A Game of Chess

The group stepped into the tavern past the plaza, the wooden flooring creaking beneath their hooves. The area was a small room, darker even then the world outside, with burnt-out torches hanging on the stone corners and in the windows. Several tables adorned the room at random areas, each with a single, long, pillar-like leg that held them into the boards.

Behind the counter stood a single unicorn stallion, clad in a colorless and fraying cloak that hung over his body, but left his head and dark-gray mane exposed, as well as various scars. His coat was a strange pale black, impossible as that appeared. He was silent, using his magic to use a cloth while he cleaned a glass in front of him, its rim slightly chipped.

The bartender didn't bother to look up as the sound of hooves echoed across the flooring. "Can I help you?" His voice was calm, but was strangely sorrowful, as well.

Checkmate stepped up to the counter and sat down. "Night, it's good to see you again."

The bartender -- whom Checkmate appeared to call "Night" -- glanced up, quickly, at the sound of the stallion's voice. "Ch-Checkmate?!" he gasped, and he rubbed his eyes as if attempting to make sure that the pony before him was real. At last, however, he seemed convinced, as he stared at Checkmate in surprise before he said, "I'd heard that you had escaped a few days ago, but... I hadn't expected you to come back here."

Checkmate offered a small smile at that statement. "Yeah... I guess not." He paused, awkwardly, as the others motioned for him to continue. "But I'm here now, so I'm going to see this through to the end."

Night said nothing, but began to polish the glass, again. He didn't say anything for a long while. "Too bad you're so late," he replied, his voice oddly bitter.

"What do you mean?"

Night was quiet, again, before he magically placed the glass, carefully, onto the counter. He met Checkmate's eyes, then, and his own were filled with fire. "White Shadow's execution was last week."

That seemed to completely catch Checkmate off guard, as he gripped the side of his stool as if to balance himself. "But..." he started, evidently horrified, "but Shadow wasn't even a threat..."

"Yeah, but he couldn't exactly do anything, either," Night's voice quivered, the rage in it impossible to miss. "You remember just how bad his leg was, right?"

Checkmate grimaced, and Twilight could see anger flaring up in his eyes. "But that wasn't any grounds to-!"

"I know!" Night slammed a hoof into the counter, and the entire group jumped. "But that doesn't change anything. He's dead, Checkmate, and talking about the 'who's', 'what's', or 'whatever-the-hell elses' is not going to change anything." Night grit his teeth, to the point that they could be heard grinding together.

Rarity stepped up, then, and flipped her mane. "Pardon me, but how do you know this... 'White Shadow'?"

The bartender's shoulders slumped, and he let out a very audible sigh. "He... he was my son," he responded, his voice quiet.

Several of the ponies let out a simultaneous gasp, covering their mouths with their hooves in shock and disgust. "Th-that's terrible...!" Fluttershy gasped.

"Welcome to Darkfrost," Night muttered, bitterly.

Twilight stepped up to him, and met his gaze. "Sir... this is your tavern, right?"

"Sir?" The bartender cocked an eyebrow. "If you're going to call me something, at least use my name. I'm Shadowed Night, and yes, I own this tavern."

"Perfect!" she said, although she didn't feel especially excited, given what they had just learned. "We... uh... we need something that we can eat... Oh, before we go fight Wendigo, that is," she quickly added.

Night looked her over. "You're an Equestrian, aren't you?" Without waiting for a response, he continued, "All of you look to be, actually --" he glanced over at Dusk "-- except for you, at least, and Checkmate." He blinked, his eyes finally resting on the form of the windigo in their midst. "... Rolan, too? Quite an odd group."

Dusk grimaced. "Of course," he mused. "However, we are not here so that we may speak of just how strange our group dynamic is." He passed a glance back to Valice, who flushed. "We're here so that we can bring an end to Wendigo, and, to do so, we will require sustenance."

Shadowed Night did not even blink. Obviously, he had dealt with ponies like Dusk before. Instead, he looked towards Checkmate with a quizzical expression. "Well, you'd better best him," he mused. "After all... those were my son's last words; 'Checkmate will stop you,' so you'd better go and do just that."

Just as Checkmate opened his mouth -- in a move that made Twilight think he was about to agree with that statement -- a new voice let out a dark chuckle. "Really?" it asked, sounding very masculine. "You really think he can beat Wendigo?"

The group of fourteen instantly turned towards the one who had spoken. He was the only other patron in the bar, and was clad in a cloak that appeared used, but not overly so. He had the hood pulled up to the top of his head, slightly covering his copper mane, and sat with a single drink in front of him. Beneath the cloak, small bumps could be seen on his sides, making Twilight assume him to be a pegasus.

"Yeah?" Rainbow asked, irrate, "and what's it to ya?!" She flew over to him, her face only inches away from his.

The stallion met her eyes, his expression one of bemusement and intrigue, and his lips in a small, sarcastic smile. "Nothing much," he admitted, "but I think you'd best listen to what I have to say before you make assumptions."

Rainbow Dash's eyes narrowed. "And whaddaya gotta say?"

His lips became neutral, and he sighed. "First," he said, holding up a cloth-covered hoof, and leaving the drink on the table, "I have to say that Checkmate is probably strong. He would have to be in order to get this far." When Rainbow opened her mouth to interject, he held the hoof up to her face and shook his head. "That being said," he continued, "hundreds of ponies -- thousands, even -- have tried to best Wendigo over the years. What makes you think that you can do it?"

"Because I've gone through tougher things than that bastard throughout my life," Checkmate remarked, gravely. "I've seen plenty of ponies die -- I thought I'd killed one of those ponies, actually. But I still continued onwards. I've trained myself into becoming what I am, now, and I know that I can -- no, I will beat Wendigo, regardless of the circumstances."

The stallion nodded, and he picked up the glass, but didn't drink anything from it. "Alright, then," he mused, his face still neutral, "here's my second question, if your friend here will allow it." Rainbow Dash instantly planted her hooves onto the flooring, but continued to glare at him. "Alright, then. Let's say this, shall we: let's say that you do kill Wendigo, that you stop the king of Darkfrost, rescue all of the ponies, help out the windigoes, and all of that stuff, alright?"

He paused, looking around the room at the ponies who stared at him, as if waiting for them to respond. After a few seconds, he let out another sigh. "But what, exactly, do you think that'll do?"

Pinkie grinned. "Well," she started, in her normal, bubbly voice, "it means that we'll have saved alla these ponies and stopped the big, mean ol' monster, of course! And then everypony lives happily-ever-after!"

He met her gaze, and looked up towards the others, before licking his lips. "Well, that may be how it works in Equestria, but Darkfrost is... different, in that regard."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Rainbow asked, her eyes still boring holes into him.

"Just because you bring down Wendigo doesn't mean there are going to stop being ponies." He raised the glass up to his lips, then, and drank the entire thing in one gulp, before he rested it on the table. "Ponies like me."

Night grit his teeth. "Heatwave, stop!"

"Whaddaya mean by that?!" Rainbow Dash growled, obviously getting tired with the stallion being so cryptic.

Heatwave, however, smirked slightly. "Nice wings, kid," he mused, and he met her gaze perfectly. "Do you want to see mine?" Without waiting for her answer, the pegasus threw the cloak from his back with a great flourish.

A loud gasp arose from every Equestrian -- and Valice, as well, although Dusk remained silent -- in the room at what he had referred to as "wings": two lumps of feathers and bones, both looking so twisted and mutilated that no words could even begin to describe the feeling in Twilight's stomach.

Valice, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash all looked as if they were going to be sick. Scootaloo was sick, her friends having to rush her out of the tavern before she vomited onto the floor. Even the unicorns and earth ponies looked disgusted at the mere sight of the horrid, broken structures that lay upon Heatwave's back.

"Wh-wh-what h-happened...?" Rainbow Dash managed to gasp, her eyes wide with terror as she touched one of her own wings. It was natural for pegasi to fear losing their wings; they were the most important part of them, and they would not be able to do anything anypony else could without them. After all, they couldn't cast magic like unicorns -- except for some minor, weather-controlling spells -- and they didn't have the strength nor endurance of earth ponies.

In short, a pegasus without wings was like a unicorn without magic; they needed them in order to survive. And while wings were known for their quick recovery, that would most certainly not occur in the case that they were so badly mutilated.

Heatwave let out a small, bitter chuckle. "Mining accident. They got caught up in some machinery, and... well, you can see for yourself just what happened." He smirked slightly again, the lumps on his back barely moving. "It's been about... a month, I think."

"What does this have to do with anything?" Checkmate asked, appearing unaffected by the wretched sight.

"Well, I just want to ask you something. A simple question, actually." Heatwave remarked, and looked over the ponies who stood about him. "Let's say that you do beat Wendigo -- hell, for that matter, let's say that you save all of Darkfrost, and do everything I just listed off. But still... do you really think that'll change much?"

Twilight shifted, uncomfortably. "What... what exactly do you mean by that?"

"Okay, allow me to put it this way." Heatwave passed a glance over to Checkmate. "If you stop Wendigo -- no matter what else there is to say -- does that really change the fact that ponies like me'll always be here? Ponies who can't use their talents; unicorns who can't cast magic because their horns've been ripped off, pegasi whose wings are so badly mangled that they'll never heal... earth ponies, even, who are completely crippled! Those who have been mutilated, ruined, broken... What makes you think you can save any of them?" He turned, then, and threw the glass so that it slammed into a wall, shattering into pieces. "No matter what you do... no matter what you try... Darkfrost is screwed."

Rainbow stepped towards him. "But... but that's not-!"

"Shut up, won't you?!" Heatwave grit his teeth, the calm face he'd worn shattering. "How will you ever be able to help the ponies who have been completely destroyed by Wendigo, huh?! Have your fucking princesses walk over here, give 'em a bandage, apologize, or some crap like that?!"

The ponies around him -- even Rolan, even Checkmate, and even Dusk -- all sat in silence, unable to respond to that statement, and the mutilated pegasus let out a sigh. "Do whatever you want. We've got no future, except to rot away. Even if Wendigo is stopped, those who have been as badly scarred as I have... what could we ever do? Sure, some of us could make it in society, but do you honestly think that just killing him'll bring an end to all of this suffering?"

Shadowed Night bowed his head, lowering the glass he had been polishing to the table, and Heatwave grit his teeth. "All you'll do is prevent the creation of the Zephyr, which is fine, I guess... but what of us who have lost everything? What could I ever hope to do in a world without a bastard like Wendigo in charge? I can't fly, I can't control clouds... there's literally nothing that I can do. And the same goes for the others who have suffered as pawns in Wendigo's twisted game of chess." He leaned back in his chair, and stared up towards the ceiling. "When this game is up... there will be no place in whatever world remains for us."

"Shut up!" Rainbow shouted, and the room turned to look at her in shock. "All you're doin' is sitting around here and complaining! I don't care what you say, because we can change this all, we can bring an end to this, and we will save Darkfrost! You wanna know why that is?"

Heatwave stared at her, silently, unmoving, unblinking. Rainbow Dash stepped over to him and nodded. "It's because we haven't given up, and we don't plan to anytime soon! We've made it this far, haven't we? So why should we stop now? Yeah, you'll have some trouble when we're done -- everypony here will -- but we'll do whatever we can to help all of you guys out."

Twilight smiled, slightly, and leapt down. "She's right," said the alicorn. "We're not here just to kill Wendigo. When we're done, we're gonna do everything in our power to bring an end to what he's brought on this place, no matter what it takes for us to do it."

Rarity smiled, as well. "Indeed. It doesn't matter what has happened, after all, but what will happen. We are not wont to surrender, after how far we have traveled to reach this point. We'll end this game, and make Darkfrost a place where anypony can thrive."

Heatwave looked to all of them, before a small smile crossed his lips. "Alright, then," he mused, his voice becoming calm once more. "I'm curious to see just how far you all can make it, at this point... Let's see where your 'hope' gets you, first, shall we?" He looked towards Shadowed Night, then, as the smile grew. "Night, they said they wanted something to eat, right? Put it on my tab."

"What...?" the bartender asked, in shock. "Are you sure about that...?"

"'Course." The smile grew into a grin. "Besides, if they fail, it's not like I'll ever be using that money, anyway, so I think I'll pay for 'em. Like I said, I'm curious to see just how far they go."

Checkmate stepped down from the stool, and smiled at the mutilated pegasus. "Th-thanks, Heatwave," he said, evidently surprised by his change in tone. "I guess we'll owe you for this, huh?"

Heatwave raised up a hoof. "That can wait until later. After you've stopped Wendigo, I should say."

That day, the meal that they ate tasted of triumph, of joy, of hatred, of love, and of many other things that Twilight couldn't truly place. It was strange, honestly, to see that such a simple thing as hope could completely change how a pony felt, that faith could make their lives so different.

But no matter how much she tried, Twilight could not shake that feeling of doubt that seemed to have overtaken her. Could they truly best Wendigo? Yes, of course Checkmate could, and Dusk, as well. But what of her, and the others?

And something else, too, nagged at the back of her mind: Velios and the Catalyst... could they truly be the same creature? If so, how could any of them -- even Dusk, as powerful as he was -- contend with a beast that was effectively a god among gods?

No, Twilight could not think of that. The odds that the two creatures were actually one were impossibly low, to the point that it was almost completely improbable, yet she still couldn't escape the feeling of doubt that had crossed her mind, even as the others seemed almost cheerful as they ate their fill.

And so, in an effort to not stand out, she ate what she could, attempting to take her mind off of these thoughts, and instead focusing on what truly mattered at the time: preparing herself for the last step of their journey, and bringing Wendigo's wretched regime grinding to a halt.