//------------------------------// // Chapter 8 // Story: The Chronicles of Dark Star: A Blade of Redemption // by D4ftP0ny //------------------------------// Dark Star’s teeth ground together in a silent snarl as the griffon stepped forward on the large porch of the manor house, his golden eyes sweeping the gathered crowd above the prisoner’s heads. In my experience, having a griffon invite you to dinner is like asking Discord for a favor- neither is a good idea, and in both you usually ended up as a piece of food in one form or another. “My fair villagers!” said Razorbeak, settling his front talons on the railing around the edge of the porch so his wings could flare wide about him, the chainmail slung about his chest shimmering with the dancing orange flames of the torches that surrounded them. “You have once again done well in bringing me ponies, my friends- and this time you have even done more than I had asked!” He gestured with one claw down at Dark Star, his grin smug and pleased. “Instead of bringing me the two unicorns I asked for, you have brought me three!” The crowd stamped their hooves loudly, the thundering sound echoing through the square for a long moment before Razorbeak raised his talon again to call for silence as Dark gazed up at him, his eyes narrow. He was specifically searching for unicorns..? “Please, my friends,” the griffon said, his voice as warm and friendly as a campfire on a winter’s night. “The applause should be for you, my villagers! You have proven yourselves yet again to me, and in reward for your hard work, you shall once again share in a bounteous feast!” He raised his talons above his head, his wings flared wide as he threw his head to the sky. “A GLORIOUS FEAST!” he crowed to the stars… and as Dark Star watched, there was the barest flash of light from beneath the chainmail Razorbeak wore. It was soft and subtle, so much so that if Dark hadn’t been watching the griffon closely he would have missed it; a quick flare of deep, ruby-red light had colored the armor at the center of Razorbeak’s chest for the barest of heartbeats before vanishing without a trace. Dark frowned, but his attention was drawn by the gathered ponies as they again stamped their hooves more fervently than before, this time adding a chorus of voices to the din that cried out in zealous thanks to Razorbeak. “Wh-what does he mean, feast?” Turnover said at Dark Star’s shoulder, his voice tight despite the volume he had to use to be heard over the cheering crowd. “And why is he talking about unicorns like that?” “Not for any reason that’s good for us,” Dark muttered, his eyes sweeping the nearby crowd. He could feel his muscles bunching across his shoulders, tense and ready for use however he needed them, but to his surprise the crowd didn’t seem to be watching him or any of their group at all. Their eyes were riveted to the griffon as he spoke, a fanatical blaze glowing throughout the multitude as they cheered and stomped for their apparent leader. Moonflower pressed close to Dark Star, Melody cowering between her legs as the crowd chanted praise to the griffon as he held his talons out for silence. “Please, good ponies, please!” he called above the din. “I thank you for your praise, but I fear that there is some business to take care of before our feast can begin.” His golden eyes once more dropped to Dark and the group, and the stallion felt his hackles raise at the look of superiority and victory the griffon’s eyes held. The feather-brained son of a mule- he really has no doubt that he’s won, has he? Slowly the crowd around him fell silent, and as soon as he was certain he could be heard Dark stepped forward, distancing himself from the other ponies. “And what business is that, griffon?” the black stallion asked, his tone sharp and cold. “As a matter of fact,” Razorbeak said, settling his front feet back to the porch and smirking down at Dark. “You are the business, good stallion. You have presented a bit of a problem for this village and, through it, me as well.” Dark smirked back at him. “You’ll have to pardon me if I’m not heartbroken by your troubles.” Razorbeak’s golden eyes blazed for a moment, the anger in them rising blatantly to the surface until it almost filled his gaze; but after several long seconds the anger receded, leaving them once again calm and calculating as he turned and began pacing the porch, his wings rustling restlessly as he spoke. “You present a problem, stallion, because usually when a unicorn is brought before me they are wearing one of those lovely little rings that the two mares were wearing when you found them.” Razorbeak arched an eyebrow at Dark. “I assume you saw them, yes?” “I saw them,” growled Dark Star, “Then I promptly removed them.” “Aah, such a pity,” said Razorbeak with a sigh. “They truly are such useful things. Made of mythril, you know- very hard to get my talons on. However, the fact that you lack such a ring is going to make what happens next a bit more… complicated than it usually is.” The unicorn’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, his stomach suddenly churning as the suspicion that had taken root there suddenly began to sprout and branch upwards into his throat. “And what is it that usually happens next?” he asked, his voice calm. Oh dear Luna please don’t be what I think it is… To his horror, however, Razorbeak’s smile became sharp and predatory, his eyes flashing in the firelight. “What happens next? Why, we kill you, of course.” The black stallion felt his shoulders slump as the suspicion in his stomach bloomed into an acidic taste at the back of his throat, and he sighed softly. …damn. The words floated across the quiet square and settled among the ponies, taking a moment to sink in for the group of prisoners. From his left side, Dark heard Turnover swear under his breath, and from his right he heard Moonflower gasp and whimper as she shuffled even closer to him. He felt his heart twinge regretfully as he heard Melody echo her mother’s plaintive whimper, but as much as he wanted to comfort her, there was just no way that he could pause in his conflict with Razorbeak to do so; because it was most certainly a conflict, despite it being only words- and that made it all the more important, too important to drop even for a moment. The best thing I can do for Melody, for ANY of them, is to keep this sun-cursed griffon distracted… until he makes a mistake. Dark snorted and stepped away from the small group again, putting perhaps a pony-length between Moonflower and himself before he spoke once more. “So you’re going to try and kill us,” Dark said nonchalantly as he toyed with the edge of his cloak. “That’s unfortunate.” “Oh, not try. I most certainly am going to succeed in killing you, unicorn- and the others with you, as well.” Razorbeak’s voice was tight and controlled, but there was an edge to it that made Dark’s ears twitch; an edge that spoke of barely contained anger and fury hiding just below the griffon’s smooth façade. The stallion smirked ever so slightly. It’s not exactly a mistake, but I think I can work with it. “And how do you plan to do that?” Dark asked, his eyes meeting the griffon’s intense gaze evenly. “As you said before, I am not wearing one of those rings that you used on the mares.” He embraced his magic, and in the space of a heartbeat his horn glowed deep blue; with a hiss and a snap, electricity sparked to life around his horn for a moment, sending the closest villagers scurrying backwards into one another. His eyes never faltered from the griffon as he allowed his horn to fall dark and silent once again. “And I assure you,” he continued, “that I am more than willing to use every ounce of magic at my disposal to free these ponies from you.” Razorbeak’s eyes narrowed, but he simply shrugged carelessly. “Strong words are of little use to you, unicorn. Soon you’ll be dead, along with those pretty mares and the earth pony.” Dark shook his head and opened his mouth to respond, but before he could do so Moonflower took a deep, shaking breath and spoke first. “W-why do you want us?!” she cried, the tears in her eyes flowing into her voice. “What purpose could killing us possibly serve?! I-I’m nopony special- I’m just a seamstress! I’m just a mother trying to raise a filly! Why us?!” Razorbeak turned his golden eyes to her, and the corners of his mouth quirked up into a belittling smile. “Oh my dear sweet mare, you are special,” he cooed. He extended his claw, his long black talons shining in the firelight as he crooked one of his digits at the horn atop Moonflower’s head. “Your magic makes you special, my dear; special to me, at any rate.” “My… my magic?” Moonflower said, her voice quavering. “W-what does my magic have to do with anything? I’m not powerful… M-m-my special talent is making things beautiful…” “I couldn’t care less what your special talent is,” Razorbeak snapped, his eyes flaring with anger. “It’s not your TALENT I’m interested in, unicorn- I said your magic.” Her magic..? The suspicion in Dark’s throat was slowly working its way through his body, filling him with a creeping sense of dread that he had to admit wasn’t much to his liking. His teeth ground together tightly as his mind worked furiously. Earlier, he thanked the village for bringing us to him, but he thanked them specifically for bringing him the unicorns… and now he’s talking about being interested in our magic… What in the name of Equestria are you up to, griffon? Dark opened his mouth to try and add his voice to the discussion, but to his surprise, Moonflower would not be dissuaded. “I-if you think you can get us to help you after you’ve kidnapped us,” she began, but before she could continue Razorbeak lifted his head to the sky and laughed; he laughed loudly and unabashedly, his voice filled with undisguised amusement… and horribly, there was an edge to his laughter that made Dark’s skin crawl; a blade beneath the burst of merriment that spoke of blood and death. “Help me?!” Razorbeak crowed, his wings extending away from his body as he cackled, his pinions bouncing with his mirth. “Oh… oh, my poor, simple mare, you truly are an amusing one. That’s the most hilarious thing that I’ve ever heard any of our prisoners say!” Suddenly, Dark heard Turnover snarl angrily, and the brown stallion surged forward to stand next to Dark, his teeth bared in rage. “Then what DO you want with us?!” the earth pony shouted into the quiet square. “I’m tired of these games! TELL US WHY YOU KIDNAPPED US, YOU DISGUSTING BIRD!!” The griffon’s laughter slowed, but only marginally; it seemed that even Turnover’s blatant insult wasn’t enough to kill the amusement that Razorbeak was obviously feeling. Finally after several long moments his humor seemed to taper off, fading from a rolling guffaw to a brazen chuckle, then down to a gentle snicker as he raised a talon to wipe a tear from his eye. Finally he took a deep, contented breath before turning his eyes once more to the group, his smile as sharp as his beak. “I kidnapped you, earth pony…” He gestured to the two metal poles that held the third rod with the crank at one end. “…because I’m going to kill you…” His smile twisted, and his eyes flashed hungrily. “…and then we’re going to eat you.” His beak snapped open and closed loudly, and as the words washed over the multitude the crowd responded with fervor, their silence broken by the admission of their leader. They all stamped and cheered wildly, and Dark felt Moonflower, Melody, Turnover and even Trixie press in against him as the ocean of ponies around them leaped to life, their manes flowing like sea foam on rolling surf. The black stallion’s eyes darted to and fro, his muscles tense as braided steel as he tried to watch every side of himself at once. The crowd is going completely crazy, he thought. But that doesn’t make sense… Suddenly he felt the hair on the back of his mane stand on end as what Razorbeak had said finally hit him: He said “we”. He didn’t say, “And then I’m going to eat you”… he said “And then we’re going to eat you”… His mind and stomach churning, Dark took a calming breath and forced his vision to steady. He said “we’re”, he thought again. He took another deep breath, closed his eyes for the briefest of moments then reopened them. The unicorn forced his eyes away from the places his warrior training told him to watch- the hooves, the shoulders, the necks of his opponents- and made himself look, really look at the nearest pony to him. She was reared up on her hind hooves, her eyes full of fire as she cheered for the griffon before her; but as Dark forced himself to look at her again he noticed something that he hadn’t before. He felt his stomach clench like a strained knot in a rope that was pulled too tight as he squinted at her face, his breath suddenly short and sharp as a chilling horror settled over him like a blanket. Oh Luna… please let this be a trick of the light… please let this not be what I think it is… But as he watched the pony in the crowd open her mouth fully to shout her praise to Razorbeak once more, he knew that it was no trick of the light: where her teeth should have been smooth and flat across her mouth, as any pony’s should have been, there were two that were not smooth or flat. Dark’s jaw muscles tensed as he noted that several teeth back from her front incisors were two large, pointed canine teeth, teeth that he had only seen before in wolves and other meat-eating predators, and his entire body shook with anger as the implications of all of this information sank in. “They’re cannibals,” he said aloud, unable to contain his disbelief. He forced his vision from the pony before him to a stallion off to his right, praying that he was wrong, but as his eyes found the stallion’s mouth he realized that he was not wrong at all; each and every pony here, save the group of prisoners in which Dark found himself, had the telltale sharp, pointed canine tooth that branded a creature as a meat-eater. THAT’s what was wrong with Hay Bale, he realized as he turned his eyes to Razorbeak, who stood before the crowd of ponies, drinking in their adoration. He had the same teeth, and I missed it! It took all of Dark’s willpower not to simply blast his way out of this village right then; to bring his considerable magical might to bear on this village and leave it a smoking, empty husk of a town as he left with his charges. Nopony would ever tell him that he’d been wrong; the very idea of cannibalistic ponies was the stuff of nightmares, and even Princess Celestia would be hard-pressed to say that wiping them off the face of Equestria would be a bad thing. Yet even as he thought it… he knew that he couldn’t simply destroy these ponies. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the griffon before him, his wings and claws spread wide as he basked in the town’s praises. You’re behind this, he thought, his anger bubbling up beneath the blanket of horror, forcing its cold touch from his coat and replacing it with a seething disgust for the half-raptor, half-cat. It didn’t make much sense; it appeared that these ponies were praising him and following him of their own free will, and that he was simply doing as they wished… but his gut told him differently. It told him that something wasn’t quite as it seemed here, and that no matter what he thought was going on there was yet more to be laid out on the table. In other words… if I get these ponies out of here now, I may never have the chance to see what’s really going on. He sighed sharply. But if I’m wrong… Dark Star had played a lot of dangerous games in his life, but he had always relied on his gut to get him through; tonight would be no different. He turned his head sharply and waved his hoof, eventually getting the attention of Turnover, Moonflower and Trixie. “Everypony stand back and give me some room!” he said loudly, gesturing away from himself. Turnover nodded and immediately backed up a few steps into the void that surrounded them in the crowd; he was followed closely by Trixie, who watched him with blatant curiosity, but Moonflower looked at him in disbelief and shook her head. Dark gestured towards her again, more forcefully, but she shook her head vehemently. “NO!” she shouted to be heard over the roar of the crowd. “I-I won’t leave your side!” The terror in her voice was absolute, and the pupils of her eyes were huge with panic. “Back up, Moonflower!” he said, his voice firm and commanding- the same tone of voice he used to order his soldiers around, so very long ago. “Stand back with Turnover, NOW!” The mare was moving almost before she knew it, sweeping Melody with her back towards the brown stallion. Dark Star took one last glance back at them to be sure they were all together before turning his eyes once more to Razorbeak. His mouth quirked into a smile as he tossed his head, allowing the hood of his cloak to flop backwards and reveal his horn; he took a deep breath and lit his horn up with magic, grasping the flowing ethereal energies swirling through him and focusing them, channeling them through his horn, forcing them to take the shape he wanted. “You guys may want to close your eyes!” he shouted over his shoulder. Dark Star knew very well that more complex magic eluded him, it always had and it always would. However, there was one thing that Dark did very, very well: big, showy bursts of magical might. The royal blue glow around his horn blazed brighter and brighter as tiny electrical discharges flickered off of it, lancing to stray hairs in his mane or simply off into the air, dissipating without a trace. The air around him began to feel thicker, and Dark felt what must have been every hair on his body standing on end as he gathered more and more of his magical power, forcing it to stand just on the precipice of action as the electricity in the air grew more and more violent. There’s really only one way to break up a crowd… The unicorn stallion threw his head skyward and from the clear night a bolt of brilliant white lightning lanced down, splitting the darkness like a blazing sword of justice. The bolt blinded many of the nearest villagers as its radiance filled the square for the briefest of moments as it flickered down out of the sky and impacted Dark’s horn, splintering into countless bursts of electricity that sizzled along his legs and hooves before sparking across the ground. And along with the light came the sound, a burst of thunder so tremendous that it literally blasted the ponies nearest to Dark Star backwards into their companions, widening the circle around himself and the prisoners. The sound wave was so sharp and violent that it actually kicked up a dust cloud around Dark’s hooves as tendrils of electricity danced amidst it, giving the black stallion a flickering, unearthly look for several long heartbeats. Dark released his magic and glanced back at the other prisoners, a sudden sinking feeling in his stomach. That was a bit more powerful than I had planned… He was sure that he would see them tossed aside like dry leaves in a windstorm, but what he saw, however, made him grin proudly. Moonflower and Trixie stood with their horns pressed together in front of Turnover and Melody, and from their horns glowed a gentle semicircle of light: a protection spell that they had used to divert the electricity and the shock wave of the thunder, allowing the group to weather the blast without being blown backwards. Not bad, you two, he thought. Not bad at all. He shook his head slightly and turned his eyes back to Razorbeak, who was busy picking himself up off the porch. But unfortunately I don’t have the time for proper congratulations right now. All around him ponies were scurrying to get back, their shouts of praise turned into cries of fear and terror as they tried to put as much distance between this unicorn and themselves as they possibly could; and with a confident smile on his face, Dark Star stepped up towards the manor house, his cloak flowing about him like darkness given tangible form. On the porch Razorbeak heaved himself to his feet, dusting off his chainmail with a claw as he turned his angry golden eyes to Dark Star. “Ah yes… I suppose I was getting a bit ahead of myself,” he said after a few moments; Dark had no doubt that he was waiting for the ringing in his ears to subside before he spoke too much. “As I said, normally unicorns are brought to me properly contained…” “So you plan to eat us, then,” said Dark, his voice calm and almost conversational. “That’s a bit of a spin on ancient griffon tradition. From what I recall, it was only enemies beaten in combat that were eaten.” Razorbeak’s eyes widened slightly, and his brow arched. “…how do you know-?” “It was to absorb their strength, as I recall,” Dark continued, plowing over the griffon’s response. “A bit barbaric, if you asked me, but griffon culture could often be called that in the pre-expansionist Equestria era.” He turned to the side and paced a few steps, his eyes never leaving the griffon. “But that doesn’t explain why you would come here, a good distance into Equestria- a country that your King has a peace treaty with, might I add- and begin killing ponies randomly; ponies who are not warriors to be fought, but the citizens of a random town that you are slaughtering.” Dark silently thanked Quickfire in Clyde’s Dale for keeping a copy of An Annotated History of the Griffon Kingdoms in the room he’d stayed in for the night. “It makes a pony wonder what your King Windrider would say to that…” “The King and I stand apart,” Razorbeak snapped, his chest puffing out aggressively. “I am under no orders from the Griffon Kingdom.” “Then why are you here?” Dark pressed. “Personal gain? What could you possibly have to gain from doing this?” He gestured to the group of prisoners, still huddled together behind him. “And while we’re on the subject, why are you choosing unicorns specifically? Do you have some kind of vendetta against unicorns?” Slowly, Razorbeak smiled, and with accentuated casualness he ran a claw over the black feathers atop his head. “So many questions,” he said softly. “Well, I suppose even food should be given last requests.” He sighed and settled his foot back to the porch, flapping his wings once to rid them of any lingering dust before settling them back to his sides. “I have no affiliation with King Windrider,” he repeated, “But that does not mean that I am here purely out of personal gain. I assure you, if it was up to me I would not be here in Equestria at all. I would much rather be flying with my squadron again, patrolling the borders of the Kingdom instead of running this village.” Dark’s eyes narrowed slightly, but he kept the smile on his face. “Then why are you here at all?” “Ah, that is the question you keep repeating; and while it is not purely out of personal gain, there is personal gain to be had. And, as luck would have it, the answer to your first question answers the second.” He turned and paced along the railing of the porch, his eyes boring into Dark with such intensity that the stallion could have sworn he could feel Razorbeak’s gaze like a physical force. “My purpose here is to find as many unicorns as I can and absorb their strength; or, more accurately, to absorb their magical power into myself.” The griffon’s wings gave a mighty flap, lifting his front half off the porch slightly before setting him gently back down again. “And my mission has been going very smoothly indeed…” “To absorb their magic?” asked Dark, one eyebrow arched in disbelief. “Razorbeak… that’s mad. You should know that you can’t absorb a unicorn’s magical strength through eating them. If that were true, then I’m sure we would have had a rash of magic-wielding griffons many, many years before this.” “Don’t be stupid- I know that eating a unicorn can’t give you their magic.” Razorbeak smiled slyly. “Which is why what happens before the eating is the most crucial, the most important part of the whole operation.” A new blossom of horror bloomed in Dark Star’s chest as his eyes narrowed yet again. “And what is the most important part?” “Oh my dear unicorn, I would have thought you could reason that out for yourself.” The griffon chuckled darkly. “Perhaps you can tell me… where a unicorn’s magic is the strongest? When he or she is not actually casting spells, mind you.” His eyes flashed in the firelight. “Tell me where a unicorn’s magic flows; where it finds a conduit through a unicorn’s entire body, filling them with power…” A conduit? Dark Star was familiar with many of the theories about the magical power that unicorns harnessed, or at least the theories that were contemporary to his own time. The most accepted theory was simply that each unicorn was tied to ley-lines that laced the world, and that their horn allowed them to tap into the magic that these ley-lines held. He frowned. But that doesn’t make sense... I guess he could be eating the horns, but that wouldn’t work… Unless… The hair at the base of Dark’s neck rose again as that now-familiar blanket of horror wrapped tightly around him once more. Unless he’s talking about blood magic. There had, long ago in ancient Equestria, been a group of ponies who postulated that a unicorn was not simply touching the ley-lines, but that they were actually part of the lines themselves, carrying in their very life’s blood the essence of the ley-lines which allowed them to use magic at all. This theory had been taken into serious consideration by many of the high-ranking scholars of the day… until it had come to light that the same group that had been purporting this claim had been spilling the blood of other unicorns to enhance the effects of their own spells. The Princesses, who were both still ruling at this point in history, did their best to quash the group and their horrendous rituals, and the theory of “magical blood” was never brought to hard scientific light. It doesn’t appear to have kept it secret, though… “You can’t be serious,” Dark muttered. “You’re talking about blood magic. That was a theory, nothing more.” The griffon grinned down at him and snapped his black beak sharply. “The magic that flows through a unicorn’s blood is strong,” Razorbeak said, his voice hushed and excited. “But it only holds that magic while the pony still lives… so its properties can only be transferred when it is warm, fresh from the body.” He grinned as he lifted a talon and ran it gently across the feathers of his neck in a long, curving line. “I drink their blood to absorb their magical power, and then we all feast together.” “That’s insane. YOU are insane,” Dark spat. “You can’t absorb magical power by drinking unicorn blood! You’ve been sipping deathberry tea, griffon.” But Razorbeak’s grin simply broadened, and a shiver darted down Dark’s spine. It doesn’t matter what I say; he’s convinced he’s right… The unicorn shook his head. He’s absolutely touched in the head. “But let’s imagine for a moment that you do have a real reason for eating unicorns,” Dark continued. “That would explain most of the kidnappings; but what about those two?” He pointed to Turnover and Melody, who were still standing with Trixie and Moonflower. “They’re earth ponies, not unicorns. What possible reason could you have for kidnapping them, as well?” The griffon drew himself up to his full height, his face suddenly serious. “The filly was a mistake. She was with her mother when my servants went to abduct her, and in the confusion of the kidnapping she was shoved into the sack along with the white unicorn.” His seriousness didn’t last long, however, and as he shifted his eyes from Melody to Turnover, the off-putting grin returned to his face. “The stallion, however, was intentional.” “And why did you take him?” Dark pressed. “The rest of my village has to eat, don’t they? And besides…” Razorbeak arched an eyebrow at Turnover. “…what better way for my contact in Clyde’s Dale to relieve himself of pesky do-gooders than to have them mysteriously kidnapped, never to be heard from again?” Dark winced and swore softly under his breath. His contact in Clyde’s Dale… of course. How better to coordinate kidnappings than to have a source inside the village, telling him when would be the best time to strike? And it would also explain how the ponies working for Razorbeak knew where to find unicorns specifically without having to search the whole town every night they attacked. But who..? The unicorn sighed to himself. I’m starting to think I’m not very good at mysteries. Turnover, however, didn’t seem to have the same problems coming up with a suspect. He stamped his hoof so loudly that it made Moonflower jump almost a foot into the air as he cursed angrily. “By the sun and moon,” he snarled. “Downdraft! That sneaky son of a dragon-spawn! He’s the one behind this, isn’t he?!” “Behind this?” Razorbeak chortled. “Oh no- that stallion is merely in the employment of the same organization that I am. The only thing he is “behind” is his mayor’s desk, which he will do anything to keep, from what I understand.” The griffon raised his wings slightly, his eyes flashing once more in the firelight. “Are you content, now? Have you asked all the questions you wished? Will you be able to face the void of death more comfortably now that you have sated your earthly desires?” His beak closed then opened with a shnick-shnick. “Because I’m terribly hungry… and I get very, very angry when I am hungry…” Dark Star shifted his hooves into a loose combat stance, turning his left side to face the griffon. “I hate to disappoint you, Razorbeak, but you won’t be eating anypony tonight.” “Oh, and I suppose you’ll be stopping me?” The griffon’s voice was almost mirthful, and he couldn’t keep a slight smirk from quirking the corner of his mouth. “Just you? That’s it? You’re hardly a mouthful for me, little pony.” Now it was Dark’s turn to smirk. “I think you’re biting off more than you can chew, fledgling.” His horn flashed brilliantly in the night, washing the area in cerulean light for the briefest moment before allowing the orange firelight to slowly fade back to dominance. “Before this night is over, I’ll be walking out of this town with these ponies, safe and unharmed.” Razorbeak’s jaw clenched tightly enough that Dark could hear his beak grind together from where he stood, but instead of leaping down to attack Dark he took a step back towards the door of the manor, his eyes burning with anger. “There will be no walking out of here for you,” he growled. “There will be no more walking, no more breathing, no more anything for you, unicorn.” He turned one golden eye towards the dark manor, and again Dark saw a gentle red glow illuminate the interior of Razorbeak’s chainmail vest; it faded quickly, and as it fell dark again three figures emerged from inside the manor, their bodies slowly fading out of the darkness as if it were shaping them on the spot. The three ponies were very similar in coloration and build; they each had a flat black coat with dull silver manes, and if Dark had to make the assumption he would have said that they were all siblings, though he supposed that their coats and manes could have been dyed to look the same. The one on the left was a mare, her mane longer than the other two and curled slightly at the end so that it hooked around the base of her neck; she was slender and lithe with piercing violet eyes that spoke of neither kindness nor compassion. The other two were stallions, but you wouldn’t have been able to tell if their manes weren’t cut so short; they shared the same icy blue eye color and were both built very similarly to the mare, but their muscular nature was painfully obvious as they stepped forward to stand near Razorbeak and bowed, the firelight shifting across their coats as their muscles rippled. They’re built for speed, not power, Dark appraised quickly. Born and bred to be fast. “I’d say that you should recognize the ponies who followed you through the forest and through the town, but I doubt that you had any idea they were there.” He reached out and patted the mare atop her silvery mane affectionately. “The Shadows, I call them. Not very inventive, perhaps, but it suits them. Moon Wraith,” Razorbeak said to the mare before turning to face the two stallions. “Specter, Raven: this unicorn needs to be brought to heel.” The griffon turned back and grinned at Dark Star. “Kill him.” The unicorn simply grinned back and crouched slightly, his knees bent and ready to react. “Let’s go.”