//------------------------------// // Tension // Story: The Ecstasy of Defeat // by AgentSnail //------------------------------// "This forest is thicker than I remember." Roseluck noted, looking around. "I was pretty deep when they caught me, but I didn't think they had to move me this much further. I don't even think I was in griffin territory yet, those bastards." "Capturing a spy is a big deal for border control soldiers." Eldon replied. "It makes a career." "But I wasn't even a spy!" "They don't care." He replied, shaking his head. "The government blames ponies for plotting and takes pressure from itself, and the soldiers get promotions." He paused. "Everyone wins," he finished sarcastically. "What a perfect system." Rose replied. "Do you ever think it'll change, Eldon?" Cato asked. "Eventually." Eldon said. "'Course, it might not for a really long time." "Wasn't there any discontent?" The mare asked, stopping briefly to stretch out a sore muscle. "There was, I think. But you never know, and that's probably what keeps it from developing into something larger. If I tried to start something, chances are nobody would even join in. The government does a good job keeping us afraid." "I can see why you're so happy." Rose mumbled, shaking her head in disbelief. "So what's going on around here?" The griffin asked. "Like, recent news and stuff." "Well, we got a new princess a few weeks before I got taken." She said, shrugging. "So we're up to four, but I'm not really sure what the new one's supposed to do. It's pretty much the two main sisters that matter." "They're both female?!" Eldon exclaimed, narrowing his eyes in confusion. "Yeah, I'm not sure if there's such a thing as a male alicorn." There were probably more questions Eldon should be asking, but he was still stuck on the female thing. "So what've they got in terms of protection?" "Uh-" Rose began, not expecting the question. "Some guards… the elements of harmony, I guess." Eldon put a talon to his face, sighing. "The what?" "They're like, these little things that kinda… do stuff to stop bad guys." She replied, screwing up her face as she tried to think of more to say. "Why aren't they called the elements of destruction then?" Eldon asked. "Shouldn't they sound menacing and less corny, you know, so that they inspire shock and awe? That's what everything is back home, and that seems to make sense. Some of the names might not even be words, but they sound terrifying." Roseluck took a moment to think. "Well, they're called that because they represent six parts of friendship, and they act harmonically together." "Oh…" Eldon said, his face becoming a mix of several emotions. Cato burst out in a fit of giggles on his back. "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!" The kid exclaimed, his face turning a little red from his guffawing. "Oh, let's be friends, that'll stop people!" He broke into a new wave of laughing, and Eldon couldn't help but chuckle himself. "Make fun of them all you want, they're real things!" Rose rebutted, as Eldon finally cooled off. "Oh god, I really hope you're joking." He said, and she shook her head. "They already got used a few times, against a mind control thingy, and a god, and a… I think that was it." She tapped her chin a few times before returning her attention to him. "So they work." "Until you take out one of the people, apparently." Eldon noted. "It's not like those things work without all the pieces, right?" "Well, no, but-" She paused. "You know, it is kind of stupid. I don't want my future to hang on Pinkie Pie." "Who?" "Oh, it doesn't matter. As soon as we get to town, you'll know. She really likes to make friends." Eldon wasn't sure how such a being would act, really. He'd only dealt with antisocial civilians. "Is she nice?" Was all he could think of to say. "Uh… yeah…" "Why the hesitation?" Cato chimed in. "Because she's nice to a fault. And she's criminally incapable of taking a hint when you don't want her around." She took a breath. "Everypony just says that she eats too many sweets, but I think there's something legitimately wrong with her. Nothing big, but she's just so- You know what? You'll see for yourself." "Is she dangerous?" Eldon asked. "No, not really." "God, ponies are weird." He said, shaking his head. Roseluck giggled, and nodded back. "As if, from a race of talking quadrupeds that have tattoos on their asses, you're just now catching on." "Well, I try." ______________________________________________________________ Eldon grunted, falling backwards against a tree and giving his sore legs a rest. The painkillers were starting to wear off again, and he was really feeling it this time. Before he had just been dealing with a few cuts that admittedly hurt, but he was just so sore and worn out. That sprint had been a lot longer than anything he'd done in a long time, and he wasn't built for running. "God, you look terrible." Roseluck observed, pushing some of the feathers out of his eyes with a hoof. "Thanks for noticing." Eldon replied sarcastically, shaking his head to try to displace her hoof. She held it steady and began looking him over, poking him here and there with her hoof. "Well, you have way more bruises than I thought you did." The mare noted. "Hopefully these aren't all from saving me." "They aren't." Eldon replied with a shake of the head. "Most of them were from before I even got out. A couple days ago- a couple days before I left, we got this soldier in there that really liked to hit things with the stick they all carry around. So he did." "Is me knowing you just going to involve me perpetually feeling bad for you?" "I dunno, you shouldn't." Eldon said, watching her wet down his bandages. They didn't come off with a lot of blood, which made him feel slightly better. "Well I'm going to." She replied. "And I'm not going to put these things back on. We're close enough, and as long as you don't do anything crazy, we won't have to worry about it, okay?" "Yeah." He stretched his arm, enjoying the lack of resistance. "And when we get there, I'll take you to the hospital, get you nice and patched up. I know a nurse there, so you don't have to worry about ponies shunning you or anything. At least, not where it matters." "Yeah… I'm still nervous about that, though." Rose looked away, her hoof still on his shoulder. "We should get a little more painkiller in your system." "Don't- I don't need it." "Oh, shush." Rose said, pulling out the bottle. "You're too stubborn." He opened his beak to retort, but let it close again. "Fine." The mare smiled gently, dumping a little onto her hoof before she spread it around what was left of Eldon's wound. It felt like a muted version of last time, but as the feeling slowly spread she added a little more, repeating the process several times. The griffin sighed, leaning his head back against the tree. "Better?" She asked, rubbing her hoof against his shoulder gently. "Yeah." He admitted, though to be honest, he didn't want to use a drug like this. He didn't feel like he needed it, but she was probably right. She had a knack for knowing when he was in pain anyway. "It sucks, you know. Seeing you all hurt like you are." Eldon took that one with a little surprise, and had a little trouble doing anything more than staring. Rose waited a few moments, before breaking the silence. "You know you can trust me, right?" She asked, drawing a little closer. He didn't know how to respond. "I know you have your issues with it and all," she continued, glancing over at Cato, who had fallen asleep. "But it would mean a lot to think that you do." "Yeah. I do." He said, but he knew it wasn't true. Maybe a little, but every time she did something he still watched for treachery, tried to keep himself out of the way of things that she might attempt. The risk was lower, but he still felt-- some part of him knew that he could trust her though, and every day that part of him ended up with a better argument. 'Why hadn't she struck yet?' It would say, only for the rest of him to come up blank. 'If she wanted him out of the way, it only took a moment.' His mind continued, 'and she had her opportunities.' But he just went in circles. She could just be waiting for a good time now that he'd gotten her this far. Eldon focused on her face again, immobile in front of his, possibly deep in thought the same as he was. He wondered if she was pretty, a recurring thought that seemed to pop up whenever he least expected it. It wasn't easy to decide on the attractiveness of her features. To be honest, he'd never seen another pony before, and they all looked kinda weird. Not ugly, just… different? That brought up an interesting thought. If they didn't have any griffins here, how did he expect Cato to actually meet another griffin and settle down? The thought had crossed his mind before, but he had pushed it away. To be honest, he didn't feel any part of himself that wanted a relationship in the first place. Eldon just wished he could tell if that was because of the fact that he didn't feel he could trust them, or because he didn't have any interest in love in the first place. He liked to think he could love something as a mate, if he had the chance, but it didn't seem plausible. He sighed, and Rose jumped at the noise. She chuckled, knocking a hoof against his shoulder jokingly. "Guess you caught me in thought there." The mare muttered, returning briefly before jumping out of her trance again with a start. "I can't wait to get back to my real bed." She pushed herself away, stretching out her back and yawning. "As long as you have something better than the stupid thing I've been sleeping on." Eldon muttered, glancing sideways as if the bed could hear him and would seek revenge. "I- Well, I have a guest bedroom, but there's no way I could have it ready the same day. I had it in a state of disrepair for a while while I redid the shop, and it never really got back to the way it was. I mean, I started, but obviously I didn't have a chance to finish." She paused. "I have a couch though, you can use that." "Fine with me." Eldon replied. "I'd sleep on the floor if you wanted me to, to be honest. You're already giving me a free house to sleep in." "I wish I could do more." Rose replied. "Ahh," Eldon said, waving a dismissive talon at her. "You've already given me way more than I expected to receive." He stumbled, glaring back at the rock that had dared to trip him. "It still doesn't feel like enough." She finished, and the pair became silent. Eldon's thoughts drifted back to the griffin that had attacked him, and the revenge he was sure he was seeking. It made sense, for a griffin to try to kill him over the loss of another soldier. He'd seen what had happened a griffin that had injured a guard accidentally, and it hadn't been pretty. This was probably another one of those cases, and just as unavoidable. He would've liked to think that he cared about the griffins he killed, but he didn't. It was calming, in a way, to think that the world was probably better off without them, and that he had no reason to mourn their deaths. But some part of him felt guilty, as if for some stupid reason his safety didn't supersede theirs. He wondered where that left him and Rose. He'd said he would protect her, and if that was against anything serious, probably lose his life for her. But then again, he would probably try to save Cato first. She was his friend, had his back, and had helped protect both him and Cato. And so the decision became harder. Maybe the problem he was having about this was the fact that it was no longer so simple. Before, it had just been Cato and him. If something happened, he watched out for Cato and left it at that. But now, if something happened where he had to choose, it seemed to get harder by the day. He couldn't choose Rose, and yet some part of him knew that in a lot of situations he should. Family meant a lot, and it sure as hell meant a lot more than friendship, but he couldn't help but think around those bonds. Rose did more. She was his lifeline in this place. And so, with his family on one end and his chance at a life, success and companionship around here on the other, he was left with something hard to decide on. Factoring in the bonds, it was still Cato. But if he continued to become closer friends with this mare, well, the pragmatic decision could rock the moral decision. "You- you see that?" Rose asked, pointing through the trees. "No." Eldon replied shortly. "I think that's where the forest ends!" The mare exclaimed, looking at Eldon excitedly. "Come on, hurry up a little!" They sped their walk, the trees thinning out slightly before they ended entirely. Eldon caught sight of cute little buildings, along with the faraway shapes of ponies going about their business. They were of even more ridiculous colors than the houses. These ponies were kinda starting to creep Eldon out. "It feels too good to be true!" Rose exclaimed, hopping in place. She grabbed his talon and pulled him along, up a small slope towards the buildings. Eldon got a feeling in his gut that he really didn't like. He worried they wouldn't accept him, that he would be kicked from a place he'd risked everything to get to. "You sure they'll- you know, not try to kill me or anything?" He asked. "Pfft, no." Rose responded, giving his arm another tug. "Stop lagging behind!" "But-" He sighed, biting his lip. "Fine." Rose smirked, letting go and allowing him to follow along by himself. "Now's no time to get cold feet." "I know." Eldon responded. He opened his mouth to continue, but couldn't figure out a follow up. Then it came to him, and he shook Cato awake, placing the griffin on the ground gently. "I'll be right back, I'm gonna go… I have to piss." He said abruptly, turning back towards the forest. "Always a pleasure to know." Rose replied sarcastically, looking around without much of an idea on what she should do. "You'll catch up?" She asked, and Eldon nodded. He knew Cato would be safe, especially with Rose around. He just needed a minute to try to get himself together; to purge himself of all the nervousness that had built up in his system. Eldon paced back and forth a few times, shaking his head. Whatever, it was now or never. Rose took a few more steps and looked backwards, expecting Eldon to reappear any second. Without him she felt… vulnerable, to say the least. Maybe a little lonely, but Cato more than made up for that. She grinned, peering back at the little guy as he yawned. "Roseluck?!" Game a high pitched, questioning yell. The mare turned her head, situating her eyes on a familiar pink mare. She actually found herself glad to see Pinkie for once, where she could ignore the fact that her ear was about to be talked off. "Hi Pinkie!" Rose barely took half a step forwards before she was enveloped in a tight hug and Cato slid onto the ground. "Oh! Who's this cute little guy?" Pinkie asked, leaning down to get a closer look at the small griffin. "Where'd you find a griffin anyway?" "Well, I-" Pinkie gasped, her eyes focused on the tree line. Eldon walked out, blood from a fresh cut smeared across his cheek with the usual sticks and leaves stuck all over. She figured that the cut must've been from some branch or something, and it made him look just a little worse. "Monster!" The Pink Mare exclaimed, wrapping an arm around Roseluck and running away as fast as she could. Roseluck's hooves dragged along the ground for a moment before she was able to get her footing and attempt to slow the Pinkie train. "Pinkie wait, you don't understand!" Rose screamed over the sound of pounding hooves as the energetic mare tugged her along. The party mare ignored her protests and turned, her eyes widening as she realized that Eldon had taken chase. Pinkie put on a new burst of speed, and Rose responded by digging her hooves in further "Where the fuck do you think you're going!?" Eldon screamed after them, unable to run any faster with his sore muscles and injuries. He slowed to a stop as he hit the cobblestones of a road, watching Roseluck have a mute argument with Pinkie as they disappeared into a crowd of ponies. Roseluck tried to pry Pinkie's arm off of her, but she couldn't find the energy. She definitely didn't lack the will power. Her eyes caught movement, and she could have sworn she saw wide wings disappear behind a building and out of her view. They blew threw a door and she hit the ground roughly, while Roseluck caught Cato in her hooves, flung off Pinkie's back by her trip. "Sorry." Pinkie said, looking winded for perhaps the first time in her life. "Twilight! I need your help!" "Pinkie, you're misunderstanding-" Roseluck began, before she was cut off once again. "Twilight!" "Pinkie!" The lavender mare responded, walking out of her library's kitchen with a book in her purple aura. "I thought I told you that I was done with the explos-" Her eyes caught sight of Roseluck and Cato, both silent as they studied the alicorn and waited for her reaction. "What did you do?" "I just- Roseluck got back, and I knew because my leg twitched and I got a headache, and that means that I was going to see somepony that I hadn't seen for a long time, so that had to mean Roseluck, because usually it only happens after some number of weeks or months, but she went missing, and those are worse circumstances, so I knew that-" "So why are you here?!" Twilight screamed. Roseluck noticed the bags under her eyes for the first time, figuring that she probably had some of her own to match. "Because this big monster came out of the-" "Can I talk?!" Rose yelled, pulling herself from the floor as the mares stared. "Pinkie pulled me away from my friend, the one that saved me, and he was worried sick about even getting seen by ponies. So you took me, took his brother, and left him all alone!" "Your… friend?" Twilight asked. "Yeah!" Roseluck yelled back, hoisting Cato onto her back. "And I think I saw the guys that were after him too, so if we could just postpone this conversation until I actually give a shit, that'd be great!" Some part of her cringed at her language towards a princess, but it couldn't be avoided. Twilight took a moment to react, before outstretching a hoof to make contact with Rose's shoulder. She followed the hoof with her eyes, watching it make contact with her dirty fur. "Where?" She asked, and Rose furrowed her brow. "What?" "Where did you see him last?" "Oh, over by the old road to the south of town that kind curves towards the-" She felt her body almost collapse inwards on itself for a moment, before everything returned to normal. Besides the fact that she'd ended up somewhere completely different than the library, anyway. She took several heavy breaths, shaking her head in an attempt to get rid of the residual feelings. It made her feel a little sick. Rose pulled her head upwards once again, looking around. A couple of crates tipped over down the street, and she watched them for a moment. Just as she turned away, another one flew across the street, crashing into the wall and breaking into at least a few chunks. Eldon was close behind it, throwing a crate backwards as he tripped on the ones already tipped over, sprawling out along the road as a griffin leapt over him, pinning one of his arms to the ground viciously. He yelled out in pain as talons dug into his side, cutting lines through his skin with the super sharp tips and edges, which Roseluck's mind realized were probably filed. "You think that borders are going to stop me?" The griffin questioned, digging his talons in deeper and twisting them around as Rose sprinted to join in and help Eldon out. "Nothing stops the griffin army. Nothing stops me." His knife was in his talon again, but Eldon broke the pin and kicked it away. It slid across the ground towards Roseluck, and she skidded to a halt, stamping the thing into the ground and bringing it to a sudden stop. Eldon didn't seem to be faring well, judging by the fact that his chest was crimson with his own blood. She took a move forwards, only to stop. He knew where she was, she couldn't just kick him off like before, because he would be prepared for that. He could just kill Eldon at that point, and escape. But Eldon's mind was far away from hers. A fist blew away his thoughts like dust in the wind, and sent his mind reeling. The griffin had him by the fur and feathers on the front of his neck, and didn't seem to be letting go anytime soon. Eldon kicked out his hind legs as another punch hit him, and the soldier was forced away. The two circled briefly, as Eldon felt for the spear at his side that wasn't there. It must've fallen. He found Roseluck, bearing the knife a ways away from their circle, unsure what she should be doing. At least she had Cato with her. That was a huge relief. She was having a hurried conversation with a purple mare, but he couldn't give the concentration to listen. "Why me?" He asked the soldier. "Why waste your time on a worthless civilian?" "Oh, you're worthless alright. And yet, you still killed my friend." "Look, I'll give you everything I have-" "I don't want your things. I want your life." He responded, pouncing before Eldon could react. They rolled a few feet to one side, fighting to pin one another. Roseluck screamed at the other mare, pointing explicitly towards the rolling griffins. "The one on the top- the bottom- The big one, Twilight! Shoot it!" Rose yelled, watching the other mare panic. Before she could think, she shot forwards, determined to ease the pressure on her friend. "Come on, Eldon." She whispered, beginning a lunge before they rolled again and she pulled back. She followed through with her hoof, smacking the soldier on the cheek. His talons slashed at her, before finding purchase in Eldon once again. Roseluck cringed, freeing a tear as she watched what she could still see of Eldon's golden chest fur turn scarlet. "Twilight! Fucking do something!" Rose yelled once again, and the lavender mare jumped. The griffins rolled again, and Eldon let out another yelp of pain. Twilight's horn gave signs of life, as she moved a couple steps to one side for a better angle. The armored griffin jerked his talon, and a line of blood splattered across Rose and her. Twilight drew back, retching a little as she scraped blood from her muzzle and her horn faded slightly, the griffins rolling once more. "Oh, Celestia." "The heavily armored one, dammit!" The botanist replied angrily, stepping in to strike the soldier when she had the opportunity. She didn't want to admit it to herself, but Eldon was losing. Quite clearly in fact. Rose looked at Twilight's gleaming horn and gulped, before jumping into the fray herself. She got in a good punch before she ended up on the ground and the soldier let go of Eldon, kicking him in the head with a paw as he walked towards her. Eldon shifted, but didn't make an attempt to get up. Rose threw a hoof, only to get thrown aside by the griffin. He looked at Twilight for a split second before a blast of magic blew him into the air, slingshotting him at least a hundred feet away as the mare finally got her angle. A different griffin caught the soldier, returning him to the ground as several more griffins joined their ranks, a brief show of power before the group turned and retreated, over the woods from which they'd come. Within seconds, the tension could almost be cut with a knife. "I'm- I'm friendly." Eldon choked out, stealing away Rose's attention once again. Twilight followed suit, though she felt her breakfast try to dislodge itself as she did so. Whoever he was, he was covered his own blood, his brother already hunched over his body. Rose slid off her saddlebags, just now realizing the fact that she'd still had them on, and ripped them apart into rags with her teeth. She took the lines of fabric and began wrapping them around Eldon, looking up occasionally at the griffins down the street. "He's-" Her voice cracked, and she put a hoof to Twilight's shoulder, noticing the hue of green her face was turning as other ponies began to help how they could. One was already wrapping a bandage around Eldon's arm, while another was applying pressure to a cut. "We need a hospital." "Friendly- I'm friendly." Eldon continued to mutter, as his vision began to fade. Something hit his eye and he jumped, only to realize that it had been one of Cato's tears. Despite the pain and the chaos around him, he felt calm. He felt serene knowing that at least he had brought Cato all the way here. He knew he didn't want to die, but at the same time he didn't feel afraid. Rose's eyes looked into his as he began to move, and he found himself lost in the greenish-yellow hue, the wide darkness that filled the center of her iris. The color changed, becoming darker. Blue, then purple. He could just make out his brother's face in the convex mirror. Why was he- Oh yes, he knew why his brother was sad. It was because- because- He closed his eyes, only to open them a moment later. Rose was talking to him, or mouthing words at him. His ears were only picking up a hiss of white noise that disappeared as steadily as his vision. He reached out a talon, pushing it towards Rose. She grabbed it, her eyes teary. "Tell them that I'm- friendly." He whispered once again, and she nodded. A little smile graced her face as she tried to act like she knew he would be fine, and he let it stick in his mind for the final two seconds he kept hold of his consciousness.