a map. After a second she found it and flattened it out on the ground in front of her. She glanced up at the surrounding hills, before looking back down at the map and tapping a claw against her lower beak in thought.

“Well?” I tapped a hoof and ruffled my feathers. “For a hunter, thou dost ‘suck’ we believe the modern phrase is.”

“You’re an idiot,” she muttered under her breath, probably thinking I wouldn’t hear. Then she spoke up for me. “I’ve never hunted a pony before. It’s different from just finding the tracks of something tasty and following it. I’m after one particular mare here, so I’m after one particular set of tracks.” She rolled the map up and surveyed the terrain. She looked out over the hills, “Come on,” she said before taking off.

The gryphoness suddenly found herself being pinned down by magic. “We are sorry, but we could have sworn thou just gave us an order.”

She looked up at me with shock that soon faded to exasperation. “Dude, do we really have to do this shit with all your little insecurities? Follow me, don’t follow me. Whatever. If I didn’t give the proper ‘respect’ it was probably ‘cause I was distracted.” She wiggled around in my telekinetic grasp. “You want me to find your mare or what?”

“Thou shalt give us the respect we deserve!” I thundered.

She winced. “It is too late to go back to the dungeon?” She twisted a finger in her ear. “Yes your highness. I will oh-so happily find you another mare to lock in your closet and ravage at a later date, but to do so I need to be able to fly. To fly, I need you to let me go.”

Taking a deep breath, I held it for five seconds before releasing it slowly. With it, I let the spell fade away into nothing.

“We shall overlook this transgression, but do not test our patience.”

Gilda rolled to all fours. “Alright then,your highness, would you like to follow me?” She asked in sweet sounding tones.

“Much better,” I beamed. “Lead the way then my pet.”

Gilda blinked. “Alright, you’ve got limits to your dignity, I’ve got mine. Don’t call me pet. Just no.”

I pouted and gave her my biggest, roundest, cutest eyes I could manage. If I was to be stuck in the body of a filly, I might as well use it to my advantage.

Shaking her head, Gilda just turned away muttering, “Freaky murder goddess one second, annoying foal the next.” With that she took to the air.

I took off after her and I flew behind her for about ten minutes until she landed on a ridge with a particularly nice view. She bent low to the ground and wandered back and forth for a few moments until she stopped and made a scratch in the ground. Then she turned and continued to search until eventually she returned to the mark she left. After a moment she sat down and examined it for a second.

“Alright, I think this is her,” she pointed at some hoof tracks. A claw was tapped against her lower beak. “Yeah, this is probably her.” Pausing, she looked back out at the view.

“We thought thou said tracking her would be difficult,” I replied with an annoyed look.

“Hey, if you think you can do it without me then throw me back in the dungeon,” she responded. “Yeah, she went this way.” Gilda turned and followed some mark in the soil that I could not discern.

“So it is her? Thou art certain?”

“It’s my best bet,” she paused. “Look, this ridge was on the map, and it was in the direction she was headed. It’s a landmark, which means she probably came here. There were only a few pony tracks here that were about two hours old. Two were earth ponies, so not her. That left three tracks, two mares and a stallion that could have been pegasus or unicorn. One of the mares was with the stallion, so I assume that was the hiking couple that spotted Trixie. So the final tracks were probably Trixie’s. They didn’t take off, so they weren’t a pegasus, unless they felt like walking. So it was probably a unicorn, and a mare who was the right size and weight for the pony we’re after, so these are probably hers.”

“Thou knowst those tracks were made by earth ponies how?”

Gilda rolled her eyes. “Do you really care? Whatever, earth pony tracks are different ‘cause the dirt that gets moved goes back to the spot it was in as the earth pony steps away. What you get is a hoof shaped patch of dirt that’s darker and more fertile than the ground around it. Real easy to track across sand, let me tell you.”

I cocked an eyebrow. “Dost thou wish to maintain the lie of never having tracked ponies before?”

Gilda scratched the back of head and chuckled. “I wasn’t tracking a pony, just a minotaur. It’s basically the same magic so...”

“Both are also sentient,” I remarked with a shrug. “Very well, start tracking.”

“Look, the guy owed me money okay?” She responded defensively. “It’s not like I ate him.”

Ha! As if. Does she truly believe such simple lies and deflection tactics would work on me? After all, I am Celly’s sister and have learned much in the ways of white lies. Truth or not, it mattered not to me. Let her think what she will, after all, she shall die and I shall continue on. All shall perish and I shall endure. In the end they were mere pieces on the board. Toys. Playthings. Sentience mattered not in the great game.

Gilda turned and began an odd gait following the marks in the soil. She would walk a few steps, head to the ground, before flapping her wings and flying a few feet ahead, then she would slow down to pick up the trail again. I followed her silently for what was almost an hour; we travelled at a pace a bit faster than a trot.

The gryphoness continued her odd hopping gate, and seemed to be deep in concentration, so I decided not disrupt what was likely a limited resource. After a while she slowed and turned around to face me.

“Okay, we’re getting close,” she paused. “But you said she was on the run, right? Maybe we shouldn’t just walk up to her, she might panic or whatever.”

“Thy suggestion has been noted, weighed and promptly discarded,” I replied. “Thou shalt find the mare and leave the conversation to us. Thou shalt not talk or make any sound for the duration of said conversation if thou value thy life.”

Gilda grit her jaw at that and opened her beak to speak, but after a moment she changed her mind and turned away. “Whatever, if you want do things your way then whatever. Goddesses, this week will never end fast enough. We should catch up to her in five or ten minutes.”

“That is agreeable.” Stretching out my wings, I could make out the faint glow of a fire from ahead. “Thou shalt stay here while I speak with her.”

“Huh, forget that, I want to see this. I’m just gonna sit and watch while you screw this up awesomely.”

“Our limited grasp of the modern tongue suggests that, that was a compliment.” I simply gave her a sidelong look. “We hope that this is correct.”

“To quote my old elder, ‘hope ain’t a plan.’ But yeah, alright. Think of it as a compliment.”

“Thou elder was wise then. Hope is for fools, the only thing that matters is power.” Taking a deep breath to steady my nerves, I began trotting forward. “Thou may come, but do not speak.”

“Yeah, he is wise and I doubt he’d get along with you. Whatever. I’ll just keep my beak shut. Trixie should just be right over that ridge,” Gilda said pointing at a line of smoke in the sky. She shook her head. “Idiot, on the run and she lights a fire at midday?”

“We hope thou art correct.” With one final step, the camp fire came into view as did a pony shaped silhouette. “The Great and Powerful Trixie, we seek an audience with thee. We have travelled far and wide in search of a unicorn with thy reputation.”

“Reputation?” Gilda balked. “She’s dumb enough to light a fire at midday while a wanted mare, and you decide she deserves respect, while I get the ‘let me ravage you or you go to jail’ thing?”

“Many would consider being ravaged by a goddess to be a complement of the highest esteem. As for thy question, different ponies require different tactics. Did thou truly believe we went into your jail cell without any prior information or idea of thy temperament? Trixie is an egotistical idiot. A useful idiot, but an idiot nonetheless. The correct way of dealing with such ponies is to inflate their sense of self-worth.”

Gilda glanced over at me. “So I get to get pushed around whenever you’re feeling insecure, and she gets ego stroked?” She rolled her eyes. “Fuck, this is gonna be a long week.”

I chose to ignore her comment and approach the cautious mare before us. “Be at ease our little pony, we mean thee no harm. We are Princess Luna and our companion here is Gilda.”

“I got upgraded to companion?” Gilda muttered. “Better than pet.”

“Our sarcastic companion,” I amended with a glare. “We desire thy presence on a journey we have undertaken.”

“It’s about time Trixie got the recognition she deserved! She has defeated ursa majors and not once did she get a medal. Does she get the fame and re-”

“Dude, is she speaking third person?” Gilda asked after a moment. “Come on! ‘I’, say ‘I’! It’s not freakin’ hard!”

I could only watch in mild amusement as Trixie continued the tirade of her exploits and somehow managing to miss Gilda’s not-so-subtle mockery. Now that took skill.

“-ful Trixie is at your service!” There was a bright flash and multiple fireworks shot out into the sky. Sure, I was informed that she did such acts, but I thought it was mere exaggeration. It apparently caught Gilda by surprise too, as the gryphon lowered herself to the ground and looked ready to tackle the mare.

“Trixie wishes to know why you want her specifically though. Trixie thought you would prefer that prissy, no talent wash-up Twilight Sparkle,” she spat.

“Well what accomplishments hath Twilight Sparkle to her name?” Defiling the purple mare’s name left an acidic aftertaste on my tongue. “Thou hath accomplished so much more and if we had our way, thy name would be on everypony’s lips instead.”

“Never thought I’d see a goddess kissing someone else’s ass.” Gilda muttered too low for Trixie to hear, but I was an alicorn.

“Trixie agrees wholeheartedly with what you are saying. It is a refreshing change of pace to see someone with the correct frame of mind. It is about time somepony recognised the true master of magic.” More fireworks. “Trixie shall grace you with her magnificence on one condition.”

“And thy condition is?”

“Trixie demands a new cape and hat!”

Demands? This mare dare demands something from us! The impudent foal deserves to be thrown in jail for a couple of years. A thousand years on the moon and this happens, creatures everywhere think they can talk back to me and that they can somehow demand things from us. Disgusting.

“Thou shalt get a new cap and hat then,” I replied. “Now stay close, we shall be teleporting back to Canterlot to make preparations. Trixie-”

“The Great and Powerful Trixie.”

I ground my teeth together. “Great and Powerful Trixie, we hope thou wilt stay out sight of the guards and the general populace while we art there. Thou hath insulted Princess Celestia’s personal protégé and there is little we can do to protect thee from the consequences of thy own actions.”

“Teleporting again? I thought you said we could just fly?” Gilda asked.

“We lied.” Before they could react, I threw my wings open to wrap around their torsos and promptly channeled magic into my horn.

This is going to be a very long week.

Chapter 8

“Whiskey.” I told the bartender as I hopped into the seat.

He raised an eyebrow and eyed me up and down. Not a lot of females want spirits, even fewer enter a place like this at this hour. “Lady, I-”

“Whiskey,” I repeated cutting him off. “Cheapest you got.”

His eyes narrowed on me. “I think you should leave.”

I leaned in closer, meeting his gaze. “And I think you should take my crowns.” I always wondered why cash was called bits in Equestria. Crowns was a better name for a coin.

He blinked in surprise as I stared back at him, unused to females who make eye contact. After a moment he shrugged and came back with a shot glass full of beautiful alcohol.

I threw the bits I had on the bench, and he gave a look of realization as he examined the coin in his hand. “Equestrian... right.” He glanced up at me and I nodded, confirming his suspicions. “Listen lady, Aviana isn’t...”

I tuned him out as I turned around in my seat, searching the bar for the biggest dick in the room. There were a couple prime examples of complete asshole material, but the one that caught my eye was the big chocolate brown gryphon with the red arm band. With one hand he held a mug, and the other he waved around as he told a story to his friends. The wife beater singlet he wore was stained brown, and he had a crack in his beak. Complete douchebag, just from the look of him.

He laughed his ass off at his own joke, before taking a long swig. As his eyes came down he caught me watching him and a smirk plastered over his face.

“Are you even listening to me?” the bartender asked.

“No. Fuck off.”

I watched as Wife Beater made some comment to his friends before rising to his feet and heading in my direction. Yeah, he was a real big boy. Bit of fat to his gut, but strong arms and legs.

“Bloody Equestrians,” the bartender muttered as he went back to his business. His little act of chivalry rejected.

Wife Beater had his eyes on me the entire time, that confident smirk making me so ready to hurt him.

“Hey,” he said as she approached. “Like what you see?” he stopped just in front of me.

“No.” I stood up and met his gaze, causing him to balk a bit. “Fat prick like you? You’d be lucky to find a street corner hooker that’d even touch you, and forget the second one you’d have to hire to hold your gut up.”

It took him a second to process that, and his beak set into a scowl. “Watch your mouth bitch.”

I gave him a shove. “Why? Used to pushing around cubs? Don’t like it when someone doesn’t bend over for you?”

He blinked. “Bitch you better-”

“I better what? Help you find your daughter’s asshole? Find a nice little boy for you? Take you for a jog fatty?” I smirked back.

The entire bar was silent, and watching. His eyes glazed over with rage as his masculinity was challenged by a female in what I’m guessing was his regular hovel. From the way the others seemed to be torn between laughter and shitting themselves, I’d say he was a mean fucker.

His claws clenched into fists. Douchebag, we’re gryphons. Use your claws. “Shut your mouth whore.” He growled.

“Clench your ass cheeks dude, you’re looking a little puckered.”

That was it; with a roar he threw his fist at me in what I call the ‘I wish I was a minotaur’ rush. I ducked left around his hilariously slow attack, and twisted his arm around, spraining his wrist. My other arm slammed into his elbow joint, shattering it a nasty angle. He started to rear back, but I was quicker and stepped around behind him. All it took was a small twist to break his wing, and he turned around screaming. Without even pausing, I snagged a bar stool with my tail and caught it in my claws. Spinning around, I swung the chair into his face as he turned towards me. As he stumbled back, I grabbed his outstretched claw, used my shoulder as a lever point, turned and tossed him out the window.

The entire bar was dead still as I turned around and downed the whiskey I’d ordered. Oh hell yeah! I love that burn, even if it tasted about as cheap as it cost. They only watched open beaked as I made my way towards the exit. The soldier that had followed me from the palace was doing no better, in fact, he was probably worse off - too used to that ‘rescue the maiden’ shit. As I passed him I shifted towards him suddenly, and he jumped reaching for his sword.

I chuckled, “Boo,” and turned away, swishing my tail across his face as I did so.

Outside the bar I glanced left and saw the mess I’d left lying on the ground in mangled heap. I grinned and kicked a loose cobble stone at him. He whimpered when it hit, and I walked away with a spring in my step.

Nothing brings the rush a fight does. Even if it wasn’t much of a fight, I was still riding the buzz on the way back to the palace. I would have flown, but I knew the sooner I got there the sooner Nightmare killed my mood. Instead, I took my time enjoying the night air and the empty streets that I had all to myself. Now, if only a mugger would try something...

“Gilda.”

I stopped and turned towards the voice. “Hey Grace.” I smiled at him, feeling good from the alcohol and adrenaline.

He didn’t look happy though. “I heard that ‘Luna’ dragged you through the palace on a leash.”

And now I wasn’t looking happy. Or feeling it.

When I didn’t answer him he sighed and said, “I was worried it was true...”

I didn’t answer him again.

“Want to talk about it?” he offered hesitantly after a moment.

I snorted. “Fuck that.”

He smiled back at me, though it looked forced. “Well, want a drink?”

I gave him the best ‘Gilda’ answer I could. “Shit yeah, I’m always cool for booze.”

I don’t know if he saw through it or not, he just took to the air without answering and I followed him.

It wasn’t long before we were in a decent bar and I had a mug in my claw and a laugh on my breath as he told me about the time he blah blah blah... It was a familiar scene, and we were both happy to play it through without him needing to arrest me at the end.

I wiped a tear from my eye. “I swear, dad’s the biggest prick this side of the border. Geez, what’s he doing now?”

Grace paused. “You haven’t heard?”

I shrugged. “Heard what?”

“He’s dead, Gilda.”

I froze. “Fuck... really?”

He nodded.

“How?”

He sighed. “Choked on his own vomit after passing out.”

I chuckled. Is that messed up? Whatever, I chuckled. “Sounds like him alright.”

He blinked at that and frowned. “He was your father, Gilda.”

“He was a piece of living shit.” I snorted. “How was the funeral?”

“Small,” he answered.

I smirked. “Sounds about right. Eulogy?”

“Mother gave it.” he replied.

“What did she say?”

He paused. “That he lived life to its fullest.”

I burst out laughing. What do you want me to say? Yeah, it was bloody hilarious. Could only have been better if I was actually there.

“It’s not funny, Gilda.” he told me sternly.

“Yeah, it is.” I finished my chuckle with a swig of ale. “What a nice way to say he was a douchebag with no idea of too much? ‘He lived life to its fullest.’” I shook my head. “What a joke.”

He stared at me for another second or too, with that stupid frown on his face. It was starting to put me in a bad mood.

“What happened to you?” he asked after a moment. “Where did you go?”

I shrugged. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

He didn’t answer for a while as he nursed the shot in his claws. “What did he do to you?”

“Who?” I tilted my head right. I’d had a few more drinks then he had, but I was far from buzzed. I wasn’t going back to Little Miss Rape Tastic’s apartment if I was drunk.

“Calisto. What did he do?”

I swallowed, even though there was nothing but air in my beak. I closed my eyes as I leaned back. “What about him?”

He paused. “I found him.”

I opened my eyes and stared at him. “What?” I put the shot glass on the table. “You know where he is?”

He nodded.

“Fuck, where?” I stood up. “Take me dude.” I paused. “He’s in the city, right?”

Grace gave another slow nod. “Yes he is. I always thought it was odd that you ran away just a few weeks after he disappeared.” He stood up and left enough crowns on the table to pay for the drinks.

We left the bar and he took to the air.

I jumped up after him and called out. “Where are we going?”

He mustn't have heard me over the wind or something because he didn't answer.

Holy shit! I can’t freaking believe that I’d find him like this! How long had I been looking for him? Six years. Six goddess damn years searching for him in Equestria, and I find him back here in Aviana? I should have stopped in to see Grace ages ago.

We flew over the city, making our way towards Parkside. Heh, that made sense. Calisto was never a city gryphon. If he was living here, he’d want somewhere with trees at least.

“How is he? Is he alright?” I shouted ahead, but Grace didn’t hear me again.

I couldn’t wait to see him. I felt my heart rate rising at the idea of seeing that grizzled salt and pepper bastard. He’d probably look healthy as a buffalo, but grey as a mule. His eyes would still hold that intelligence behind them, and he’d still be all reserved and quiet.

He was like the freaking opposite of me. Wiry and spry, where I was broad shouldered and as big as most guys. Calisto was smart and always planning things through, something that he’d have to remind me again and again. And that voice. Deep, and with a slight scratch. Patient, calm and composed all the time. I couldn’t wait to hear it again.

Freaking heck. If he just said ‘hope ain’t a plan’ I’d squee like Dash did for the bloody Wonderbolts!

I noticed Grace angling down, and followed him in for a landing. I looked around and a frown set into my beak.

“Not funny dude.” Why’d he have to joke about something like this? This was a graveyard. “Come on Grace. I was getting excited. If you didn’t know where he was, then why’d you say you did?”

He glanced back at me, before turning and walking up a path.

I blinked before following him. “This isn’t funny Grace.”

He didn’t answer, just continued leading us between tombstone after tombstone.

Nah... there was no way... Calisto was... Shit, he was tougher than anyone I knew. Smarter than I could dream of being and the best fighter there ever was! No fucking way this was real.

“Funny joke dude. You almost had me convinced.” There was no desperate edge to my voice. It didn’t sound hollow even to me, and I sure as fuck didn’t have a pit forming in my stomach. “Let’s get the heck out of here.”

Grace turned left off the path, and walked for a bit before coming to a halt. He was just staring at one particular grave.

“Okay dude. It’s not funny anymore.”

He just watched me approach, and a shiver rolled down my spine. I stopped next to him and stared down at the plain old grey rock.

“Elder Calisto of the Great Scars. 1957- 1998. Served his people. Died of natural causes.” Grace read aloud.

I felt my knees wobbling, but I made myself stand.

“...”

“I found him here while you were in the dungeons. I had to pull some strings to get access to his files, and those led me here.”

“...”

“Most of his files were redacted in black ink, but the page about his death was clean. Apparently we never found him, and his body was returned to Aviana post mortem. We never learned who sent it. The autopsy claimed it was natural causes.”

I swallowed air again. “Did he leave anything behind?”

Grace glanced over at me. “No. We only have his corpse, and there was not a lot of information to go with it. Shipping was in a pine wood box, and the company that had it sent’s headquarters burned down, so no paperwork could be checked.”

I couldn’t stand anymore, I fell on my haunches. I felt like I should cry, but instead all I got was this ache in my chest. Goddesses damn it. I can’t even rely on my stupid emotions anymore.

Grace just watched me. “Who was he?”

“... What makes you think I know?” My lie sounded so shit. “He was just my Elder.” He was a better father than dad ever was. “I don’t know why he ran, but it’s just coincidence I left a month after.” Who the fuck would ever believe that? “Why’d you bring me here?”

“Because you asked me to,” he answered.

“Yeah, well...” I trailed off.

We were silent for a minute. I wanted to react. Get emotional and shout or cry or something, but instead all I could do was feel this hollow pain in my chest.

“When was your first kill?” I asked after a moment. Fuck?! What the fuck, me! Why the fuck would I ask that?

Grace blinked in surprise and glanced from the grave back to me. “Gilda?”

I snorted. “No, I didn’t fucking kill him.” I could never have done that. “Why would I? I barely knew him.” Holy shit, my lies were hollow tonight. “When was your first kill?” I repeated the question.

“Gilda, are you okay?” he asked sounding concerned.

“I’m fine.” Just learned that the man who I loved like a dad died. No biggie. I’ll be fucking fine. “I wanna know dude. Your first, when?” I found my gaze set firmly on Calisto’s stone.

He stared at me a moment before he answered. “At the start of this year... Zebrica... I can’t give more details than that.”

I snorted. “Yeah-yeah, Wide Eyes and all that shit... Secrets within secrets.” Died of natural causes...? Maybe. “Did you have that moment, where you sit down and you’re like... ‘What the fuck have I done?’ And you’ve got the blood on your claws and...” I trailed off and clenched my claws into fists.

He was staring at me. “Gilda?”

“I didn’t get that. I killed the guy, and I didn’t feel anything... Was I supposed to feel guilty about it? I mean, is that natural? What’s the normal fucking way to feel about killing someone?!” I was shouting. Why the fuck was I shouting? I was glaring straight at the stone and shouting with my fists clenched. “I’m not supposed to feel nothing! ”

Grace moved over and draped a wing over my shoulder.

I swallowed, and a sob finally escaped my throat. “I was thirteen.” I said quietly and Grace stiffened. “How fucked up is that?” A tear dripped onto my talon. “I was thirteen... Who the fuck kills in Equestria? How does that make sense? Killing someone in Equestria?” I stared at that stupid little tombstone and felt so fucking raw that I needed to scream. “Where the fuck were you!” I shouted and Grace flinched away from my voice. “I needed you! Why the fuck weren’t you with me!” I jumped forward out of Grace’s hold and put my shoulder into the stone.

My shoulder hurt as that stupid goddess damn stone didn’t even wobble. With a roar of rage I reared back on my hind legs and grabbed the stone.

“You’re fucking dead!” I heaved the stone with all my might. “Dead!” I jerked it around and shifted the graveyard soil. “You piece of shit! Why’d I waste all that time for you!”

A second later the stone came out of the ground and slipped out of my grip as I staggered. It landed on my paw and I yelped. I stood there, panting in exertion and anger as I stared at the face down grave. After another moment I bent down and picked it up. I heaved it up over my head and threw it away with a grunt. It barely traveled a foot and landed undamaged with a thunk.

I glared back over at Graciano. He was just staring at me with... pity. Motherfucker... I began to stalk towards him. “Don’t you fucking dare!” I spat. “Don’t you look at me like that!”

His gaze didn’t change, but he did take a step back. Idiot. As if I’d ever hurt him.

“Say something!” I demanded. “You brought me here! Say something or leave!”

After a moment he turned away and spread his wings for flight. “Gilda... for what it’s worth I’m sorry.” He moved to fly again before he hesitated. “I don’t know where you’ve been, but...” He looked like he wanted to say more, but he sighed and took to the air.

I watched him leave before I looked back at Calisto’s grave. With a snarl I turned away and flew back towards the palace, I overtook Graciano on the way and he fell behind. I arrived in a few seconds and flew in past the guards. It was dangerous flying this fast indoors, but I did it anyway. Serving maids gasped in shock and cleaners knocked over their soap buckets as I burst past them. I took corners that’d make Dash balk, and angled up stairs so close that the steps were inches from my beak.

I had to slow down as I came closer to the apartment, and skidded along the floor as I came to a stop. The guards outside stared at me, and the one that had followed me to the bar watched me warily. I strode past them and slammed the door open. It opened with a bang, and I think I damaged one of the hinges.

I glanced around the room and Nightmare was nowhere to be seen. Trixie glanced up at me before going back to her book.

“Where is she?” I snarled and pointed my talon at the spot Nightmare had been sitting.

“A date,” replied Trixie without looking up from the books she was reading. “With that gryphon you loathe so much. Trixie assumes you failed to find a bar to destroy while you were out?”

I panted for a moment before I sat down. Fucking Nightmare. “Ask the guard outside. He saw what I did to that guy.” I tried to keep my tone level with Trixie, but I’m not sure it was working. I was breathing in and out heavily. “Fun times. Nothing like a fight.” I gave her an empty grin that she didn’t see.

“No doubt.” She turned the page. “Trixie heard some interesting rumors about a certain female gryphon being dragged along by Nightmare Moon on a leash. Trixie assumes you know absolutely nothing about that?”

I grit my beak and swallowed a mouthful of air before I answered. “No clue. Maybe tomorrow you’ll hear one about the unicorn that died with her own horn stuffed up her ass.”

“Nightmare is much better at threats you realize. Trixie supposes you can say Trixie has become desensitized to your rough behavior. Now, can you please take a shower, the smell of alcohol and sweat is nauseating and the Great and Powerful Trixie cannot concentrate on breaking this enchantment with you fouling up the air.”

“Enchantment?” I asked as I glanced over at her. “You’re trying to break into Nightmare’s books?”

“No. Trixie is hoping to give herself a heart attack so that she no longer has to deal with you two foals.” She glared up at me. “Are you an idiot? Wait, never mind. Compared to Trixie, everypony is an idiot. You’re just dumber than most.”

I snorted and cracked a grin. “Fuck you, Trix. Let me know if you get anywhere.” I stood up and made my way through the door to the bathroom.

I showered and gave myself a good clean. Hot water is the greatest fucking thing ever! Goddesses, I hope whoever figured out how to make it come from the tap was knighted or something. I don’t know how long I was in there for, but if you told me I came out a half hour later I wouldn’t be surprised. Trixie left the towel wet on the floor again, so I was still damp when I stepped outside the bathroom.

“Stop leaving the towel on the floor.” I threw it at her face.

“Trixie is trying to perform magical feats beyond your imagination,” she snapped back as she lobbed it in my direction. “Stop distracting her! Such mundane tasks are below her status as the Great and Powerful!”

I rolled my eyes. “Beyond my imagination? Deciphering a book? Holy shit you’re right! My mind is completely fucking blown! No way in Tartarus is that within my oh-so-fucking limited realms of mundaneness.” I made my way to the fridge and opened it up. I found myself some nice cold ham next to some fruits and other pony shit. I took out the ham and turned back to Trixie. “Want anything?” I indicated the fridge.

“An orechiette with broccoli rabe and chickpeas,” she replied as she scribbled some notes on a piece of paper and rubbed her temples. “Not deciphering, disenchanting. An idiot like you would not understand the difference or the difficulty associated with such a monumental task.”

“Point is you can’t read it, and you’re trying to. Magic involved or not, it’s not like I have no freaking clue. I’m not a genius or anything, but I do know my way around a few zebra tricks.” I took a bite of the ham and sat back down on the couch. “Side’s, the spell was made by a goddess. What’s to say it’s not beyond your comprehension?” I tossed an apple at the back of her head.

To my surprise, she actually managed to dodge it without looking up. “Ha! Trixie is a prodigy and genius of the highest caliber. No spell is beyond her!” Cue the fireworks.

“Well, I don’t know if you’re a prodigy or not, but do you think the Element of Magic...” I snapped my fingers. “What’s her name? Uh... Sparkle, right? Anyway, do you reckon she, probably the most powerful unicorn around, ever really came close to the princess? World’s biggest fly’s just a fly. It’s just more annoying than the rest.”

“Twilight Sparkle is a no named, blank flank who does not deserve to be the Element of Magic nor associated with it in any way or form!” The same book she had been studying was hurled in my direction. I caught it pretty easy. “She is a pathetic unicorn with no power and got where she is through lies and trickery!”

I laughed. “Guess I touched a nerve? What, she steal your lunch money in magic kindergarten?”

Okay, I’ve gotten some pretty nasty death glares in the past but this one was definitely up there in the top ten. If it wasn’t because I knew she was a wimp, I might have actually scared me. Maybe. If I was three years old or something.

I decided to back off on the Sparkle thing. “Anyway, the point is do you really think you’ll be able to break Nightmare’s enchantment?” I held the book up. “Bitch is a goddess. Gives her a slight edge.”

“Do not remind me,” she muttered under her breath as a shudder passed through her body.

I snorted. “If I don’t, then she will. If we want to get out of this then we need to remember what we’re dealing with. Now, straight answer. Do you actually think you can break the enchantment?”

“Enchantments,” she corrected. “But yes. Most of them are frayed at the edges thanks to being cast so long ago. Also, magic has advanced a lot in the past thousand years, so while the enchantments are strong, they are also old, and there are a couple of counterspells Trixie could use. Only problem is, she needs Nightmare Moon to be gone long enough to cast them. And it’ll be flashy so she needs to be distracted.”

I snorted. “How long’s she been gone for? Couldn’t you have done it while she’s bumping uglies with that pedophile?”

“Trixie had to identify the spells first and then you came back. Trixie does not wish to risk tampering with the tome while there’s a chance Nightmare may come back halfway through. Trixie likes living after all.”

“Fair enough. So then we need a way to keep Nightmare busy and distracted for a few hours while you work your magic. Here’s another question though, why do you want to know what’s in there anyway? Why not put that time and energy into escaping?”

“There is magic in there.” She ripped the book out of my claws and went back to reading. “Great and powerful magic. Plus, do you not find this entire situation odd? Trixie does not trust them at all and this may hold the answers.”

“Weird? What’s weird about being blackmailed into a secret operation in ancient ruins by a child goddess with multiple personalities?” I smirked. “Sounds like a Sunday to me.”

“Shut up.”

I rolled my eyes. “Point is nothing about this situation has ever been normal. And trust? Please. You’re probably doing the wrong thing by trusting me in a mess like this.”

“Whatever.” She growled. “Better you than Nightmare Moon.”

“Who says you have to trust anyone?” I pointed out. “Both me and Nightmare are crazy, violent and have a spotty history. What makes you think I’m any less likely to get you killed or betray you than she is? Aren’t you the great and powerful? Why trust anyone here?”

“Because Trixie doesn’t hate you,” she said in a small voice, almost as though it physically hurt to say it.

I blinked in surprise at that. I tried to think of a response, but just found myself opening my beak and shutting it before anything came out.

After a while I settled on, “I’m glad to hear that.” After another second I added, “I like you to.”

“Trixie did not just hear that,” she replied. “And keep the sappiness to yourself.”

I laughed. “Yeah, emotions suck.” I’d had way too many tonight for my tastes. “Alright. So we want to get in the book because you think this mess isn’t weird enough as it is.” I shrugged. “If it helps, I was with Nightmare when she went on her tour of the science labs. I saw a whole bunch of machines that were like the ones back in the star temple.”

“Are you certain?”

I nodded and finished off the ham in my hands. I was still chewing as I answered. “Yeah. They had those big glass tubes set up too, but nothing was in them yet. Nightmare didn’t react at all as far as I could tell, but she’s good at hiding her emotions and shit.”

“And you wonder why I trust you more.”

“I thought you could read anybody like a book? Surely the Great and Powerful Trixie can read Nightmare just as easily.”

“She is a goddess,” replied Trixie with a shrug. “That is an entirely different matter.”

“Alright then.” I stood up and began pacing. “So what do you think all this crap means then?”

“We’re all fucked. But mainly you since Nightmare wants to fuck you.” She paused and glared at me. “You are a bad influence.”

“What? How am I a bad influence?” I asked indignant.

“Oh, Trixie doesn’t know for it surely can’t be swearing or the lude comments, nor could it possibly be the violence or alcohol. And obviously, it’s not your willingness to get into fights or to kill if the need arises. Oh no. You, Gilda, are the paragon of morality and all gryphons should look up to you.”

Kill? Oh right, she must have seen that minotaur in the bar. Weird. She hadn’t brought that up at all... What a fucking racist! Freaks out at the suggestion that I could kill a pony, doesn’t bat an eyelid when I bleed a minotaur.

“Damn right, they should.” I replied to her. “Gryphon females are spineless idiots. They could do with being a bit more like me.”

And then she proceeded to slam the book against her head multiple times. “You’re an idiot. Trixie is dumber just from being in close proximity to you. You ooze stupidity.”

I rolled my eyes. “Hey, you’re the one that speaks in third person. At least I can use ‘me’ or ‘my’. Anyone that chats with you for a minute thinks you're completely insane by the end of the conversation. They just think I’m a bitch.”

“As if that’s better,” she replied with an eye roll. “They want to kill you. On the other hoof, they just love me. Impossible not to.”

“Uh huh. Impossible not to? That time you got ran out of Ponyville? That means it’s possible.”

“Twilight. Sparkle,” hissed the unicorn. “All her fault.”

“Again with that unicorn. Seriously, she beat the ursa when you didn’t. Seems like a whole lot of hate for like, no reason. At least I can drop a grudge.”

“The Pink One,” she replied with cocked eyebrow.

“That bitch is different,” I jabbed my finger towards her. “Bloody whore ruined everything. Besides, she actually wronged me where you’re just pissed at Sparkle for not being a shit spellcaster.”

“And you’re annoyed at the Pink One because...?”

“None of your fucking business.” I told her sharply. “Anyway, I have a point. Why are you so pissed at Sparkle? She made you look like an idiot? Well I dropped you in an outhouse. I think that make me a bit more hateable than her.”

“Shut up,” she snarled and for a second, I thought she’d actually try and buck me. “You know nothing. Nothing!”

“I know that there’s more to the story than what you’ve told me.” I replied. “Come on, what’s got you so ticked off at her?”

“It wasn’t even my fault!” The book slammed against the wall. “I didn’t even do any fucking thing wrong! But nooooooo, they had to chase me out of their stupid, backwater, stinking town with nothing. Nothing! No cape, no hat, no wagon. Nothing. Fuck them! Fuck them all.”

A ball of blue magic slammed against the wall, burst into flames. With the wall on fire, she simply stood there, growling in frustration as she powered up her horn yet again and this time, I’d say it’d be more than a small ball of fire.

“Dude, woah. Calm down.” I stepped closer. “No need to set the furniture on fire. Relax, if you’d like, I can take you out to the city and we’ll break some face, but whatever spell you’re casting’s not a good idea.”

“Shut up. Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut. UP!”

Her head swung towards me, her horn pointed straight at me and I reacted. I dodged right out of the spell’s direct path, and cut the distance between me and her with a flap of my wings. She gasped as I took her legs out from under her. The spell she had charged flashed and fired into the ceiling, and I pinned her to the ground, protecting her from the debris as bits of wood and stone rained around us.

“The fuck was that!” I shouted in Trixie’s face before blinking at the tears rolling down her cheek. Before I could react, I was flung across the room and by the time I had recovered, the door to the bathroom was closed. The entire thing glowed, and I had no doubt she had locked it with who knows how many spells.

I stood there for a moment, staring around the room and taking in everything. After a moment I said the first thing that came to mind.

“The fuck was that about?!” I turned to the door and walked over to it.

“I was about to ask the same thing.” I blinked in surprise before looking up at Nightmare Moon’s face as she scowled down at me. “I leave and you two end up blowing a hole in the roof. Are you trying to get thrown back in jail?”

A scowl set into my face as she looked down at me from the floor above. “The fuck does it mean to you?” I asked sounding pissed.

With a roll of her eyes, she showed me the unconscious body of Teotore. “I was busy getting information. Idiots.”

“Like I care.” I glanced up at the hole. “So his room’s right above ours? That’s really fucking creepy.”

“No, but it’s an empty ‘guest’ room no doubt used for surveillance,” she replied. “I dragged him in there for some impromptu fun and you just had to blow a hole in the floor.”

I shivered in disgust. “Gross.” I would not touch that guy with anything other than a knife. “Please tell me ‘fun’ doesn’t mean what it sounds like.”

“It sounds like knocking him unconscious, shifting through his mind for any and all information he may hold, Manipulating him so that he ends up hanging himself, and rearranging his memory of the night so that he’d remember a pleasant walk, some seduction, and promises of more!” Her eyes flicked over to the main entrance and sighed with what sounded like relief at the sight of it being blocked by rubble.

“Trix can break shit when she wants, that’s for damn certain.” I muttered. Stupid unicorns, with their cheating magic. How’s a gryphon supposed to keep up?

“Whatever. If guards manage to break through, keep them busy while I finish up here,” replied Nightmare as she disappeared from view.

“Keep them busy?” I asked aloud. “What? Are we running or something?” Annoyingly, she didn’t answer me.

I walked into the bedroom and took the sack I’d kicked under the bed out. Even if I didn’t have my knives and weapons, I felt better wearing my brown cloak and with all the empty belts and pouches crossing over my chest. The only thing worthwhile that was in them was the gold hoof band from the temple. I walked out of the bedroom and turned back to the door before sitting on my haunches. Not like I had much better to do than wait.

I shouted over my shoulder at the bathroom door, “Trix, you might want to get out here. I think Nightmare’s planning something.”

The door suddenly flew open, and in strolled Trixie. I swear she was sparkling as well, like, dragon scale shiny.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie is here! Step aside simpletons and let the Great and Powerful Trixie solve all your issues.” Fireworks. More, bloody fireworks. I don’t know what I preferred, her moping in the bathroom, or this.

“What the fuck was that mess from earlier?” I glanced over at the door as voices from outside started to filter into the room. “You were aiming that at me!” I jerked my thumb at the hole in the roof.

“The Great and Powerful was doing no such thing,” she replied with a flick of her mane.

“You pointed your horn straight at me.” I stated flatly. “That spell would have turned me to bloody pulp.” I paused before adding, “I meant ‘bloody’ as in the curse, not the description.”

“That only happened because you jerked the Great and Powerful’s horn in your direction. If you cannot handle the power that comes from the Great and Powerful One, then you should not do such actions.”

“Jerked your horn in my direction?” I repeated. “Do you actually believe that happened, or are you just in denial? Either way, next time you pull that shit it’s not ending well.”

“Whatever you say, insignificant gryphon.”

“Another thing, your racist bullshit is really starting to rub me the wrong way.”

“The Great and Powerful Trixie does not know what you are talking about,” she replied with a wave of her hoof. “Now get me that dish I ordered earlier.”

“You’re a fucking racist Trix. Seriously, enough with the gryphon jabs. They’re getting old real fast.” I glanced over at the fridge, which was knocked over with all the food lying on the ground. “And there’s no way in hell I’m ever getting you ‘flambe broccoli chickpeas’ with chrysanthemums or whatever the hell it was.”

“Trixie is not racist! How dare you insinuate such a thing. She merely believes all beings are below her and the only ones that come close to even a tenth of her magnificence are the alicorn sisters.”

“Will you two shut up!?” screamed Nightmare Moon from above us. “Some of us are trying to work here!”

“I didn’t know they had a street corner in that room!” I shouted up at her. “Convenient when your work’s so close to home.”

“Rather him than you,” was the reply.

“Frankly, the Great and Powerful Trixie would rather die than touch either of you in that manner.”

“Fuck you Trix.” I told her before turning back to the door. I snorted. “Hey, you know what picking up tricks means right?”

“Perhaps. What are you thinking of doing?”

“Nothing. Just saying with a name like ‘trick-sy’ your parents mustn't have had high expectations when they popped you out.”

There was a pause and for a split second that haughtiness was gone and she looked this close to breaking down yet again.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie is called the Great and Powerful for a reason. She has superseded all expectations and is a genius of the highest caliber.”

I stared at her, not commenting. “You alright?” I said after a moment.

“Yes.” She turned away and put on her hat. “So what’s the plan?”

“Plan is ‘hold off’ any fucker that comes in while Nightmare does... whatever it is she’s doing. Chances are they’ll be coming in armed and armored with miss goddess supposedly in here. I haven’t got any of my weapons, so that’ll make things a bit tricky. So, in short: there is no plan. We’re out matched, and outnumbered, and of the two of us I’m the only one who really knows how to fight.”

“Have you already forgotten about Trixie’s exploits during our escape? Or that bar brawl? Trixie is more than capable of handling herself.” The entire pile of debris shifted as an explosion was let loose on the other side of the door. “Amateurs.”

“In the bar you just started the fight and set up distractions. On the run you made some nice illusions and fell into an outhouse. Props where they’re due, but no, you’re not a fighter Trix. Is there any kind of barrier you can put over the door?”

“Yes, but that would be a waste of effort.” Her horn glowed and the rubble began shifting around until it formed a more structured barricade behind the door. Though sweat dripped from her brow, she made no indication of how much effort it took. “That should hold them far longer than any barrier I could conjure and it shall hide our involvement. We can merely say we were locked in while Nightmare did things to us.”

“Cool.” I turned around and looked up at the hole in the ceiling. “Nearly done sucking that guy off Nightmare?!” I looked across and saw the window to the room. I glanced back at Trixie. “They’ll probably try to get in through there,” I indicated it. “Anything you can do about that?”

“One more minute!” yelled Nightmare from above and from the pounding that accompanied her voice, I’d say she was dealing with other issues as well.

“Watch as the Great and Powerful Trixie works!” She blew up more of the roof and then placed those over each window before turning it invisible. A second later, a gryphon came into view, smashed through the window, into the rubble and then vanished from view.

I laughed. “Nice. That’ll hold them for a bit.” Digging out the rubble while flying would be a pain in the ass, and that was on top of how long they’d need to figure out what was really stopping them from getting in. “Alright, so now it’s just a matter of sitting tight, and hoping Nightmare gets done before any gryphons break in. She teleports us out of here, and then when she’s tired from using her magic, you and I make a break for the border.”

“Agreed.” There was a far louder explosion and a massive crack ran down the bedroom wall. The two of us exchanged a glance. “And before you ask, Trixie does not have any way of stopping them from breaking through that wall.”

I took a step back and looked around the room for anything that I could use as a weapon. Nothing. “Okay, so it’s not likely they break through the wall before the door or windows give way, but if they do, dispel that illusion on the windows and play innocent. We’ll blame it all on Nightmare. No point fighting when we’re gonna lose and just get thrown in jail for it.”

“Agreed.” Trixie licked her lips as her eyes narrowed. “But there may be another solution. They’re expecting us to stay in, and from the looks of things, they’re trying for multiple directions at the same time. So we make the first offensive move and take them by surprise. Break through and make a break for it.”

I snorted. “That’s not a good idea Trix. We’d just have to fight our way out of the palace, the city, and then the entirety of the Gryphon Kingdom. And then when we get back to Equestria, hope they don’t extradite us for breaking more laws than I can remember. No, if worse comes to worst, then we just play innocent fe-”

The sound of an explosion rocked the room, and a plume of dust burst through the hole in the roof. A sharp crack of battle magic followed, and I grabbed Trixie and pulled her to the side, just in time as the entire roof caved in. To my surprise a blue shield popped up around us and the remaining rubble was brushed aside harmlessly. A second later, Nightmare dropped down with a gryphon beneath her hooves and with a crack, his neck was broken.

“Hurry! We must get out of here.” The shield dropped, Nightmare grabbed both of us and we vanished in a burst of magic just as more gryphons came flooding in.

Reality returned, and I fell to my knees holding bile. “I fucking hate teleporting.” I muttered. After a moment I looked around took stock of where we were. “We’re still in the palace!” I shouted as I got back up and glared at Nightmare. “Your magic tap out or are you just retarded?”

“The labs! We need to destroy all research there,” she yelled as she raced off into the darkness.

“Goddesses damn it!” I shouted in frustration. “Come on Trix, she’s our ticket out of this city!” I started to run after her, and Trixie’s hoofsteps echoed behind me.

It’s a good thing I remembered the way through this place, and I led us into the central lab I’d seen last time I was here. Not that I actually needed any memory, all I had to do was follow the bloody hoofprints. By the time we had arrived at the stairway down, the guards were already dead and screams were coming from before. A gryphon burst out of the labs, one wing missing and a deep gash along his side, but before he had gotten more than five steps, black flames burst up around him and he died screaming in agony.

I backed away from him, and covered my beak against the smoke. I heard Trixie throwing up behind me. “Fucking Nightmare.”

I grabbed Trixie’s hoof and pulled her past the poor bastard. We entered the lab, and... carnage. Bodies everywhere, scientists in lab coats strewn over broken glass and test beakers. Blood all over the walls and pooling on the white tile floor.

“Fuck me...” I said in a voice that was barely a whisper. I got over my shock and pulled Trixie forward. “Come on... Let’s just find her and... get out of here.”

“They’re dead.” Trixie said as she stumbled along behind me.

“State the obvious,” I said and did my best to ignore one the corpses that was twitching. “Fucking hell. No wonder Celestia banished Nightmare. I’d have done that to Grace if... this.”

There was sudden explosion and fumes filled the air. Up above I could see a blazing fire that had no doubt been started by Nightmare herself. The scent of burning fur and feathers made me want to throw up.

I grabbed a face mask from one of the dead gryphons and shoved it over Trixie’s muzzle. I got one for myself and tried not to shiver when I noticed the blood stain on it. I lowered myself a bit and pulled us ahead into the smoke. I was coughing badly, and so was Trixie, but I didn’t smell anything in the air that was particularly acrid. I could only hope that whatever was burning wasn’t the sort of chemical that’d kill us from lung cancer or some shit. I did the best I could, navigating in the smoke and haze, but my eyes were watering so bad I could have been taking us anywhere.

The door up ahead was ajar and light was coming in, so that was good enough for me. I threw Trixie into the room and pulled the door shut behind us.

“Fucking Nightmare!” I shouted between heavy coughs.

I only then looked around the room and noticed it was full of those glass tubes from the temple, and there was a pile of research notes on the desks.

Trixie collapsed to the floor coughing and crying, and still fighting the occasional heave of her stomach. Wandering over to the notes, I collected them all and took them back to Trixie. I lifted her cloak and stuffed them in the pockets she had under her coat. We could read them later. Destroy the notes or take them, either way the gryphons wouldn’t get them, which is what Nightmare wanted. It probably wasn’t necessary, but I shattered the glass tubes and yanked apart all the wires in the machines attached to them. I hate Nightmare, but I didn’t like the idea of the Kingdom making those monsters in the temple. If I could stop that then great.

I was glad this room didn’t have any dead scientists in it. Trixie’s coughing had stopped and she slowly stood up.

“Now what?” she asked. “We’re not going back out there are-”

The door crashed open and Nightmare burst in. Her sword flashed and I shoved Trixie out of the way just in time to stop her getting impaled. One of Nightmare’s daggers slashed at me, and I pulled back under it.

“Nightmare it’s us!” I shouted.

She paused and rubbed the tears and smoke from her eyes. “Finally. Help me set light to this lab. Quickly!” She rushed off once more, throwing fireballs in all directions as she went.

“We need to get the fuck out of here!” I shouted at her. “I already shredded the notes they had!”

“They've still got the equipment!”

I grit my beak, and set about throwing desks and chairs and all the lab tools I could into a pile for Nightmare to burn. After a while Trixie joined us, and in a second the room was stripped of all its science stuff.

“We need somewhere to lay low,” snapped Nightmare. “Any ideas?”

“Yeah, I know a few places. But we need to get out of the palace first.” I glanced at Trixie and thought about it for a second. “We can go to the old Industrial Quarter. There’s a nice basement I know of that we can hide in. Will that do?”

“Yes. I am not as picky as my counterpart,” replied Nightmare Moon. “Now open your mind, I need an image of where we’re going.”

I blinked. “Fuck that. Just teleport us out of the palace and we’ll walk.” I knew that was a bad idea, but there was no fucking way I was letting her in my head. I had no idea what she’d leave behind, but I doubt I’d like it.

“Fine.” Once more we gathered around her and we vanished in yet another teleport. This time we appeared in the middle of the city plaza.

My eyes bugged. “Are you fucking retarded!” I screamed at her. “We can’t waltz through the city!” Already guards were turning around and noticing us. “That was a bad idea! Why the fuck did you take us here!”

“This is the only other location I know well enough to teleport to,” she replied innocently.

“You fuck-wit!” I shouted.

“Isn’t it a shame there are no gryphons around who know of a good hiding place,” she sighed as she glanced over at the approaching guards. “Such a shame we’ll get caught after all this work.”

“There’s no fucking way you’re getting in my head!” I shouted.

Trixie turned towards me. “Just do it!” she shouted. “Trixie does not want to die because you’re afraid.”

“I-” Took one final look at the approaching guards. “Fine. But don’t go poking around in there.”

With an all too gleeful grin, she leaned forwards and pressed her horn to my forehead. It took a moment, but I relaxed my mental barriers and let her in. One of those things Calisto had taught me to do and never said why. This was the first time someone had done it to me for real though, and it was so freaking weird. It was like... I can only describe it as if someone was rummaging around inside my body, and I couldn’t feel any pain.

I could feel her touching certain thoughts and discarding them. Her thoughts were in here too, and I was really aware of the fact that Nightmare had a cut on her flank and was covering it with an illusion. She was tired. Really freaking exhausted, and I only didn’t see this because of the basic illusion she had covering her. Also in her head I could feel... Shit. That was Luna. I felt Luna touch my mind in what I could only guess was a mental greeting.

Focus your thoughts on the hiding place.

Nightmares voice filled my mind. I did as she instructed, and brought my memories of the four days I spent hiding there to the front of my head. Luna got curious for a second, and began to follow that line of thought back to when I was twelve and running from-

I dragged her back down that path and away from my memories. She didn’t put up much of a fight, and I knew if she really wanted, she’d get what she wanted from me. Just teleport us already Nightmare! It was then that I noticed that Luna was already poking around in my recollection of tonight. My body screamed in frustration as I yanked her out of there, and shoved her back into Nightmare’s head. To my surprise, I felt Nightmare there helping me shove Luna away. Thanks... I guess. Though she was probably doing it to help me stay focused.

I returned my thoughts to the basement, and the cracked faded plaster that coated the walls. The mold stain on the roof, and the damp smell of rot in the air. I gave Nightmare all the detail I could of the last time I’d stopped by there, about two years ago. The brown stain on the wall that I’d always wanted to clean, that coarse cobble stone of the floor, and the stupid blue stripe that someone had painted on the wall in the dodgiest Great Scars symbol ever.

I was just wondering how much she needed when I felt her magic flood her horn. It was weird casting a spell. Only half of Nightmare’s mind was really working the spell, the rest was running over things in her head. I couldn’t help but overhear what she was thinking. And by that I mean there was no way I couldn’t listen. The thoughts were right there and running through my head, and with Nightmare’s concentration elsewhere there was no way for her to pull them back.

Most of it was a blurry mess of confusion and weirdness. There was sadness, confusion, annoyance, anger, cold hard logic, loyalty, honor, respect and so much more. I could feel the power she held and knew that all she needed was a single thought to leave a crater the size of a castle. At the same time though, something about me. Some emotion directed at me that was different. It wa-

“Do you mind? Or would you rather I fail this teleport and we can all end up appearing in the middle of a mountain?”

I could see tubes like the one in the castle, each one filled with monsters. There were blurry ponies walking around and words being spoken, but they were nothing more than static in my ears. I could see the sunset with something, someone snuggled into her side and actual joy flowing through her body. There were images of Nightmare and Luna, standing face to face, yelling at each other and coming to blows. There was Celestia, the Elements floating around her as they charged up to banish her and in that split second of failure, I could taste the regret and sorrow. It was thick and bitter like a manticore venom cocktail. And then I was on the moon, throwing Luna into an enchanted sleep in an attempt to hi-

“Enough!”

My eyes snapped open and I stumbled back clutching my head in my claws. There was a loud ringing in my ears and I fell to the floor dazed. I rolled onto my belly, and looked up to see Nightmare glaring at me. I blinked, and tried to shake my head clear. I banged a claw against my head, but the ringing and fuzzy cotton that had swollen my brain wouldn’t let up.

I tried to stand up again, but just stumbled forward and landed on my face.

I vaguely heard a voice ask me if I was okay. It might have been Trixie.

I opened my beak to answer, but all that came out was air and a groan.

It might have been Nightmare that said severing mental bonds so suddenly can cause disorientation. But to me, it sounded a little like Calisto saying that. And Grace. And Dash. And Luna. And Pinkie. And my dad. And...

Just like that the fuzz was gone. The ringing died, and reality made sense again. And Nightmare had a hoof on my chest with a very sharp sword aimed at my throat. Oh... shit.

“We respected your wish and did not invade your privacy. Next time, you will do the same if you value your life.” Then her eyes rolled back, she hit the ground and her coat and mane returned to Luna’s coloration.

“Okay...” I unsteadily stood up and looked at Trixie. “That just happened right?”

She nodded.

I looked back down at Nightmare/Luna, whoever it was, and nudged her muzzle with my knuckle. “You alright?”

No response. Not even a twitch.

“Trixie, I feel like I’m about to throw up. Can you... drag her into a corner... or something?” I walked away and fell against a wall. I looked around and noticed that this was the basement we wanted to go to. Good... I guess.

I was tired. The events of the night caught up to me and I closed my eyes. I might have heard Trixie bitching about something, but that might have been a fly buzzing in my ear as well. It took me seconds before I was asleep.

Graciano pushed open the door, and slid the pouch of sleeping powder back into his pocket. The guard’s key locked the door behind him, and he turned to face the room’s contents.

It was a small office. Unassuming, and the only thing unusual about it was the line of glowing blue memory droughts lined up along the desk, in front of the gryphon scribe. He was a skinny old one, his fur a silver gray and his crown feathers a colorless charcoal.

The Wide Eyes handled their files with care and precision. A delicate system and heavily guarded archive prevented information from being spread or corrupted. When an operative asked for certain information he was cleared for, the information was sent to scribe who copied it down and transferred the copy to the operative. The operative was then trusted to handle the information appropriately, and burn the copied file when he was done. This system wasn’t without its flaws.

For example the scribes presented the risk of knowing a truly vast amount of secrets. Over a lifetime they might come to know... almost everything there was to know that they shouldn’t. Hence the memory droughts. Once a file was copied, it was placed in a folder, and the scribe would move onto the next one. At the end of his hour long shift the scribe would drink the memory drought, forget everything and a new scribe would be brought in.

As Grace approached the table, the scribe turned around and glared at him. “You shouldn’t be here,” he stated in a croaky voice.

“My apologies Arsenio.” Grace inclined his head. “But as I’m sure you’ve figured out, that is not my greatest concern.”

Arsenio sighed. “So you know my name? I’m guessing we’ve met before.”

Grace only smiled.

Arsenio glanced at the memory droughts in front of him. “It’s a funny thing doing this job for so long. Everyday is the first, and I know I’ve had a long and productive career. Yet I have not an experience to speak of.” He returned his eyes to Grace. “Have I told you this before?”

Grace nodded. “Yes, or something much like it.”

“What do you want then?”

“Lord Teotore asked for files to be brought to him today. The king also asked for similar files, pertaining to the personal history of Gilda of the Great Scars. I also wish to see the file of Calisto of the Great Scars, requested by me, earlier this afternoon.”

Arsenio looked at the box of files to his right. “You know, you’re not allowed to see the originals.”

“Yes, but it’s the originals that I require.” Graciano opened the lid on the box and sifted through the files. After a moment he retrieved the ones that pertained to Calisto and Gilda. He opened Calisto’s up, and looked at the scribe’s marks at the bottom. “It says that this file has been accessed a few times, but all the copies were disposed of appropriately. Except for one file yet to be confirmed in its destruction. That was by me and gained through the proper clearance earlier this morning.” He tucked it under his arm. He picked up Gilda’s file and opened it. “This one was not accessed by anyone since its creation, except for five years ago. The gryphon that had that copy was killed, and it’s unknown where the file went from there.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

Grace smiled at him. “I feel as though if I’m to steal your memories, I should at least not be cruel or rude before I do so. No need to leave you in suspense.” He tucked the file under his arm and turned to Arsenio, who stood up from the table.

“I’m not going to let you leave with those.” he said with a frown. “My job is to keep secrets.”

Grace nodded. “That is also something you’ve said before.”

Arsenio’s jaw tightened. “Guards!” he called to the door.

Graciano smiled, and stepped closer to the man. “I’ve heard it’s a sign of a great ego when you quote yourself repeatedly.”

The older gryphon turned to Grace with an angry look on his face.

Graciano grimaced. “You’re right. That was a poor joke, made in poor taste. I apologize.” He took the blue memory drought from his pouch.

Arsenio sighed and fell on his haunches. “The funniest thing about that drink, is I have no idea what it tastes like.”

Grace smiled. “A great irony. Please, drink. I don’t wish to force you.” He offered the substance.

Arsenio took it in hand, and stared at it for a second, before pouring its contents on the ground.

Grace sighed. “Not the first time you’ve done that.” He withdrew another potion.

“Then why give me the choice?” the old one asked with a growl.

“Because I believe choice is important. Your actions define you, even if you never experience them yourself.”

With a swift moved, he had the elder gryphon on the ground. He bound Arsenios hands behind his back with padded cuffs that would leave no bruise. He pulled him across the room and sat him back in the chair. With his claws he forced his beak open, and tipped the drink down his throat. The moment the vial was empty, he undid the padded cuffs, and quietly slipped out the room.

As he left he closed the door quietly. He paused just long enough to hear Arsenio say, “First time again.”

Grace smiled, just like last time. Leaving the building was simple fair. He merely retraced his steps from the way in. Once he was outside, he took to the air and flew to city center. Once there, Grace paused in front of a burning brazier and looked over the files in his talons.

“For you sister,” he said to the air and dropped them into the flame. They caught alight, and in moments nothing was left of them but some ash that would be cleaned out the following day.

Sequel

So here it is, the totally unnecessary sequel where we see if y1 and I will finally kill each other or not. Catch all the action over this way in the brand new fic Behind Closed Doors.

Oh yeah, and it features Gilda-Trixie being sappy, Luna being... well... Luna, Vinyl Scratch being whatever the heck is and changelings 'cause changelings and our edittor loves changelings. So yeah. Find the summary below:

With the recent collapse of the Aviana, capital of the Gryphon Kingdom, refugees have been flooding into Equestria and with it, a host of racial issues. Toss in some changelings messing around in the background and it's a bomb just waiting to go off. With tensions on the rise, Gilda finds herself being dragged back into middle of the conflict by none other than Princess Luna. This time though, Gilda knows better and with her new found relationship with Trixie, she is willing to do anything and everything to get out of helping out. Unfortunally, one does not mess with a Princess, especially not the Princess of the Night.

Also, check out Conviction by y1 which deals with the actual world he created (and these fics take place in), where he goes into Slight and the nightkin during the period Celly vs NMM took place and the immediate aftermath of Celestia winning. It's really damn good, so go read it (Help! I'm being held hostage, save meeee).