Spies and Griffons

Chapter 3: Spies

Pegasi Tribes, by Cloudmane

It is a well-established fact that there are three "tribes" of ponies; the evidence is easily seen with just a walk in the street. What is not well-known, however, is that there were in times past subtribes of pegasi within the main tribe. These pegasi tribes were unified by a single leader who has since gone down in legend, Charlemane.

The many subtribes of pegasi are distinguished by talents, wing size and shape, coloration, and magical ability as it pertains to weather and flight. Amazingly, all pegasi in modern times fall into one of the seventy-nine different tribal groups; the relations are passed down by blood. Because the tribal system has fallen out of use, most pegasi do not know their tribe of origin.

It had been two days since Emerald and Blue Eyes had boarded the airship. The Glowing Prospect had taken a northwest path from the shore. Currently, the airship was somewhere above the deserted Hayseed Swamps.

Blue Eyes was busy causing misery for the pegasi crewponies. She was the youngest by far on the airship, and something about her reminded the crew of younger sisters or daughters. Because of this, she could get away with anything without any fear of discipline or retribution.

“Red! Red! Can you fly me again? I wanna go to the top again!” She had jumped the hapless first mate just as he emerged from the enclosed bridge.

“Well, I don’ know if I can...” His voice gradually dwindled. He looked down at the eyes gazing adoringly up at him. “Well... I guess I can.” Blue Eyes squealed in delight. “Jes’ this once, though.” He picked her up and set her on his back, then turned to Emerald. He had been watching the situation with growing mirth. “Cap’n Spinner wants to speak with you on the bridge, Mister Emerald. He said it couldn’t wait.”

Emerald tilted his head. The fact that the captain wanted to speak with him alone wasn’t alarming in itself, it was just somewhat confusing. He had assumed that anything Captain Spinner might say to him could be said in the open. “Do you have any idea what it might be about?”

Red shook his head deliberately. “No, he didn’t say nothin’. But if you were in trouble, he would have said it.”  Blue Eyes poked the pegasus on the back of the head from her position on his back. She cleared her throat in an exaggerated manner. Red smiled to himself. “Sorry, Mister Emerald, but I’ve got an obligation to an impatient and rather ill-natured young filly. If you find yourself in need of anything, just give me a holler.”

Blue Eyes looked confused for a moment. She frowned and said, “Hey. That other filly can wait. I’m ready now.” Red shook his head good-naturedly. His wing muscles coiled and he launched off the deck and into the sky, towards the crow’s nest.

Emerald watched the Red and Blue Eyes go. After the filly’s captivity had ended, she had become more boisterous, oblivious, hardheaded, and hyperactive. When the pair was trapped on the Nevermore, the unicorn filly had never been allowed to do anything. Even talking was kept to a minimum in fear of the captain and first mate.

As he walked through the door to the enclosed bridge of the ship, Emerald wondered to himself about the contrast between the captains of the Nevermore and the Glowing Prospect. The griffon had been completely egoistic, sadistic, and of questionable sanity, while Captain Spinner was dependable, intelligent, and organized. Spinner’s only fault was that he was a little withdrawn. He wasn't exactly cold, but he was definitely aloof.

The door on the deck led to a short stairway with another door at the end. Emerald raised a hoof to knock  but before his hoof made contact, a steely voice from inside said, “Come in."

Emerald nervously pushed the door open. He had already been to the bridge once before, but the sight still stunned him. There was a large, ornate steering wheel, at the stern, and around that was a full semicircle of glass. Pipes, gears, and valves of silver wound their ways around the room.

Captain Spinner was standing above a large circle of glass set into the floor, looking down onto the wilderness of the Hayseed Swamps. The very tops of the trees were verdant green, the same color as Emerald’s coat, and the numerous bogs and springs shone like precious gems. The captain glanced up.

“You said you needed me?” Though his voice was very calm, Emerald still couldn't shake the vague nervousness he felt. He always subconsciously tried to mask his feelings. It was an old habit, even when it wasn't necessary.

“Yes. I had a few more questions, regarding the your escape from the Nevermore.” The captain walked over to the drawers behind the airship’s wheel and pulled out a scroll with a red ribbon and a golden seal.

“What kinds of questions? I thought I told you everything earlier.” Emerald had been in to see the captain the night of his escape, two days earlier, and he had recounted all he remembered from his imprisonment.

The captain opened the scroll and held it in front of him, looking at it with interest. “This letter has come from someone higher up on the proverbial ladder than me.”

Emerald felt a sense of relief when he saw Captain Spinner take a breath to start reading. He was afraid that the captain would ask him to read the letter. He wasn't exactly confident in his grasp of the Equestrian written language; to put it bluntly, he was completely and totally illiterate.

The captain started reading:

“Captain Meadow Spinner.

I am aware that you have destroyed a griffon pirate ship, called the Nevermore, and aided two prisoners in their escapes from the captain. I read your official report in which you supported the prisoner’s claims; mainly, that they were innocent civilians. I respect your insight in this matter; however, given present circumstances and newly acquired knowledge, I have decided to give you more information about the true nature of your mission.

You were sent to the sea-borders under the pretense of watching for pirate invaders with the orders to destroy any ship that flew pirate flags. In reality, the actual possibility of a normal pirate incursion on our shores is next to zero. The real reason you were sent to patrol the shore is simple: my student, Twilight Sparkle, has informed me that the Griffon Empire is looking to invade Equestria with the help of the pirates.

Intelligence officers believe that the Nevermore was actually performing a scouting and espionage mission, under the guise of a pirate raid. They also believe that the prisoners you picked up are spies sent to determine if Equestria is aware of the coming attack.

While I infinitely regret causing innocent young ponies grief, especially those who were possibly actual prisoners on the Nevermore, I feel action must be taken to see if the prisoners are actually spies. Instead of causing a stir by bringing a military airship into a town, I would ask you instead to take the prisoners to an encampment in the Everfree Forest. Until then, please make sure that the prisoners are accounted for, and give the crewponies no reason to be suspicious of them.

I have listed the nautical coordinates of the camp here: 366.6008° N, 100.5542° E. Please keep this quiet.

Princess Celestia.”

Emerald sat back on his haunches from the letter and narrowed his eyes. “I have a question. Wait, two questions. If you really think I’m a spy, then why would you tell me this? And is your name really Meadow?”

The captain rolled his eyes and bundled the letter back into a tight coil. “My parents were very kind and intelligent ponies, but they had absolutely no knowledge of normal naming methods." He huffed and looked back to Emerald. "To answer the more important question, I don’t believe that you’re a spy, and personally, I doubt the Princess does either. But she feels that her nation’s security is at stake.”

Emerald flapped his wings in frustration. “If I was a spy, then why would I be running from the griffons?”

The captain shook his head. “It could have been an act. Any excuse you make can be refuted.”

“I was on that ship. Blue Eyes was on the ship. Does your “intelligence” really think that a five-year-old filly is a spy?” Emerald was barely controlling the volume of his voice by this point. His temper was boiling. The extreme injustice of the situation was getting to him.

"The intelligence believes that there might be a possibility of your being a spy. Princess Celestia and her aides decided that the possibility was high enough to warrant an examination.”

The captain’s calm, rational attitude gradually calmed Emerald. His thoughts were still jumbled from their sudden disturbance, but his temper was cooling off. Now he just felt a vague sense of betrayal even though he knew it was unwarranted. He looked down to the ground and said in a somewhat forlorn voice, “So I guess you want to chain me up or something? Until we get to the camp?”

“No," he said, with a small amount of softness in his voice that Emerald missed. "I'm going to have you locked in your room, with the porthole bolted, of course. We will arrive to the camp early tomorrow morning. I suggest you get some sleep.” The captain whistled, and Red came in, with an extremely penitent look on his face. Blue Eyes was still sitting on his back, looking somewhat annoyed because her flight had been cut short. "Show these two to there rooms, Red. And come back and meet with me when you're done."

Red and Emerald walked up to the deck and were struck full-force by the light of the setting sun. Red whispered, “I’m real sorry. I had to. The cap’n wasn’t too hard on you, was he?”

Emerald still hung his head, as they walked along to their cabin. “No, Red. Don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault.”

Red started to say something to reassure Emerald, but Blue Eyes yawned loudly and settled her head down on her forelegs, interrupting him. The trio reached the cabin, and Emerald lifted the sleepy filly off Red’s back and into the higher bunk bed. Red stared awkwardly for a second, then took a deep breath, and closed the door. Then he drew a large wooden plank over it and locked into place.

Emerald tucked Blue Eyes into bed, and slowly climbed into his own. He let the gentle motion of the wind against the airship lull him to sleep.

He heard heart-wrenching screams and sobs. The landscape rocked around him, and grey clouds pressed down heavy around his eyes. He couldn’t move. Something was holding him to his place. He turned and looked over his shoulder and saw a ship’s mast.

The screaming stopped, cut short.

A shaft of bright summer light shot through the porthole, blinding Emerald. He tried to roll over in his cot and keep sleeping, but his ear kept twitching of its own accord. He half-opened his eyes, and saw a tiny white spider tickling his ear.

He corkscrewed off his cot, and proceeded to roll around the floor frantically and flap his wings. The scared little filly part of him screamed OH MY SWEET PONYFEATHERS A SPIDER. He quickly jumped to his hooves and saw the spider on his bedsheet, sitting there innocently.

Emerald shook his mane,  “You’ve got nerve, you know that.” He ruffled his feathers to straighten them and regain some small semblance of dignity. The spider just sat there.

Blue Eyes rolled suddenly off her own bed and smirked at Emerald. The sunlight only accentuated the tangles of her two-toned blue mane and the dirt staining her white coat. The rationing of food and water on the airship prevented bathing, even for extremely dirty recent slaves. Emerald's legs were still dyed red from the ship's water, giving him a "modern art" look.

Emerald mock-glared at the filly. “What are you looking at, foal?” He continued his stare as long as he could, but it gradually deteriorated into a smile.

She snickered and loftily replied in a high voice, “Oh, nothing.” She giggled at his expression of injured pride. The unicorn filly knelt down on her forelegs and cooed at the spider sitting on Emerald’s mattress.

She didn’t talk much, but she loved animals. She wasn’t really shy, but the unknown time she had spent on the ship before Emerald had found her had taken their toll.

Emerald had been sold to Captain Ransom by old crewmates of his, and when he was bundled into the slave hold he had been placed directly beside the little filly. Neither of them said a word to each other at first, but somehow, the filly discerned that Emerald could be trusted.

Blue Eyes was unusually wise when it came to judging character. She innately knew a good pony when she saw one. She had immediately taken to Red, and he was as good as they came. He was trustworthy, even though he had helped the captain imprison them both. Even though he still felt betrayed, Emerald knew that both Captain Spinner and Red wanted what was best for them.

He glanced back at the filly. Blue Eyes was slowly standing up with great concentration, fixing her eyes on her left foreleg extended in front of her. Emerald could see the tiny spider on her fur. “You had better not come near me with that,” he said warningly.

“Or what?” Blue Eyes started advancing towards Emerald with her arms outstretched.

“Or I will freak out and scream like a little filly,” he said with a smile. The unicorn pretended to ponder for a moment then magnanimously shrugged. She tipped the spider off her hand and allowed it to scuttle underneath the door.

“Many thanks to you, dear friend,” Emerald said with sarcasm evident as the filly gave an elaborate, flourishing bow. A clattering noise from the door drew their eyes. The door swung open and Red stepped in, with a somewhat flustered look on his face.

“Well, good mornin’,” he said. “We’ve gotten to the Everfree Camp and-” He was cut off by a tall, white unicorn in the gleaming golden armor of the Royal Guard.

The unicorn said in a gruff voice, “You’re coming with us, spy. And the filly, too.” He pointed to her and a second guard walked in and picked her up in his telekinesis. The first guard levitated a length of chain from his belt and attached it to a collar. Then he roughly clipped the collar around Emerald’s neck and started dragging him from the room.

Red glared at the guards with sadness bordering on anger evident in his eyes when he saw how Emerald was being treated. “You don’ know he’s a spy,” he said with a steel voice as he glared daggers at the unicorn guard. The guard only straightened his helmet and motioned for the other guard to follow him.

The pair was led up to the main deck, where Emerald was surprised to see a white-and-gold hot-air balloon moored to the side of the ship. “Get in,” the guard said roughly as he pushed Emerald into the basket. Blue Eyes was also dropped unceremoniously onto the wicker flooring. The guard secured the chain to the side of the basket and whistled.

The basket of the balloon started descending. Blue Eyes popped her head over the side of the basket and blew a raspberry at the guard. Then she saw just how far up the basket really was and pulled her head slowly back in. It was funny how scared she could be of heights when her favorite pastime was flying around with pegasi.

The journey down took less than a minute. When the pair touched down two more guards, this time a pegasus and a unicorn, escorted the pair onward. They walked through a clearing filled with green grass and flowers, with the early morning heat of summer bearing down on them.

The tree line loomed before them, but the guards did not usher the pair into the woods. Instead, the golden-armored pegasus trotted briskly forward and flew to a large oak tree. He alighted on the largest branch and started looking for something on the tree. He had been looking clumsily for about a minute before the other guard cleared his throat meaningfully. The pegasus started blushing. He reached into his belt and pulled out a pair of beaten glasses, balanced them on his nose and started examining the trunk again.

“Having trouble?” Emerald said this with a smirk. The unicorn guard pulled sharply at the leash connected to his collar.

The pegasus guard exclaimed triumphantly and prodded the trunk of the tree, about three feet above the tree’s branch. Suddenly, the air around the tree rippled, and the rest of the trees around the largest withered away. An extension to the clearing was revealed, filled with tents and bustling ponies.

The unicorn guard jerked the leash again and started trotting toward the encampment. Blue Eyes looked around in wonder at the sudden appearance of a camp, but Emerald was more interested in the ponies in front of him. There was a large unicorn stallion with a white coat and a mane similar to that of Blue Eyes. He had a ceremonial sword attached to his flank, obscuring his mark. Next to him stood a unicorn mare, much younger than the unicorn, with a lavender coat and dark purple hair. Her cutie mark wasn’t covered, but it was still impossible to decipher. It looked like a purple star surrounded by smaller sparkles.

The unicorn jerked the leash again as he snapped to attention. Emerald guessed that the stallion unicorn was some sort of commanding officer here.

“I have brought the spy, sir!” The unicorn holding his leash positively beamed with pride, as if the walk from the balloon to the camp had been a long journey. He obviously expected praise, and so he was surprised by the commander’s angered reply.

“Why is he wearing a prisoner’s leash?” The commander glared at the unicorn. The unicorn made an “erp” sound in his throat and backed up a step.

“Ummm... well, commander, I mean, sir. He looked... threatening?” He trailed off at the sheer force of the stare of the commander. Behind his back Emerald saw Blue Eyes pump her hoof at the last remark.

“Take the collar off, then report to the latrine for cleaning duty, officer,” the stallion said.

Emerald smiled sarcastically at the unicorn guard as he unlatched the leash. "See ya later!" The guard glared at him and walked haughtily off.

The commander unicorn in front of them stepped forward and shook his head, massaging one temple with a hoof. “Come with me,” he said. “I don’t want to make this a scene, so for your sakes, don’t do anything stupid. My name is Shining Armor.” He held out a hoof, and Emerald shook it.

“My name’s Emerald. The filly is Blue Eyes.” Emerald kept his sentences short. He wanted to make it as obvious as possible how he felt about the situation.

“This is my sister, Twilight Sparkle,” he said again as the mare in question stepped forward and raised a hoof. “She’s the Princesses’ personal student. She’s in charge of intelligence here.”

“Oh, really? So you’re the one who got us into this mess. Charmed,” said Emerald, as he completely ignored the mare’s outstretched hoof. She slowly set it back down, a hurt look on her face. Emerald felt a blush of shame rise under his fur. He hadn't meant to be mean. He just wanted her to know what she had done to cause trouble for him and Blue Eyes.

Twilight cleared her throat awkwardly and said, “Follow me.” She then turned and walked toward a smaller tent to their right. The tent was white with a purple stripe running horizontally around its top. She pushed open the flap and walked inside.

She sat down at the wooden desk in the middle and sighed. “Let’s get this over with,” she half-muttered. Shining pushed Emerald into the seat opposite her and walked out the door. Blue Eyes had slipped away somewhere. She was probably bothering the guards the same way she had bothered the crewponies on the ship. Emerald wasn’t worried, because he knew that she was perfectly capable of fending for herself.

“I’m sorry.” The mare’s sudden words surprised Emerald. “We just had to be sure you weren't spies."

Emerald turned this over in his mind. He sighed and then said, “I understand. It just seems ridiculous to me because of everything the griffons did. If you knew what I’ve gone through, you would know that I would never spy for the griffons. In fact, I would be happy if I never saw another griffon again.”

Twilight responded, “Still, I apologize. I’m only doing what’s best for my friends and my country.” She said “country” like it was an afterthought, Emerald noticed with surprise. It didn’t seem like her main focus was patriotism, unlike Shining Armor.

“So...” said Emerald awkwardly. He leaned forward and put his hooves on the table. “How’s this gonna work?”

“I am going to perform a simple spell that will allow me to see your memories. They won’t be perfect pictures, but I will be able to tell what your surface thoughts were at the time,” she said, with a voice like a college professor. "It functions like a basic empathy spell, with the additional benefit of sensory information."

“Wait, so no torture?” Emerald said this with a half smile, but then the full realization of what was about to happen hit him. “Wait. You’re going to read my memories? Is that even possible?”

Twilight laughed a bit. “Of course it’s possible. It’s a very simple spell, really. Star-Swirl the Bearded came up with it.”

“Star-Swirl the whosit?”

Twilight brought her hoof to her face and shook her head. She didn’t even respond to his ignorance. “Are you ready? This may feel unpleasant. Many ponies have memories that they don’t want to relive.”

Emerald definitely had memories that he didn’t want to relive, but he kept his emotional shields up. “Oh, me? I’m always ready.”

“Okay, then. Here goes,” she said, and her horn began to glow. She concentrated, and a spark leapt to its top. Then, she bowed her head across the table and touched Emerald’s forehead with her horn.