13: Giwgást

Chapter 13: Giwgást

Her foreknowledge of our arrival to Equestria baffled me. One thing that I learned from Gilgamesh during our time in the Airborne is that the alicorns may be extremely powerful, but they certainly are not deities. Omniscience is not an attribute any of them possess, nor is it something that they grasp at in desperation.

But like Gilgamesh, I was not satisfied with this scenario, I needed more information.

“Princess, it is all well and good that you are calm and collected in regards to our arrival. But how could you have possibly-“

The Princess brought out a white scroll, worn from being unraveled multiple times. She began to read its contents aloud, and the words she strung together sounded like a poem.

“Sirs, this prophecy was Starswirl the Bearded’s 5th cosmic prophecy. It foretells of a ‘rock’ that will descend, bringing with it a frightening change. But the subject of this prophecy will be released from his burden, and will call my land his refuge. I believe that one of you is the subject of this prophecy.”

Gilgamesh was visibly distraught at this news. “I refuse to be a subject of ANYTHING that venomous monster wrote! Count me out!”

I went to comfort Gilgamesh. “Gil, now isn’t the time to bring up your misgivings. These prophecies aren’t to be-“

“Taken LIGHTLY? I know, Giefan, but to be named as a predestined hero by that clown is an insult to my heritage!”

The Princess began to roll up the scroll, tuck it into her scribe’s bag, and walked over to my friend.

“Gilgamesh. Your father’s condition is not your fault, nor is it his. Starswirl has already suffered enough-“

“That viper hasn’t suffered enough! My father was corrupted by that foolish wizard! It wasn’t his rock to touch!”

The Princess cried out. “I KNOW! You don’t think I’ve played that day over and over throughout the centuries?! I didn’t know Starswirl would be capable of being that reckless. I regret sending him there every day, knowing now what heartache it is causing your people. But I can’t take it back!”

Gilgamesh fell silent, crushed by the genuine pain in the Princess’ tone. I remember when Gil and I had first been assigned together at the Grokant See; his admiration for his father was to the point of worship. In everything, Gilgamesh wished to be like his father. Until the conflict surfaced with the eastern side of the Kingdom; that was when Gil, for the first time in his life, began to doubt his father’s will.

Ever since innocents started piling onto the casualty lists, his bitterness for his father’s deeds grew and boiled inside. One time, he even wanted to hasten his ascent to the meteorite, gain his power, and make a quick work of King Gilgar before his corruption deepened further. But not long after that thought, the King placed sentries around Mount Balcor to protect the rock at the top. It became inaccessible, and so the plot to usurp the throne through the citizenry began to coalesce.

Gilgamesh quieted down and addressed Princess Celestia again.

“I didn’t want this, any of it, Your Highness. I know that I can’t excuse my father’s actions, and yet…I can’t excuse the ignorance of Starswirl. His childish prodding and recklessness got my father cursed with that magic. He’s had to live for centuries as an immortal, and feel his heart slowly rot to the core. Only now has the darkness planted its roots firmly in his brain. He’s insane.”

Princess Celestia placed a hoof on Gilgamesh’s shoulder, reassuring him. “I will do my very best to ensure that he won’t have to suffer anymore, Prince. For the moment, however, we need to figure out how to approach this coup d’état that you are planning. You mentioned another magician among the ranks of the eastern griffons.”

“Yes,” replied Gilgamesh.

“Do you have any leads as to who this ‘magician’ might be? A griffon? A unicorn?”

Gilgamesh looked puzzled for a moment. “Why would a unicorn be in cahoots with a rebellion of griffons?”

I chimed in a possible explanation. “It would make the most sense. If the rock on Mount Balcor is the only source of magic in the Kingdom, then it can’t be possible for a griffon to have its power. It would need to be a foreigner who possessed magic from the get-go.”

Then Gilgamesh challenged me. “Giefan, if what you say is true, then that means Equestria has been roped into a world war!”

“Not necessarily.” The Princess walked in front of Gil. “I’ve thought about the prophecy, and remembered there was a unicorn that visited my palace a couple weeks ago. The prophecy manifested shortly after his arrival; his name is Tom.”

My gaze scattered all over Princess Celestia’s face. “You mean to say that there is another who the prophecy could be about? But you said you thought it was one of us.”

“Starswirl was never too clear in his works about the ‘who’ and the ‘where’. But it can’t be a coincidence that you arrive here very soon after his appearance. Tom hasn’t existed in the world for maybe short of a month.”

Gilgamesh and I stood back, astounded. “What do you mean?! You’re saying this unicorn is only a month old?!”

The Princess laughed out loud. “Not quite, Giefan. He is not from our world, but from the far depths of space.”

Gilgamesh threw his paws into the air, frustrated. “This is nonsense, complete nonsense! My people need me, and now some space magician is the key to my Kingdom’s future? Ha!”

I sympathized with the Prince’s agitation. “That does sound off, Your Highness. Where is this ‘Tom’ now?”

“He is under the care of my protégé, Twilight Sparkle. He is receiving training in the art of magic, and will soon join your fight.” The Princess shifted a little where she was standing.

I pressed her further. “Then what off this mysterious magician? Did you send a unicorn to the Griffon Kingdom?”

The Princess shook her head. “The only pony to have ever traveled to your lands in the past few centuries was Princess Luna, and that was shortly after she was restored to her original self. It was a diplomatic mission to reacquaint herself with the Griffons. Obviously, the society has changed; Gilda mentioned that rumors of war were spreading across the Kingdom a few months ago when she last visited. I guess that is why you’ve come; war is upon you.”

“The Prince and I were sent to enlist aid for the King in combating the rebellion. However, our consciences are in a snare. We do not agree with the throne, and intend on abandoning it once we return.”

The Princess waved her hoof in front of us. “Don’t bother trying to return.” Her magic activated, and she produced another scroll containing a dispatch from the Griffon Kingdom. It showed our images and a bounty for our deaths.

“GIL! This is US! The King found out about your coup! It even says that your princehood is up for grabs as a reward!”

Gilgamesh became flustered, and then out of breath. He collapsed and heaved his chest up and down, trying to compose himself.

The Princess hovered over Gilgamesh. “Prince, you know what this decision was going to cost you. But the reward for succeeding is a people free of his looming dark magic; a people free to act on their consciences as you both have done. Can you follow through?”

The Prince shook his head furiously, and glanced over to me. I frowned and gave him a proper glare. He hesitated, and then shook his head in affirmation. Celestia smiled, and warmly pat Gil’s head.

“Then you must make haste to the eastern shores of your kingdom immediately. I sent a sealed note to Gilda via owl. Only she knows of where I’m going to send you. I cannot guarantee that you’ll be welcomed by the rebellion.”

I shook my head in confusion. “Princess, I don’t understand. How are we going to make it to the east without being seen?”

She directed us to a wall adjacent to her throne. All three of us stood next to her throne as she channeled energy into her horn. The aura then turned into a beam, and shot into a blank panel, which gradually lit into a griffon-shaped lock. A section of the wall slid open, and Celestia motioned us inside the room.

As we climbed down the staircase, I heard my steps echo into the dark chamber we were entering. The Princess stomped her hoof twice, and the entire complex lit up, featuring nothing but a stone arch on the far end of the room. We flew down to the arch, and engraved on it was the phrase “Griffon Gateway.”

“Princess, what is this exactly?”

“Giefan, Gilgamesh, this is how you all will be traveling to the Griffon Kingdom. I have multiple gateways established throughout the planet which allow me to travel instantaneously to different places. This takes incredible magical energy to use these, which is why I fly most of the time.”

Gilgamesh stared at the arch. “Umm, where exactly in the Griffon Kingdom does this take us?”

Celestia frowned. “The eastern coastline, to the other capital city of Giwgást.”

Gilgamesh screeched loudly at the prospect of entering the eastern capital, and drew out his talons. I had to step in front of him to prevent a fight.

“Gil! This is serious! Do you WANT your father to kill any more innocents?! He doesn’t know what he’s doing anymore!”

“Shut up, Giefan! I don’t want to lay a paw in that vile place.”

“But you haven’t even been to their cities; you’ve only seen them in conflict and war! You are their Prince as much as you are mine, they need compassion now.”

“…I know, Giefan. My father has always raised me believing that they wanted nothing more than to take the throne. But I realized a while ago that all he was trying to accomplish was to protect his own claim to power. He’s ruled for many centuries, and I…it’s time his reign ended, friend.” Gilgamesh stepped forward to face the arch.

“Thank you, Giefan. I’m worried about your sister as well. She can’t have her paws in two worlds for very long. We may face her in combat soon; have you tried to convince her to leave her post as deputy governor?”

Gilgamesh struggled to speak. “I…I talked a short while to her…but she…”

I placed a paw on his shoulder. “We’ll go back there, send a courier her way, and-“

The Princess interjected. “That’s been taken care of, gentlecolts. We have a message for her being sent; hopefully, she’ll understand the predicament you all are in at the moment. But for now, it is time for you to go. Please, wear these.”

Celestia gave both Gilgamesh and I chest plates, with the crest of the sun, and in front of the suns was the seal of Giwgást. We both stood in front of the arch, fully clothed in our armor, as the Princess channeled energy into the portal. The stone arch lit up, and a vortex appeared in the entry path. Then it stopped rotating, and a wave of energy fell like a curtain, sitting still in the air. We made our way into the portal, and instantly, we found ourselves in a dark room, unable to see anything.

“…”

“…”

“Prince! Prince! Where did you go?”

“I’m near you, Giefan! This room is void of light, we can’t see a thing. If only we had a little-“

The entire room suddenly flashed into view, and we were surrounded by heavily armored griffon guards. We were standing in the throne room of Giwgást, with their council standing away from the table, all with ferocious expressions, ready for battle. The guards inched closer to us as Gil and I stood back-to-back; there was no escape from this room.

“Gil, why would Celestia send us to their THRONE room of all places?!”

“Excuse me, are you referring to ‘Princess’ Celestia?” One of the councilmen inquired, as the guards began to retract their spears. The councilman that addressed us stood in front of both of us.

I replied to him. “Yes, sir. Princess Celestia opened the portal from Canterlot, and helped us get to the eastern shores. We never thought the archway here would be in your castle, much less the throne room!”

Gil then introduced himself. “Council, my name is Gilgamesh. I am the crown prince of the Griffon Kingdom and on behalf of my father…”

The whole council’s collective hair stood on end and they squawked their disapproval before Gilgamesh finished.

“…I want to apologize deeply for his actions. We are here to assist in the destruction of Grokant and its despot.”

That’s when the council stood in awe at Gil’s words, utterly shocked that the Prince would actually be siding with the rebellion.

“Wuh-wait, son! Are you saying you both came here to side with US?! You realize that treason is a death sentence, even for you, Prince.”

Gilgamesh shook a little, but replied firmly. “Yes. I have weighed the cost, and I consider your lives and the lives of all griffons worth dying to protect. I figured out something in thirty years of living that my father doesn’t understand in hundreds of years of life: self-sacrifice bears greater fruit than sacrificing others. I won’t stand for his bloodlust anymore.”

The council looked at each other, and nodded in some sort of cryptic agreement to something. All of them motioned Gilgamesh to the table, where he sat at the head. I sat to his right, and all of us immediately began to discuss the current state of affairs with each combat regiment. But something troubled me that had not been addressed: the mysterious magician.

“Excuse me.” I motioned to the councilman, who introduced himself as Gent.

“Yes, Sir Giefan.”

“We learned from the King that among your ranks was a certain individual who possessed magical ability. Who is that?”

The council twitched at our knowledge of the magician. Gent stood up and addressed the subject.

“I see nothing escapes Gilgar. Very well. Would you both like to meet him?”

Both Gil and I nodded, and the three of us flew out of the council chamber, and out of the castle. Below us was the Giwgást castle town, very similar to Canterlot in that there were many restaurants and luxury markets to purchase goods. The city itself was void of activity due to the war, so our presence went relatively unnoticed.

Gent gave notice to our breast plates. “Say, did Celestia give those to you two.”

“Yes, sir, she did. It was meant to establish accord with the people of Giwgást upon our arrival to the city…but we ended up in the chamber.”

Gent nodded, and we flew up into the mountains. In the shadow of the tallest mountain was a wide-mouthed cave; outside of it, we saw a few tents set up with tables of food scraps. There appeared to be no occupants in the tents.

We entered the cave with a couple lit torches, and the light exposed an array of complex tunnel systems. Gent took us down the far right tunnel, and after a short walk, we appeared in an open room lit front to back with torches. Sunlight entered the room through a small crevice in the back left portion of the cave roof, and exposed in the sunlight was a cloaked figure meditating in front of a mirror.

The figure twitched at our entry, and turned to face us, his hood covering his face.

Gent stepped forward. “Sir, these two griffons wish to meet you. I have given them permission to see you.”

“…very well. What are your names?”

“My name is Giefan, and this is Prince Gilgamesh. We want to help you.”

The figure sighed. “We don’t need your help; you’ve done enough damage to this side of the empire already.”

“But-“

The figure leapt from his seated position, and fell on all fours before us. I noticed his hooves as he touched down.

“Celestia was right; you’re a unicorn!”

“So…the Princess remembered me. I’m glad I’m still in her thoughts.”

The figure removed his cloak, revealed his entire appearance to us. Gent nodded and smiled, and we stood still, taking in the sight. The pony had gray fur, a long white beard, and wore a blue mage cap and cloak with constellations and a moon. The identity of this pony was unmistakable, and Gilgamesh knew it too well, appearing ready to attack the magician.

“I’m glad you both came to Giwgást. Prince Gilgamesh, please do me no harm, it won’t help your father or yourself by starting a brawl.”

The Prince loosened his talons. “But, you are not supposed to even be around anymore! You died! You’re a dead pony; dead ponies don’t get resurrected.”

The magician stood and gave us a small grin. “What if I told you that Princess Celestia has kept my presence secret for over three centuries? What if she allowed me safe passage into Giwgást very recently? What if I never died? I can entertain you the whole day with these questions, but the reality is I am here. Prince…” The magician bowed to Gil. “…I have returned to atone for my sin. I caused your father’s despair, and I alone am responsible for his current state of mind. Please use me as you will.”

Gilgamesh started to tear up, and fell before the magician. “St-Starswirl, I was wrong about you. You are not a viper, and you are not a monster. You honor me with your words, and I can’t help but despise you inside; it’s what I’ve been taught. All of these years, and father never once described you in an endearing fashion.”

I stood next to Gil. “Gilgamesh…”

He looked to Starswirl with a beaming confidence I’ve never seen before. “Starswirl, I forgive you. We will take down my father, and save him from the darkness. Please lend me your power, and I will see this through to the end.”