Well, Captain.
I have read through the documents you passed me, and I admit I was stunned by what they revealed. ‘Twas indeed a grave injustice they indicated—an injustice that we, by extension, became complicit in simply for believing the EIS-fueled deceptions regarding it. We truly had no idea.
There is but one survivor on the gryphon side of that action, and due to the dishonor unjustly attached to his name over it, he lives in solitude and ‘tis said by the Council of Crows that he has not spoken a single word since the war’s end, bearing a magically locked compass that only he knows how to unseal.
And yet, having had a week to ponder this, I cannot be angry. For we, too, engaged in such deceptions and deliberate attempts to deny honor, and for much the same reasons as the Equestrian side. I have discussed these revelations at length with Queen Jeyenne, catching up with her airship as it passed over the Celestial Sea. We agree that if inevitable gryphon outrage is to be assuaged, we must do two things:
First, we must do our utmost to rectify the injustice done, and second, we must offer up evidence of our own dishonorable conduct in this regard. ‘Twill take some time for the Crows to dig out the documentation necessary from the Office of Owl archives, so I ask for your patience as well.
I do request, however, to be put into private contact with your former second regarding this, as ‘tis certain the information I bear is some she would be very interested—and likely quite furious—to hear.
—Ambassador Layan Kaval
As you wish, Ambassador. I admit to some trepidation in presenting this information to you, worried it might hurt our nations’ new alliance or fatally wound our personal friendship. I am relieved it did not, though I confess to be given some pause when I saw a momentary gleam in your eye that I last remembered from one of our final wartime duels. I likewise know not of what you speak, though the knowledge that it somehow involves Fell Flight does give me at least one clue. Regardless of the answer, methinks it best to allow her to deal with and decide what to do about it.
As to why I finally elected to reveal this Equestrian dishonor, ‘twas brought about by the class discussion I mentioned in the previous entry. I decided I could not fairly discuss honor with them without fully disclosing my own dishonorable acts in the course of the war, of which I consider complicity in this cover-up to be a major example. I know not what can be done for them now so long after the fact, but ‘tis my most fervent hope that justice delayed, even for a matter of three decades, is not justice denied.
Unfortunately, methinks there is little else I can do about it for now except wait for the Kingdom’s response and what I assume to be Fell Flight’s inevitable explosion when she learns of what you speak. If you wish me present for it, I will be there.
—Firefly
He has already been in touch with me, Captain, and told me of what he speaks! I am appalled and infuriated at the sheer injustice of what he shared, to say nothing of the ripping open of an old wound!
As much as I may wish to, I cannot say more for now, except that I have a great deal of work to do to even partially rectify this terrible wrong! Unfortunately, it cannot begin in earnest until I receive the gryphon documentation promised to me. In the meantime, I request to pick up the pen again for the next section. I need the distraction from my anger and impatience, which I fear is spilling over into my home life as I find myself snapping at my foals and every member of my herd for no good reason.
You may recall that I was present as the thestrals greeted us on the forward deck, and that my eyes and mixed heritage made me a particular target of their ire. So methinks I will spend some of my own through the retelling of this scene.
—First Lieutenant Fell Flight (ret.)
President, Society of Outpost Omega Survivors
By all means. Carry on, my friend. And I need not tell you that if you wish my help, you have it.
—Firefly
Thank you, Captain. But before we begin, ‘tis a minor story I should relate. One regarding Sky Sentry, and one that, methinks, I would not bother with or barely remember but for the news delivered to me this day by the ambassador; news that has rekindled my fury at the ex-Empire anew.
I will keep it brief, however, as in honor of his memory and the battle bonds we shared—methinks I told him some things during our time together in the Bolt Knights that I never told anypony else—I would rather his future actions speak for him as much as possible.
EAS Loyalty
Airspace over middle Ohioat Province
120 miles north of Lake Luna on Thestralslovakian border
September 3rd, 1139 AC
1550 hours
Methinks I lasted longer than most of the battalion survivors in holding off sleep, having had plenty of experience not resting for days on end from my time at Outpost Omega.
But eventually, exhaustion caught up with me as well near daybreak that third morn of war, and I, too, slept long and hard when all was said and done, leaving command of Epsilon’s remaining effectives to our ranking unwounded platoon leader—Aves Osprey. Possessing more nocturnal habits, I went to bed at dawn and awoke to the ship’s middle afternoon departure, feeling it lurching and accelerating as we lifted off from Ursa base.
After a check-in with the commander and ship’s captain—who told me that with patrols already set, my services were not needed before our arrival—I decided ‘twas best to see to my own needs and help train the Naval troops, which we were doing in shifts on the topmost decks when they were not patrolling, eating or sleeping. The former took precedence over the latter, however, as my hunger got the best of me and I headed down to the ship’s galley to eat.
‘Twas sparsely attended as ‘twas away from normal mealtimes, but methinks I did not mind. The naval troops and crew, I had noted, were very wary around me for my eyes. ‘Twas certainly a reaction I was used to, but perchance not one I appreciated at an occasion I thought I might like some company.
Now that we had some distance from Epsilon and I’d had time to process the battles we’d fought there, I felt not anger, but sorrow and worry trying to take hold of me. Worry for my nation; for my family. Worry over not knowing the fate of my compatriots at Outpost Omega, who, I was informed by the bridge’s communications officer, Corps command had lost all contact with after nightfall on the first day of war and was presumed lost along with the rest of the border bases except for Gamma.
‘Twas a bitter pill to swallow no matter how expected it was, as well as the knowledge that we would never know Omega’s final hours or the toll they exacted. All I did know was that my promised command was gone and all my old comrades killed. And ‘twas also to say nothing of the still-unknown fate of my family at Cloudsdale, or my earth pony coltfriend in invaded and occupied Baltimare. The former I might learn shortly, given we were heading out in search of my foalhood home, but the latter…
Seeking some sanctuary from my own dark and brooding thoughts, I spotted Sky Sentry eating by himself in a corner, now wearing a borrowed naval uniform with his Guardspony Sergeant stripes affixed and picking at his meal—if I’d learned nothing else about Naval vessels to that point, ‘twas that their food was certainly several cuts above Outpost Epsilon fare; the double-helping of cloud creole I was balancing on a wing platter was sorely tempting me with its smell.
And yet, my hunger was forgotten as I beheld the only survivor of Outpost Delta. He looked slightly less haggard than he had the day before, perchance as a result of the Harmony-fueled song I had heard the previous night—‘twould be a lie to say that I had not been touched by it or joined in the chorus, as oddly embarrassing as it felt after—but he still looked uncertain, even given the undeniable answer he sought.
So much so, in fact, he did not hear the clop of my hooves as I approached. “Sergeant Sentry,” I addressed him, causing him to start and look up at me, then throw a hasty salute. “May I join you?”
He looked uncertain as I returned the gesture. “If you wish, Master Sergeant,” he replied, his voice dull, perchance deciding not to say anything as he had a lower rank and no authority to deny me anyway.
“Thank you.” I nodded and sat down opposite him, sliding my platter off onto the table before affixing a fork attachment to my hoof. “Forgive me if you are tired of hearing this, but I must ask: how fare you?”
“Lost,” he told me bluntly, leaving me wondering how he still could be after the song, at least until he shortly explained: “I know now what I must do. But...” At this he paused, his eyes resting on his mostly untouched food, as though hoping it might somehow miraculously have the answers to his dilemma. Clearly it did not, as he let out a weary sigh before continuing, “But I know not how to do it. How to rediscover my warrior heart,” he told me, then shook his head and bowed it. “Or even that I ever had one to begin with.”
“Tis certain you did and still do,” I told him sternly, suddenly seeing a reflection of my own conflicts within him; I felt compelled to remind myself that whatever I had lost, ‘twas pale in comparison to all that he had. “’Tis certain your many wounds and the conduct of the cavern battles are evidence enough of that. Methinks even the commander respects you, and ‘tis no little thing,” I quickly pointed out.
He barely reacted to the compliment, initially giving only a grunt in reply. “Mayhap you are right, and ‘twas a time that I would have been delighted by it,” he eventually answered dully. “But now? ‘Tis no longer important. I seek an inner fire but find only ashes. I have no desire to fight, for all those I would have fought for and beside have already fallen.”
“All of them?” I challenged. “You wouldst not fight for your foal? You wouldst not fight beside the commander, for as much as you desired her?”
He went startled at the former, then blushed at the latter as his eyes met mine briefly before he turned his gaze back down. “M-Master Sergeant, that’s not—” He looked flustered for a moment.
“Forgive me,” I told him with a disarming grin. “She once told me of your original challenge to her, and its terms. Be not embarrassed about it. For as much as I would have enjoyed seeing her lose it, methinks there were times she regretted winning as well, as she spoke almost wistfully of you when she recounted the tale. Methinks that for as well as you dueled her, she saw you as worthy of the Guard—and of her.”
“‘Tis certain I do not feel worthy now,” he told me, even as the fleeting ghost of a smile touched his face. “If I was, methinks I would not be falling to pieces at every opportunity and feeling unable to fight.”
“You are grieving, Sergeant,” I reminded him, surprising myself as I reached across the table to take his hoof in my own. “’Tis normal and natural. And very necessary. I cannot tell you how many comrades and friends I lost at Omega over the years. To say nothing of how many ‘tis certain I lost in the past two days,” I felt a sudden hitch in my voice, then swallowed it.
“But though I will remember and treasure them, I will not dwell on them. And the fact that they have fallen does not mean I can no longer fight for them. Far from it, in fact. I will honor their memories the only way I can—by fighting on in their names. By helping to win this war, and thus ensuring they did not fall in vain.”
“And is it really that easy?” he asked me, tears glimmering in his eyes again. “Just go on and fight for them like nothing happened? Like I didn’t see them all die before me whilst I was unable to save them?” His voice raised a little, the faintest hints of anger now entering his words for a moment before he exhaled a shaky breath.
I had to consider that. “Mayhap for me ‘tis indeed easier. For Omega was always a wartime post, even before the invasion,” I noted idly. “’Tis certain I lost many friends over the years there to raider action, oft slain before my eyes.”
“And do you ever think you should have died with them?” he asked me next, his anger once more gone, to which I could only close my eyes in response. “Fallen with all your friends?”
“Aye,” I admitted after a brief pause with a moment of pain. “Methinks had the war broken out but a week later, I would have indeed been there with them, commanding Omega against the invasion. But I am under no illusions, Sergeant—my presence ‘twould not have reversed the outcome against such skill or numbers as the gryphons had. ‘Tis certain I would have watched my command be slowly slaughtered before me until I, too, was claimed. Assuming, that is, that I did not fall earlier, as ‘tis never been my way to not be at the forefront of battle.”
“And how do you go on in the face of all that?” he asked me. “Knowing that your entire base is lost and all you knew and loved have perished?” His lip quivered briefly, his eyes staring into my own, a mixture of hope and defeat clear as day placed before me.
Methinks I’d never more felt like my mentor than at that moment. I looked to my hoof, still holding his, and then raised my eyes to meet his gaze once more, letting him see both the pain and resolution within them.
“Because ‘tis not all I knew and loved. Because I still have a nation and family—both here and in Cloudsdale—to fight for, to say nothing of a coltfriend I would die for. But even if ‘twas not the case, ’tis all I can do, Sergeant. Because ‘tis all the love and friendship I felt for my lost comrades would allow me to do, even were I not so inclined,” I told him fervently, giving his hoof another squeeze.
“To quit the fight in grief and sorrow gains us nothing, Sky Sentry. To give up the fight now means that they did die in vain. I will not allow that. Nor will I allow their deaths or the many gryphon crimes to go unanswered.”
“So you fight for vengeance?” he asked me earnestly. “Because even after all I witnessed, I do not believe I can do that.”
“No,” I told him firmly, remembering the words of my mentor as I scooped up some creole to raise to my muzzle, blinking when the taste hit me—‘twas better than any I’d had before! “And ‘tis just as well you cannot. Vengeance is a very dark sky to fly; Sergeant. One even my eyes cannot see in. I have already witnessed directly what it has done to others, and thus I will have no part of it. Kill in combat; kill to protect other ponies. But never give into vengeance or bloodlust.” I automatically echoed Thunderbolt’s words to me so many years earlier, when I was first seeking to join the Corps.
“If not vengeance, then what can I fight for?” he then asked forlornly, desperately, even. I realized he was in fact pleading with me to supply an answer he could accept for himself.
“Sergeant,” I began again, more sternly. “I’m sorry, but the question of who and what you can fight for is not one I can answer for you. ‘Tis different for everypony, and thus, ‘tis up to you to provide that answer. Mayhap ‘tis your foal to ensure he does not grow up to be enslaved or eaten?” Perchance was harsh, but it did get his attention as he visibly flinched. “Mayhap ‘tis his mother you still love and wish to provide for? Mayhap ‘tis the commander you admired and fancied? Or mayhap ‘tis the dead comrades whose legacy you wish to carry on?”
I let my words sink in before proceeding. “You seek meaning in their deaths, but in the end, the only meaning they have is what you can give them. And therefore, you must answer but one simple question before you can fight again, Sergeant:
“What meaning do you wish their sacrifice to have? And how can you best give it to them?” I asked directly as I scraped up more of my meal, vowing to return again for another helping before too long. “Answer that, and methinks you answer everything.”
He didn’t immediately reply, but his expression turned thoughtful for a moment, and then I saw the shadow of something approaching determination crossing his face. We stopped talking then, eating our meals in relative silence; I was gratified to see he suddenly seemed to have more of an appetite.
“Thank you for your time, Master Sergeant,” he eventually told me as we finished our food, getting up to return our dishes. “You have given me much to think about. Perchance I might be left alone now to consider what you have said.”
“No,” I told him again firmly as I slid my plate, mug, and hoof fork into a bin for cleaning. “You have brooded for long enough. Sergeant. ‘Tis certain we will be in action again soon, and you must start preparing yourself now! Mayhap you will find it easier if you help ready others for the trials ahead?” I suggested.
“But—”
“No buts! The Naval pegasi need to be whipped into shape, and whilst we have the time, ‘tis our job to do so! Now come with me, Sergeant!” I ordered in my most intimidating imitation of Windshear, who, ‘tis worth noting again, was my former commander at Omega as well as Sky Sentry’s former drill instructor. “I’m going topside to train them, and you are going to help!”
He looked startled, but obeyed instantly, being but six months out of basic and perchance remembering keenly being yelled at by Windshear as he was. “Yes, ma’am! Coming, ma’am!” he said obediently, following me out the door.
Methinks I was unaware that you had spoken to him, First Lieutenant, but I can find no fault in what you said. You are absolutely correct in that the deaths of soldiers have no meaning except for what we can give them, and that we each fight for something different, whether ‘tis friends, family, or like yourself, a simple desire for acceptance. I oft wondered what had changed when I next saw him, and ‘twould seem ‘twas his chat with you. For that I thank you, for we would indeed be needing him in the days and weeks ahead.
—Firefly
You are welcome, Captain, though in the end, ‘tis certain I simply told him what I knew to be true. Methinks I was mayhap too blunt at times, but ‘twas not the time to coddle him, given what lay ahead…
Which included what initially promised to be a battle with my future bat-pony brethren we were unlikely to survive.
—Fell Flight
EAS Loyalty
North Shore of Lake Luna
September 3rd, 1139 AC
1842 hours
After all our battles, and all my anger at the gryphons over the past few days, methinks it paled in comparison to the sheer rage I felt as I stood to the right of the commander and Captain Shady on the forward observation deck. ‘Tis certain I was seething from the sheer disrespect shown to not just my comrades, but myself. I had thought that I had experienced the worst of bigotry from full-blooded ponies, but an education was shortly to follow on how vicious the other part of my ancestry could be.
“I am Colonel Aegir Ale of the Nightborne Army. You are in violation of the border, Equestrians,” she warned us in a noticeable Romareian accent, pointedly ignoring me after an initial glance and sneer.
“For which we apologize, but be assured our intentions are peaceful,” Shady replied in placating tones, leaving me in admiration that she could keep a level head and voice in such circumstances as the thestrals were presenting her with. “I am Captain—”
“We know who you are,” the Nightborne commander cut her off, and then her eyes passed over me again; I could read easily the contempt and disgust in them as she recognized my hybrid blood, which was already starting to boil. “And ‘tis not important. All that matters is that you are now in thestral lands, in violation of our sovereignty settlement with your Princess! For breaking the treaty and invading our territory, you are ordered to set down your ship in Lake Luna and surrender yourselves immediately to our custody…”
Captain Shady’s eyes narrowed, and her manner instantly turned ice cold. “Do you really expect me to agree to those terms, which, despite your claims, are in direct violation of our treaty?”
“By coming here with a fully armed warship, you are an invader, not a diplomat! So do not speak to me of treaties!”
“Even if that treaty directly allows for free passage of Equestrian forces in time of war?” Shady arched an eyeridge.
“You may be at war, but we are not! Now surrender your ship, Captain! You have thirty seconds to comply!” she ordered again, her hoof reaching for some form of gem.
“I do not even require one, Colonel!” Shady answered in the same imperious tone. “The answer is no!”
“Captain…” A twitch in her cat-eye betrayed a moment of nervousness from Aegir Ale, and I believe ‘twas then I saw the game that was playing out and realized what was happening. “Think of your crew. Are they ready to die with you in a battle you cannot win?” she appealed to us as well as the Captain.
Shady looked to all of us, asking each of the same unspoken question in turn and receiving nods and sneers back. “Methinks the better question is, are you?” she countered cooly. “Are you ready to throw away your own lives over such a blatant and obvious falsehood?”
The Colonel flared her broad bat-pony wings in what I perchance instinctively recognized as a dominance display. “You are in no position to make threats, Captain Shady! Now surrender your command before I am forced to—”
“Enough!” I spoke up for the first time, having had all I could stomach of the proceedings. “This farce has gone on long enough, Colonel! I have been in enough battles to recognize a force that does not wish to fight, and a commander who dreads the outcome! So perchance you might dispense with this aggressive pretense and cease your threats before you foalishly get yourselves and everypony else killed?”
“Silence, you mischling Highborne!” Aegir Ale addressed me directly for the first time by a known slur against my mixed heritage, all but spitting out the words. “You will speak only when spoken to!”
I hissed back, lowering my head and showing my fangs. “I have a name and rank, Nightborne!” I answered in the same vein, having only learned of the two thestral factions and their mutual hatred that very day. “’Tis Master Sergeant Fell Flight! And I will speak whenever I see fit! ’Tis we, and not you, in control of the situation this day!”
She gave me another contemptuous look before turning to the captain. “So, are you going to let such ill-tempered and unworthy subordinates escalate matters further, Captain?” the Colonel challenged Shady next.
“I perchance wouldn’t have put it so bluntly, but my Corps comrade is reading the situation correctly,” Shady said with a knowing nod. “As you did not ambush us at the start, when you might have taken us by surprise and stormed us successfully, you clearly do not want a battle, and are simply trying to bluster your way into winning without one!” she said to knowing nods from Firefly and Cutlass Cleave. “You are convincing nopony, Colonel, so as the Master Sergeant says, I suggest you stand your forces down before a battle begins on accident.”
The Nightborne Colonel carefully schooled her expression before contorting it into a sneer again. “If you believe that this is a bluff, perchance I should simply slay one or two of your soldiers to make my intentions clear?” she suggested with a nod off to her side, where crossbows were raised to no immediate response from us, as we recognized it for the empty threat it was. “You are correct that I would rather it not come to that, but make no mistake, Captain—my resolve is real!”
“Is it now?” Shady gave a dismissive wave of her hoof. The Mare at Arms reacted instantly to the signal, slowly and deliberately drawing her crossbow on the thestrals, beading her iron sight on their commander. “I think we both know that’s not true, Colonel. For what you’re saying simply doesn’t make any sense.”
“How dare you…”
“But you know what does makes sense to me, Aegir Ale?” Shady asked in a rhetorical tone, looking and sounding to me like she felt in complete control of the situation despite the threat she was under. “That you heard our approach and called back for instructions, but you either received none and tried to improvise, or—far more likely—you were told to do the impossible: capture our ship without a fight.
“You’ve been ignoring our hails all day and methinks it doesn’t take a scrying spell to see the situation you’ve found yourself in. At a guess, your nation’s leadership hoped to use the Loyalty and her crew to gain leverage over the two sides—a hope that becomes impossible if she is taken by force with crew slain, given that would be an act of war that puts you firmly in the gryphon camp.”
Shady allowed herself a smile as she read the thestral’s stiff body language, which betrayed her considerable distress. “So that’s it, isn’t it? Your leaders thought you could take the Loyalty as a prize to curry future favor with the gryphons? Or alternately, they might ransom her back to Equestria in exchange for concessions like being allowed to stay out of the war,” she recited easily, and the tightening of the Colonel’s lips told us all the Captain’s guesses were indeed striking very close to the mark.
“Unfortunately for you, there is a fatal flaw in such wishful thinking—I see through your scheme and I’m not buying your bluff,” she told the other mare.
“Enough!” Aegir Ale’s hoof shot towards her belt again as she tapped a crystal on it twice, causing an immediate eruption of activity outside as her forces drew their weapons; my eyes could pick out that they were in fact donning what looked like double-bladed hoofstrikers in lieu of the wingblades their membrane wings simply could not wield. “If you think I am bluffing, I suggest you think again!”
Shady reacted instantly to the threat. “Tailwind! Dusk Dazzle!” she shouted into her gem, and instantly the ballonet defenses crackled to life above us, but only at quarter-power—enough to let the thestrals know of its presence and feel its threatening electrical charge, even though ‘twas not enough power behind it to start striking them down—unless, that was, they landed directly on the dirigible balloons.
Simultaneously, the area behind us shimmered to drop a magical shroud. Its absence revealed a half-dozen naval unicorns with longbows drawn, arrows aimed directly at Aegir Ale and her escorts. And worse for them, before the thestrals could make a move, a shield curtain dropped down behind them, cutting off their path of retreat—‘twas a gift from a still-recovering Still Way, who had shown the ship security teams how to apply remote shields over portals and hatches for additional defense, turning the ship into a nearly impenetrable redoubt until the spells were defeated or spent.
“Your move, Colonel,” Shady stated slyly as Cutlass Cleave drew her namesake and the Commander and I deployed our wingblades; the Captain herself rearing up to wield her saber in an odd upright manner. “Order an attack if you wish. But do not expect an easy fight or victory!”
Aegir Ale bared her pointed teeth, though her fractionally lowered ears betrayed her fear as, to our surprise, her escorting troops somehow popped out the bolts from their unfired crossbows—unlike ours, they were reloadable!—and swapped them with different ones from their belts; I caught the glint of their crystal tips and guessed they were designed to defeat spells or magical shields. “Easy or no, you know not our weapons or how we fight! We can defeat your defenses and you will not survive our attack!” the visibly flustered Colonel claimed, her slitted eyes darting back and forth at the longbows leveled at her as her equally trapped escorts likewise aimed their reloaded crossbows back, their sights focused directly on Shady.
“You will not survive ours!” Shady rejoined instantly with a smug smile, one that left me in admiration anew of her for the size of her figurative apples and fearlessness in the face of the lethal threats. She then ordered the ballonet defenses increased to one-third power, causing the first sparks to begin reaching outwards from its surface towards thestral soldiers flying too close, menacing but not quite reaching them as they darted away with audible shouts of alarm. “So what will it be, Colonel? Shall we die together over a failed bluff that will result in war between Thestralslovakia and Equestria?
“Or shall we settle our differences in a civilized manner, negotiating our departure and the disposition of Cloudsdale over fruit and fish?” We had actually laid in a supply of it from the Lunar Sea before departing, mostly for Gavian (and, I hoped, myself) but also for allowing us some means to offer the thestrals a modicum of hospitality.
Hospitality I hardly felt they deserved at this point, but ‘twas why I was a soldier and not a diplomat.
“Stand down!” a defeated Aegir Ale finally shouted into her gem, to receive both relieved and disappointed acknowledgements back. “All squads withdraw to 500 yards!” she further instructed, waiting until her orders were carried out and weapons were sheathed on both sides before speaking again.
“Very well, Captain. You win. We do not wish war with either side, but you wouldst understand that your presence here might give the gryphons cause to believe that we have already sided with you just when they have reached our eastern borders,” she pointed out somewhat ruefully, and for the first time, I sensed I was hearing the truth from her. “And thus, I was ordered to, as you say, attempt the impossible—take your ship without bloodshed.”
“And you actually thought you could do it?” Firefly asked derisively.
Aegir Ale’s expression turned angry. “Whether I thought I could do it was irrelevant, pegasus. Such were my orders and ‘twas my duty to carry them out,” she added, all but telling us she neither believed she could nor liked her instructions in the least. “In any event, I am but a soldier in command of a regiment. I am not authorized to negotiate anything on behalf of Thestralslovakia entire.”
“Perchance not, but I do expect you to forward our requests to your superiors, and explain that we seek only to make contact with Cloudsdale and escort them away,” Shady pointed out. “Do so, and you may maintain your precious neutrality for a short time, at least—though I remind you again that the very same sovereignty settlement you so haughtily cited before also requires your nation to help defend Equestria in the event of invasion.”
“’Tis not my choice to make, Captain,” Aegir Ale answered carefully. “I will… convey your words to my superiors, but I respectfully request that you withdraw from our territory for now. And before you ask, be assured Cloudsdale is here by choice. They requested our aid and sanctuary, which we granted. But we dare not let word of that out lest the gryphons learn of it, and the only way to keep the city hidden is to bury it within the deepest mountain mists!”
“You wouldst forgive me if I wish to hear that from them,” Shady replied evenly, her counterpart now studiously avoiding my eyes. “Our orders were to locate and reestablish contact with the city. And to that end, I wish to be taken to them.”
“I will convey that wish as well,” Aegir Ale replied in resignation. “You will be informed when I receive a response. Now kindly withdraw from our territory, Captain, before you are seen by gryphon spies.”
Such was our first encounter with thestral soldiers, and with the mutual brinksponyship being practiced, ‘tis still amazing to me that we did not end up in a fight that ultimately, neither side would win.
In hindsight, they were in a very difficult position at that point, one our presence potentially worsened, but I still cannot fathom the thinking behind believing that they could intimidate us into giving up our ship!
Their Colonel did her best given the idiotic orders she received, but in the end, ‘twas all for naught, thanks in large part to Captain Shady, who I came to admire immensely for her magnificently unflinching performance during that improvised parley. At a time when any weakness might have been exploited and made conflict more likely, she showed none.
In any event, Captain, I must now give up the quill, as the first batches of documentation have arrived from the ambassador. Methinks Osprey and I now have a great deal of material to review, and then we must decide what to do about it.
And by “we,” I mean not just myself and Osprey, but all Omega veterans!
—Fell Flight
I understand, old friend, and offer again any aid you need. You are absolutely correct that their orders were nigh-impossible to carry out, but she did her best under the circumstances. I would not have wished to be in her place, and ‘tis worth noting that she had to place herself in grave danger as well to attempt to fulfill her instructions. A coward Aegir Ale was not; though I can hardly say the same for the one who gave her those orders.
—Firefly
‘Tis certain you are in no mood to speak to me right now, but as I read over this account, I must offer my congratulations to both you and then-Captain Shady, First Lieutenant. ‘Twas an absolutely unflinching performance in the face of a situation where to show any weakness could have been disastrous, and I commend Captain Shady for an excellent example of how parleys should be conducted in the face of a bellicose and belligerent enemy—from a position of strength.
‘Tis a lesson we oft teach ourselves in both diplomacy and battlefield negotiations—that if a real or potential adversary demands something of you, ‘tis because they either cannot or simply will not force you to give it up. And thus, the advantage is yours for having something they desperately wish to divest you of, enabling you to dictate terms right back.
Unfortunately, the current situation is not one where either side can dictate to the other, for neither side is clean. The exchange of information about mutually dishonorable acts has the potential to reopen old war wounds, as I fear ‘tis already done with Fell Flight and ‘tis certain will do with the gryphon side, particularly the Kingdom’s Navy.
But as there is little I can do about that for now, I will resume my story of the gryphon side of war, and in so doing, perchance explain what has the former first officer of Outpost Omega so upset.
—Ambassador Layan Kaval
Occupied Mareasses
7th Talon Legion HQ
September 4th, 1139 AC
0830 hours
The Prelate, Primarch and I departed back for Raptor base somewhat later than expected the following morning.
As no messages had been received that were particularly pressing—the rapid reorganization of frontline legions the Prelate had ordered was proceeding with few issues, and the advance would resume as scheduled at dawn the following day—I allowed Salvio Gaius to sleep in to the disgust of Primarch Junius, who had little nice to say when the Prelate finally emerged with the newly-minted sub-Consul Romelus, whose face was all but aglow.
Methinks ‘twas not just from eagerness to take over her new command, but more due to the series of slashes and blade marks on her face from what could only have been multiple mating rounds—ritual tests of combat worthiness that precede more intimate affairs between gryphons—that had ended in their mutual pleasure and benefit.
To her credit, the Prelate had an array of his own wounds, and knowing from experience how difficult ‘twas to land a blow on him, it meant the sub-Consul was nearly his equal in warrior skill. “‘Tis not necessary,” he said as he waved off my offer to get a Magus healer when we returned to his sky carriage. “They are but scratches. Marks of affection to be warn proudly,” he said with a knowing glance at Urban Romelus, who beamed back.
“So, you have not only failed to follow up on a successful advance, but engaged in fraternization with subordinates, Prelate?” the Primarch asked disdainfully as he boarded his sky carriage, having had little to do but stomp around Mareasses all night and inspect the former Legate’s soldiers, looking for anything—a dissenting voice or a headfeather not cut short enough—she could use against them.
That she had failed had not helped her mood, finding that both Romelus and Gaius were beloved amongst the 7th Legion rank and file, the pair having led them from one victory to another in the course of multiple campaigns.
“What fraternization?” Gaius answered in perfect innocence, in too good a mood to be bothered by her. “I simply availed myself of the hospitality any subordinate would offer their superior. And ‘tis certain I found it much to my liking.” He closed his eyes and smiled.
“And mine as well,” Romelus added with an identical expression as she took her place with the cordon of outside flyers—though she’d been offered a seat in the sky carriage, she resolved she would make the journey north on the strength of her sky gryphon wings to start getting used to the additional weight of her newest armor.
“And I am offended, Primarch, that you think that I would do anything that would violate the Empire’s strict rules against such indecencies! Certainly, my loyal soldiers heard no such things as you imply!” she said with a glance back at her headquarters sentries, who all grinned conspiratorially.
I couldn’t help but smile at the exchange and the Primarch’s impotent sputtering in response. And yet, I also couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness and envy. For whatever they had shared was simply not something I could have. Not for my station, but for the simple reason that I had no equal as a warrior, and thus, there was no eagless I could fight who could even begin to stimulate me.
‘Twas a point of immense frustration that I had finally come to terms with after a few failed attempts. Methinks I finally decided that if ‘twas simply my lot in life to be unequalled and thus unable to feel the passion due to a worthy partner, ‘twould be gladly accepted if my otherworldly combat abilities could serve the Empire in other ways.
The Primarch fell silent for once. The best she’d been able to do during her interviews with the 7th Legion soldiers was elicit some disappointment when she told them they would not be allowed to continue their advance into bat-pony lands. But when she’d tried to use that against the Prelate, he’d immediately and sharply reprimanded her for spilling information that had not yet been disseminated to the lower ranks.
“Consider yourself fortunate that I am in a good mood, and that I do not consider that leak dangerous to our efforts, Primarch. Even if this somehow gets back to the bat-ponies, methinks it might actually reassure them that we are not planning to invade them and thus make them more amenable to our overtures,” he told her easily before his eyes narrowed.
“But were it otherwise, know that I would not hesitate to throw you in irons for the potential leak of war strategy,” he warned her. “Be assured that I will be reporting your indiscretion to the Empress, so I suggest you tread far more carefully in trying to find something to discredit me before her.”
With those words, he approached the Primarch and went nose to nose with her. “For the moment I feel you have endangered our invasion—or even a lesser operation—is the moment I will no longer tolerate those efforts. Or your presence, regardless of the Empress’ favor.” He never raised his voice, but the threat that underlay his words ‘twas heard loud and clear. “Is this understood?”
“Yes, Prelate. It will not happen again,” she grated out through a clenched beak, but said no more, perchance recognizing she’d overstepped. She then sketched him a salute and bared her throat to him before boarding the carriage behind him.
Though I normally would have flown outside to be the Prelate’s bodyguard, ‘twas my role as his adjutant and most trusted advisor the Prelate wished of me now. And thus, as he was already behind a thick cordon of aerial guards, I spent the entirety of the trip inside the cramped confines of the carriage, which was built far more for defense than creature comforts, armored and enchanted against everything from a lightning strike to a bombardment from naval ballistae.
With the northern and southern fronts attended to for the time being, ‘twas time to turn his attention back to the center. As he reviewed the slew of reports I had saved for him whilst he… slept, he came to the reports regarding the assault on Outpost Omega and the nearby Equestrian Army bases, each guarding a single settlement and which were collectively known to the pony side as Outpost Black.
“Over two millennia of casualties suffered in subduing Omega and the nearby Army bases…” he noted in some disgust as he read the reports of the 28th Talon Legion. “Not as bad as at Epsilon, but still unacceptable. And worse, ‘twould appear losses among the commanders and Fortis Knights were particularly heavy, including six Centurions and two of ten sub-Tribunes dead.” He shook his head.
“So once again, you fail to anticipate the severity of pony resistance, and once again, our forces suffered heavily because of it. So are you going to pass blame by relieving that legion commander, too? Or perchance you will just sleep with her instead?” Livia suggested with a sneer.
The Prelate pointedly ignored her, as did I. “What is your opinion of the matter, Tribune?” he asked of me.
“After considerable study of the available after-action reports, I cannot find fault with Legate Magna, My Lord,” I answered as I reviewed the report scrolls along with him. “Unlike at Epsilon, there are no glaring tactical errors to point to in the conduct of her command. Given its exposed location and the fact that both it and the settlements it defended were a favorite target of raider attacks, Omega was a fortress garrisoned by some of the best and most veteran Aerial Corps soldiers they had, and thus ‘twas very difficult to reduce.”
“As were the army bases, it seems,” the Prelate concurred. “Our original assault plan called to strike Omega and the three Black bases with heavy weapons from range, and to only follow up with Talons once they were sufficiently reduced. But due to short notice, the Legate had no heavy weapons to work with. So, even with Knight support, the battle ‘twas reduced to an infantry fight that greatly favored defense, which was then taken advantage of by both the Omega pegasi and the Outpost Black army troops.”
“I fear you are correct, My Lord. And to that end… ‘twould seem the Corps soldiers fought back to back with the Equestrian Army to very good effect.” I passed him another report scroll. “In fact, in the words of a centurion, ‘they fought like demons’ and refused multiple surrender demands, using their base bunkers and tunnels they’d dug between their outposts to great advantage. The two services covered for each other’s weaknesses effectively, and it made them very difficult to dislodge. ‘Twould also seem they successfully pulled off some surprise counterattacks, to our considerable cost.”
“The same as with Gamma…” The Prelate took the report and scanned it quickly, then frowned. “In other words, there was coordination between the Army and Aerial Corps, who engaged in combined arms warfare—something their insular services showed no skill at before now,” he noted as he shook his head.
“’Twould be problematic if they should master that art quickly... which they would try to do if they learned how well the two services fought together here. We cannot allow that, nor can we allow them to make martyrs out of Omega or Outpost Black for a heroic stand. ‘Tis certain they will already be ‘making hay’ out of Epsilon’s escape, but we can destroy its luster by destroying the Naval group responsible. For this battle, however... they know nothing, so ‘twould be best to suppress all information about it.”
“I’m sorry. And what was that during the bunker battle about honoring enemy valor?” the Primarch immediately pointed out with a smirk. “So much for such idiotic sentiments, though methinks I’m hardly disappointed that you finally came to your senses over it.”
For the first time that morning, Salvio Gaius looked annoyed, his tail twitching in agitation, and I have no doubt he gave his next instructions for the express purpose of defying her. “Tribune—draw up an order for the Owls to search the rubble of Omega and gather as much intelligence as they can, with emphasis on preserving any personal effects or combat reports they can find,” he told me. “They are then to collect them, and bury them as deeply as possible until the time is right. Outpost Omega is indeed worthy of honor. We may not be able to grant it now, but we will attempt to do so later, when the war is won.”
“By your command, it will be done,” I said with a bared throat. “But what about the casualty reports? Equestrian intelligence may be able to glean what happened from them.”
“For now, we must suppress them,” he further ordered. “As far as the Equestrians know, Omega simply fell along with the rest of the border bases, and ‘tis there it must stay in their minds. Though I find this action distasteful, we simply cannot let them have heroes or rallying points, and methinks Outposts Black and Omega would become both if the truth were known...”
As I did indeed carry out these orders, I can only offer you my sincerest apologies for them now, First Lieutenant. ‘Twas war, and not something I even thought about much at the time, aside from some momentary unease and perchance my first moment of at-least fleeting doubt that our course was entirely honorable.
I do not ask for your forgiveness, and I know you well enough to realize that you are unlikely to give it. All I can do now is offer up those same personal effects and documents the Owls cached in expectation of our eventual victory, and our side being finally able to recognize Omega’s efforts against us properly.
—Layan Kaval
After a day or more of considering what I have learned and reading through the surprisingly voluminous documentation you gave me, I find myself feeling more spent than angry, having forced myself to read through countless battle reports and personal letters containing declarations of friendship and love as well as vows to never surrender.
Worst of all, however, was the final report from the commander I was going to replace, Sky Sergeant Stratofortress. It contained a long list of citations for her faltering force and ended with her wondering if she had in fact lived up to the legacy of Omega, apologizing to me personally for not being able to save the base and living to see me take command.
‘Tis been hard, and my ire has left me… for now. I understand better now why such orders were issued from your side, and as the Captain says, ‘twould be a lie to say we were any better about such things. In fact, ‘tis quite possible our offenses were even more egregious when all was said and done.
I cannot say I forgive you at this moment, but I will be in touch with you again later, Ambassador, once I—and Osprey and the rest of the surviving Omega veterans—have decided what to do. But for now, I will take a much-needed respite from my emotionally draining work and pen the final section of this chapter.
—First Lieutenant Fell Flight (ret.)
Thestral High Emissary
Thestral Conclave
Canterlot
EAS Loyalty
Just north of Lake Luna on Thestralslovakian border
September 3rd, 1139 AC
2345 hours
“… and thus, by order of Viceroy Chardonnay with the approval of the Lunar Council, the EAS Loyalty has been granted permission to enter our territory to reach Cloudsdale,” Colonel Aegir Ale informed us not long after midnight, reciting her orders from a freshly-delivered scroll in the Captain’s conference room, whose lights had been significantly lowered.
She had shown up alone this time under flag of truce with but a single aide wearing the stripes of a Corporal, a thestral stallion who stayed silent but clearly was listening closely to the proceedings. “But we request you wait until two hours before daybreak, when the mountain mists will be at their thickest. This will hide your crossing of the border.”
“I thank the council for their consideration,” Shady answered somewhat dryly, knowing well that by the terms of the Sovereignty Settlement, they could not actually deny us permission, but as we needed their cooperation, she let it pass.
“Good,” Aegir Ale replied, still pointedly ignoring me except for a single glower when she arrived. “But I am required to escort you, and you will follow the path we set, through the mists. Be mindful as well that we do not wish any display of force, and to that end, all cannon ports are to be closed and all weapons are to be stowed.”
Shady’s eyes narrowed. “Absolutely not. I will not have my ship or its crew gelded for passage through potentially hostile airspace, Colonel,” she warned. “I will follow the course you set, but we will go in at general quarters with weapons at the ready, and be assured we will respond to any move by your forces we perceive as threatening.”
“I offer you my personal assurance of safe passage, Captain Shady, and my presence on your bridge during it. You do not trust us?”
“Wouldst you?” Shady asked her pointedly before I could, though I couldn’t quite restrain the roll of my eyes. “Your presence is not enough, Colonel Aegir Ale. You have already admitted to orders to seize our ship, and I would be remiss to not take precautions in case this is simply another ruse to do so.”
“‘Tis not a trick, Captain,” the Nightborne commander said again in some exasperation, her eyes glowing softly in the low light of the candles at the table. “I give you my word.”
“You’ll forgive me if I feel your word is insufficient where the safety of my ship and crew are concerned, Colonel. So allow me to make this very clear—we are going to Cloudsdale, and we will arrive by dawn,” Shady spelled it out from the other side of the table. “Our patience to this point has been exemplary, but time runs short, and I will not agree to any conditions that are both in violation of the treaty, and potentially endanger my ship. To that end, I remind you again that your so-called Lunar Council has no actual right to forbid our passage, and our waiting for their approval has simply been a courtesy.”
“Captain…” Aegir Ale looked away with a clenched jaw and I saw a frown on the face of her subordinate. “If I report that to my superiors, then treaty or no, they will almost certainly forbid your passage! And worse, ‘tis certain they will order us to engage you should you attempt to reach Cloudsdale anyway!”
“Then for all our sakes, do not report it,” Firefly spoke up for the first time, her voice level. “You strike me as a good soldier, Colonel, who is trying to do right by her nation and orders—even when ‘tis abundantly clear you do not agree with them. But we have our orders as well. And you must know that by keeping us from Cloudsdale with deliberately unacceptable terms, you are making conflict more likely, not less.”
“And what wouldst you have me do, Master Sergeant?” she challenged with a glance at her compatriot, who looked decidedly angry at the direction the conversation had gone. “Disobey orders?”
“No. But perchance, like before, they simply could not be carried out,” the commander suggested easily. “Perchance by the time you returned to deliver our refusal and await new instructions, we were already gone. Slipped away into the unusually thick mists. Ones generated by our pegasi to mask our approach.” She arched an eyeridge.
“Go on…?” the thestral colonel invited whilst her subordinate’s sneer turned to surprise.
“You could hardly be blamed for such a thing, as we gave no warning and simply moved silently and without permission once we were hidden. You launched an immediate search, of course. But by the time you found us ten minutes later, we had already arrived at Cloudsdale. There was nothing that could then be done without attacking us in full view of its pegasi.”
“Do you honestly expect us to do such a—” the Nightborne Corporal began to say, only to stop at an upraised and flared bat-wing from the Colonel; I believe ‘twas only then I fully noticed their wing claws and wondered how they might be used.
“And how long would it take you to generate this mist?” she asked abruptly.
“I am no expert, but twenty minutes should suffice?” Firefly said with a glance at me. “I believe we have enough surviving members of our weather teams to do it.”
“I’m sure Storm Sergeant Blue Bolt would be more than happy to direct both the battalion and the Loyalty’s air wing in the task, ma’am,” I suggested helpfully. “I am no expert either, but with a humid enough environment and some extra updrafts, methinks it could be accomplished quickly.”
The Colonel nodded slowly, even though she still refused to look at me. “‘Twill take me ten minutes to return to base, and another five to send a communication. Perchance if I send word that you have agreed to these terms and order my forces to the designated crossing point to meet you, they will be less alert and not notice your efforts to make more mists from distance. Or I can say I requested that you do so in order to further mask your approach.”
“Colonel, with all due respect, what in the name of Luna are you doing?” her adjudant asked. “Ponies and gryphons are more than enough for us to deal with, but you wouldst see us make enemies of our own side!”
“As you were, Corporal,” she grated out through clenched and visibly sharp teeth. “What I am doing is attempting to prevent a conflict from being caused by Major General Muscadine’s idiotic orders. ‘Tis no doubt in my mind that he wishes a war, and I have only his word that these instructions in fact come from the Lunar Council,” she spelled it out, causing the rest of us to glance at each other. “I do not trust him, and neither should you!”
The Corporal hissed sharply and took flight into a hover, raising his wrist-mounted crossbows to level at her head. The launcher arms sprung to the sides from their sheathed position and came under audible tension with one loaded bolt pointed at his superior and the other at Captain Shady, though ‘twas the former who kept the bulk of his attention. “Colonel, this is treason! And I will not allow you to—” he stopped as weapons were drawn on our side; wingblades deployed and unicorn guards leveling their longbows.
“Hold!” Shady called back instantly, then turned her attention on the thestral adjutant, eerily unconcerned by the bolt pointed her way. “You are not in command of either side of this situation, Corporal. So I suggest you lower your weapons immediately.”
“Don’t be a foal, Corporal Zodiac,” Aegir Ale told him carefully but quickly, an edge to her voice as she found a loaded crossbow pointed at her ear from her own subordinate. “Your actions gain us nothing! I am not engaging in treason, but acting to defuse a difficult situation in the face of idiotic orders! I am trying to do what is in the best interests of both sides!”
“‘Tis not your place to decide!” he retorted.
“‘Tis not yours either!” I retaliated and stepped forward on the left side of the conference table as Firefly did the same on the right.
“Stay back!” the thestral stallion ordered us through bared teeth and a sharp hiss, the lowered tufts of his thickly-furred ears betraying his fear as he swept his second crossbow back and forth whilst keeping his first trained on his superior. “Now order your forces to let us leave, Captain!”
“I will not,” Shady replied evenly as she stood up. “You are not leaving this ship, Corporal.”
“Yes we are! For if we fail to return, ‘twill be presumed that we were captured through an act of Equestrian treachery—which ‘tis in fact all I have heard here tonight!” he promised.
“Now stand aside! We will exit through that window, and I will escort the Colonel back with me, where I will report what happened here! She will be charged with treason, and ‘tis certain that you will be forever denied entry to our fatherland!” he proclaimed slightly shrilly, a glint of sweat suddenly appearing on his forehead, beading up through his fur as Aegir Ale sat stiffly. “Now on your hooves, Colonel! I am placing you under arrest!”
“Methinks not. Firesight!” Shady then issued the coded command, which cued her unicorn guards to cast strobelight spells; they dazzled our guests and forced them to look away with cries of pain. I was unaffected, of course, thanks to my implanted crystal lenses, and took immediate advantage, darting in to sweep the Corporal’s nearest foreleg up and away from the Colonel whilst simultaneously slamming him into a wall. Firefly did her part as well, tackling the thestral commander to shield her with her Guardspony armor from a launched arrow.
‘Twould not be necessary. Either by accident or desperate design, both crossbow bolts fired but the shots went wild, with one bolt impacting the opposite wall, surprising me by erupting with choking smoke whilst the other went into the ceiling with a series of arcing electrical sparks like a shock gem.
Though surprised at the sophistication of their arms, I slammed him hard against a bulkhead. When I did, I quickly realized that the bat-ponies were in fact lighter for the same size than pegasi, meaning I could pin him easily with my own weight.
His watering eyes focused on me with some difficulty; enough to finally recognize me. “Gah! Let me go, you bucking Highborne half-br—!” He didn’t finish before I socked him in the jaw, knocking him cold, and methinks my blow felt far better than it should have for the fact I was striking a stallion.
“My sincerest apologies for the light show, Colonel,” Shady said as she trotted over and helped her counterpart to her hooves, trying not to cough from the thick fume that was making all our throats raw and eyes sting. As she spoke, the unconscious Corporal was slapped in irons and special Thestral-quality wing restraints whilst the windows were opened to vent the smoke, helped along by a gust of wind from Firefly. “And excellent work, Master Sergeant.” She turned to me next.
“My pleasure, ma’am,” I said as I dusted myself off and threw his removed weapons onto the table—two crossbows of unique design plus a belt of bolts for them and a pair of curious double-bladed hoofstrikers, supplemented by what appeared to be a small personal backup blade.
“I suppose I should thank you. But how were you not blinded?” a still-blinking and sweating Aegir Ale asked me, to which I grinned and plucked a firegem from its wall sconce, igniting it and bringing it up to the right side of my head as I held it in a hoof.
“Crystal lens implants,” I told her as I slowly turned up its intensity. The raised light level caused the sapphire lens that overlay my right eye to gradually turn an opaque blue, and my iris beneath it from nearly its original gold to a deep green whilst the other remained unchanged, giving my eyes a two-tone appearance in a party trick I used occasionally. “They filter light and allow me to function equally well in both night and day. They react instantly to any change in illumination, and thus, they prevent me from being blinded by sudden flashes.”
“Impressive…” the Colonel granted somewhat grudgingly. “I thank you all for your efforts on my behalf. Though I fear this complicates matters greatly,” she noted with a glance back at her unconscious subordinate being dragged out the door to the brig.
“Perchance it need not,” Firefly suggested as she finished venting the room and closed the window. “You can still return and make your report. Just say that he volunteered to stay behind as a token of good faith in our agreement.”
Aegir Ale thought about that, only to finally shake her head. “No…” she eventually decided with a defeated air. “No. He is right and that if we do not both return as per instructions, suspicions will be raised. I fear I will face immediate relief—if not arrest—as the Major General suspects me to be a pony sympathizer for my earlier failure. And even if everything goes well, you wouldst still have to return him later, and the outcome is the same. So we will both stay here. And I will take you in,” she promised.
The Captain was visibly startled by that. “Are you sure, Colonel?”
“No. But I see no other way to resolve this matter peacefully in the face of my orders, regardless of who issued them.” She squeezed her eyes shut tightly for a moment, but when she opened them again, there was resolution in her cat-eyed gaze. “Time is pressing and I am due back to make my report in half an hour. So let us not tarry! Lay your mists, Captain, and I will guide you to Cloudsdale immediately.”
Shady looked genuinely touched by the gesture, and I cannot say that I was any less impressed. “‘Tis a very honorable thing to do, Colonel. Your actions and willingness to act in the interest of both sides will be remembered.”
“You are welcome. But Captain…?” she further asked as she finished blinking her eyes clear.
“Yes?”
“As ‘tis certain there will be calls for my head after this, I may wish to seek asylum with you later.”
“And for such a sterling display of honor, ‘twill be my pleasure to grant it,” Shady promised with a grave but respectful nod. “Now let us see to laying that mist...”
“Honor is simply the morality of superior men.” —H.L. Mencken