The Griffon Lands
“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in that gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.”
General of the Army Louise-Renée de Kéroualle, translated from the French
We spent the rest of the morning catching up. When Cadence would switch to talking about foals, after a few minutes Carl and I would pretend to die of boredom which irked her no end. We had a light lunch at 12 which I fixed, then Cadence and Carl lay down for a nap since they hadn’t slept at all last night. Cadence forthrightly invited me to join them for a nap and most anything else but I begged off since I wanted to plan my trip into the Griffon Lands.
I lay back on the velvet couch. Let’s see, an extra set of saddlebags would give me about 15 days’ rations. I could forage after that since I had my Earth pony senses and plant knowledge but it wasn’t much fun and would take time. I planned to grow a good bit of food myself but even magically accelerated growth would take at least a month before any yield.
I really had only the vaguest idea of where I was going but I had Ren’s memories of the territory which were extensive. I thought I’d head for the Last Battlefield since I guessed that was where Tia cast her Curse. Hopefully I’d know it when I saw it. I’d have to present myself to the griffons sooner or later. And treaty or no, ponies weren’t all that popular in the Griffon Lands.
I decided I’d head straight South and hope for the best. I was reviewing Ren’s memories for the route when I heard a familiar voice.
“BENJAMIN.”
I turned my head and there stood Death along with Marcia O’Reilly. Marcia was wearing the same cloak she’d worn for our impromptu scene.
Will I meet him in the rain?
Will I meet him on a train?
Nopony knows if Death is nigh,
So keep your spirit flying high!
I quoted from the pegasus nursery rhyme as I rolled to my hooves. I reached out a hoof and for the first time actually touched Death’s on this Plain. He was warm just like anypony.
“Death! And Miss O’Reilly! How wonderful to see both of you!”
Marcia flipped back her hood. She looked radiant.
“Hello, Mr. Apple. We just wanted to wish you well on your journey. We’ve enjoyed following your adventures.”
I waved a hoof. “Thank you, but I’d much rather hear about Death’s Apprentice. Are you…well, I suppose ‘enjoying yourself’ really isn’t the best way to phrase it. How about, ‘Are you learning a great deal?’”
“Oh, yes, sir! Death is so wonderful, sweet, compassionate and such a good teacher! And I’ve seen most of the World, Mr. Apple, since wherever ponies are, Death can go. I Reaped my first soul yesterday.”
“Well done, Miss O’Reilly, very well done. Er…did you ever hear from Rarity? I didn’t know if you could weave and do this as well.”
Marcia nodded. “Since I can go home each night and have some days off, I haven’t fallen behind on my weaving at all. And yes, Mr. Apple, thanks to you I’ve more than doubled my income.”
“If you’ve impressed the Element of Inspiration, Miss O’Reilly, working for Death should be peaches and cream.”
Death and Marcia both laughed at that. With a fond look at Death, Marcia raised her scythe, waved to me, sliced open Reality and both stepped through. Handy, that.
After the rift closed, I realized Death hadn’t said a single word. He’s finally found somepony to do the talking, I thought. I wonder if he could recommend someone for Luna? And ‘sweet’? Death? I rubbed my hooves together in anticipation of bringing that up during one of our card games. And no more Astral, either; if Death wanted to play cards or whatnot, he could come to me from now on.
I ended up nodding off myself and only woke up when the train pulled into the Crystal Empire station at 5:30. I knocked on the bedroom door and roused Carl and Cadence. Both yawned and stretched, then exchanged a passionate kiss once they remembered Cadence was going to have a foal. There was a small entourage at the station since royalty was royalty. They immediately surrounded Carl and Cadence with questions and waving papers, so I followed along behind as we made our way to their enormous palace. I’d visited once before and much preferred the Homestead. I privately thought Carl and Cadence did as well.
One of them eventually remembered me and one of the flunkies detached herself from the group.
“Mr. Apple, welcome to the Crystal Empire. I’m Somerson. Would you please come with me?”
Somerson showed me to a room on the second floor which would have held the cabin at the farm 10 times over. I thanked her and she left me to settle in after telling me we’d have a late supper at 7. I showered, then checked my saddlebags. Dirt and seeds still there even after all these months. I pulled out my tails and my cape and cleaned them with magic since I wasn’t about to pass up wearing either.
At 10 ‘til 7, I heard a knock and opened the door. Somerson stared when she saw me.
“Why, Mr. Apple, I had no idea you’d dress for dinner. How elegant!”
I bowed and swirled my cape. “My thanks to you, Miss Somerson.” That got a smile out of the rather grim unicorn mare and I congratulated myself I hadn’t lost my touch.
I followed her down to the “family” dining room which could seat 50 with no trouble. I flipped my cape to a coatrack, then gave a half bow to my host and hostess. We sat at the end of the table with Cadence at the head, me to her left and Carl to her right. I was careful not to mention the foal since it wasn’t official yet and when it was the entire kingdom would have to know. We talked and laughed, thoroughly enjoying ourselves and my trip never came up.
After supper, I found my own way back to my room and went to bed. Early in the morning I felt a pony kiss my nose, then get in bed with me. I felt another on the other side. Later on, I woke to Carl on one side and Cadence on the other. Cadence tended to sprawl, so I shifted her around. She made some sleepy noises, then threw a hoof across my chest and fell into a deeper sleep, her muzzle next to my left ear. My best stallion friend and his filly, I thought; reason enough to succeed.
I woke up alone and joined Shining Armor and Cadence for breakfast. They had some catching up to do, so I told them I’d amuse myself until the afternoon. I used the extensive library, then found a dusty, unused pharmacy. The supplies included equipment for drawing blood, so I drew off four vials of mine, sealed them with magic, put them in with the seeds and then bandaged myself as best as I could. That wasn’t good enough for Somerson, so when she came to get me in the library she bandaged me again and very professionally, too. I asked about her background and it turned out she was a medic in the Army during the War, one of five and the only survivor. I asked if she’d be willing to teach Winter and Somerson said she’d be more than happy.
We spent the afternoon running and playing outside. Carl loved volleyball and barn ball, so we played that, then had some hoof races which Cadence, who was fast as the Wind, won. We swam in the Royal Pool which was more like a shallow pond, then lay in the setting Sun to dry off.
“What’s this, Ben,” asked Cadence, pointing to my now wet bandage.
“I drew blood earlier,” I said, looking at it again, then taking it off.
“What? What for?”
“Blood magic, Cadence.”
“Eewww!”
I grinned at that. “It was routine in Ancient Equestria, O Princess of Love. I looked up some of the references this morning and they matched what I’d found earlier.”
“Is it for your trip, Maker?” asked Carl.
“Yes. I didn’t want to poke myself with a dirk or lancet in the middle of the wilderness, so I thought this a better solution.”
Both nodded, then Cadence sighed.
“Please come back to us, Ben.”
“I have every intention of doing so, your Highness. And I want your foal to grow up and to play with mine.”
That earned me a kiss from Cadence and a back thumping from Carl. We had a very merry supper, then I went to bed early since I was hopping a freight first thing in the morning. My friends joined me again, wrapping me in their magic fields before they fell asleep. It gave me great comfort and I hoped I gave the same in return.
The morning of 13th I checked my saddlebags, then went to the kitchen to get a second saddlebag full of trail rations. The chef and staff knew something was going on and gathered around hoping for some gossip but I disappointed them when told them it was just a camping trip. I ate breakfast with Carl and Cadence, then they escorted me to the back door closest to the freight depot. A teary-eyed Cadence gave me a Pegasus Farewell, Carl gave me one of his stallion hugs and I was on my way.
I cast Conceal and hopped into an empty lumber flatbed. The freight left right on time and three hours later I was at the end of the line. I hopped off and trotted about a mile South before I dropped Conceal. I kept up a good trot, stopped for lunch around noon and by 3 I found myself crossing into the Griffon Lands at last.
My first thought was amazement at the rugged, beautiful country. I saw a herd of deer, rabbit, quail and all sorts of other game the griffons could hunt and wondered how they could possibly die out with such abundance. Must be from something other than starvation, I decided. The animals were wary of me so I didn’t have a chance to talk to any of them.
I camped that night next to a stream, had a dreamless sleep and rose with the dawn. That was my pattern for five days. I topped a rise on 18th and could just make out a griffon settlement about 10 miles away. I also spotted a large circle of empty ground, maybe 10 acres. I headed for it and got to the edge around lunch. I put a hoof onto the barren dirt.
Nothing. No life at all.
I nodded to myself, then trotted a little distance until I found a pleasant glade next to a spring surrounded by rock formations including one little cave which made an ideal shelter. I made camp there, then unpacked my jar of dirt and a vial of blood. I walked back to the lifeless area, tipped some dirt out onto it, then poured the vial of blood onto that while I used just a touch of magic on both. Although I most likely didn’t need to, I recited a poem from one of Apple Bloom’s foal’s books she’d shown me once:
A little seed for me to sow,
A little soil to make it grow,
A little hole, a little pat,
A little wish, and that is that,
A little Sun, a little shower,
A little while -
And then, a flower!
The Sweet Apple Acres soil fizzed like seltzer water as the blood and magic hit it, then the combination slowly sank into the barren Earth. Take that, Dark Magic, I thought, and made my way back to my campsite. I knew I had a few days to wait, so I thought I’d explore a different direction each day. I started walking South toward the griffon settlement and activated Conceal when I was about a mile away. I peered over some rocks and got my first look at griffons.
They were large, much larger than ponies and of several different colors. The most common color on their lion back half was the standard tawny brown although some were dark brown, black, grey and even a light yellow. The eagle heads were usually white although I did spot some black and grey as well. Their bills and foreclaws were universally yellow. Wings were black or brown. Formidable creatures, sure enough. I watched for awhile. The griffons seemed listless and dull to me although I had no frame of reference so I wasn’t sure.
After I’d gazed my fill, I headed back to camp. I had an early supper, then meditated until I fell asleep to a light rain.
“Pony.”
I sat up. I listened and thought I must have imagined it. Then I heard it again.
“Pony.”
I stuck my head out of the shelter and there in the moonlight was the puma from my dream. She was sitting on a rock outcropping across from my shelter, all four paws together, tail wrapped around front. She was even more impressive than I remembered. I wasn’t sure if I was dreaming again or not, but I decided courtesy cost me nothing either way. I stepped out of my shelter and made a full bow.
“Good evening, Sleek Huntress of the Night. You honor my camp with your presence.”
“Yes, pony, I know. You’ve started healing the land, I see.”
“Yes, Huntress.”
She nodded. “The Dead Land’s smell is better already.” Then the puma raised a paw and pointed off to the East. “A griffon lies dying not too far from here. Heal him.” The puma sniffed and looked disgusted. “If he dies, his rotting corpse will foul some of my hunting ground. This is unacceptable.”
“I will do my best, Huntress. If I can’t cure him, I’ll use his corpse to fertilize the land.”
The puma nodded again. “You obey well, pony.”
“I’m married, Lady Puma. I’ve had all sorts of practice.”
The puma showed her formidable teeth for just a moment in what I took as a feline grin.
“If he lives, I will bring food for him for three days. After that, he’s on his own.”
I bowed again. “You are generous as well as beautiful, Huntress.”
“Yes, I am,” she said and then was gone faster than I could follow.
I looked at the sky and saw the grey light of dawn. I had breakfast, then took a bath in the spring after heating the water with magic; no sense in a miserable bath.
As soon as the Sun was up, I headed in the direction the puma had pointed. After about a mile, I could smell the griffon myself and a couple minutes later I found him. He was lying on his side in a pile of rocks. I extended my healing senses. Not bad but not good, either; broken right wing which at least was a clean break, broken right rear leg, some nasty cuts which were starting to get infected. Worse than these, though, was some sort of internal bacterial infection which had worked its way to his inner ear. I speculated that was what caused him to crash when he became too dizzy to fly.
I started with the infection which was pervasive. I used the same technique I’d used on Tia to clear it and ended up with a circle full of yellow ichor. I used magic to turn it to ash, then lifted the griffon up and moved him to a grassy area. I healed the wing and the broken leg, then cleaned and healed the cuts.
Resting every now and then, I used magic to carry him back to my campsite and laid him out on a large rock. I cleaned him up as best as I could, then fashioned a bucket out of birch bark so I could give him water when he was thirsty. I left him asleep to accelerate the healing and then looked him over. His hindquarters were silver and some of his white eagle head feathers had silver tips as well. His wings were as black as night which made quite the contrast with his yellow bill. He was thin and I could see his ribs in his hindquarters. That was most likely from the infection stealing his appetite.
I took a nap in my shelter, then trotted to what Lady Puma had called the Dead Land. Where I’d cast my healing spell was a circle about 30 feet in diameter and growing quickly. I tested it with a hoof and found live soil, ready for planting. A geometric progression. Excellent.
I went back to the campsite.
“Wake up, griffon.”
The griffon’s eyes blinked open and two fierce silver orbs looked at me. I used magic to get some water from the spring in my improvised bucket and offered it to him from a safe distance. He opened his bill and I poured it in. I did that six more times before he closed his bill. He was too weak to stand, but I used magic to help him relieve himself next to my own latrine, then put him back on the rock. Without a word, he lay his head down and went back to sleep, a natural sleep this time.
Well, that could have gone worse, I thought. I decided I’d chance leaving him alone and trotted East. I reached the end of the Dead Land after a half mile which meant it was smaller than I thought and far smaller than in my dream; it was still big enough, though.
Beyond the Dead Land the country was just as wild and rugged as the rest of it. I trotted North, then back to the campsite. I ate lunch, checked my patient, then foraged the rest of the day. I found a pond with cattails and some other edible roots and ate them right then since I missed fresh food.
I returned to my camp at dusk to find Lady Puma was as good as her word and had left a small deer for the griffon. He woke up as I trotted in, noticed the deer and devoured it. I thought watching him eat would disgust me but his habits were neat and he wasted no motion. When he finished, there was nothing left except a few spots of blood. I gave him some water, helped him to the latrine, then used magic to clean the blood off of his beak and front claws.
I put him back on his rock and extended my healing senses. He had remarkable powers of recuperation and was already much stronger than yesterday. He was digesting the food well, too, so I withdrew my healing and left him to it. He’d most likely make a full recovery in Lady Puma’s three days.
I settled across from my shelter and had some rations, then ran through some T’ai Chi katas. The griffon watched me with those unblinking silver eyes of his. When I finished, I took a bath, using magic to sluice the water over me, then climbed onto a rock still warm from the Sun so I could dry off.
I was half asleep when I heard, “Who are you?”
I looked up to see the griffon watching me. “Who are you?” he repeated. His voice was deep, a good octave below mine and had a slight rasp to it.
“Benjamin Apple, at your service, sir.”
“What are you doing in the Griffon Lands?”
“I’m here to heal them.”
The griffon looked skeptical, but asked, “Why did you help me?”
“My Lady Puma said she didn’t want your corpse to foul her hunting grounds. That was how I found you. She is the one bringing you food.”
The griffon looked even more skeptical than before.
“Pumas don’t talk.”
“Suit yourself,” I said.
The griffon tried to rise and almost made it.
“Not just yet, sir,” I said. Using magic, I supported my patient while he got a drink, then as he used the latrine. When he was back on his rock, he looked at me again, then away.
“If you knew who I was, pony, you’d have let me die.
“Perhaps, perhaps not. Lady Puma was most determined. And I am a healer. I don’t let the sick die if I can help it.”
The griffon looked at me again, then slowly lowered his head and fell asleep. I climbed into my shelter and slept the rest of the night with no dreams.
The next two days mirrored the first. Lady Puma brought another deer and some sort of antelope I’d never seen before. I never saw Lady Puma, either. By the end of the third day, the griffon was able to walk. I asked him to extend his wings and both were in good shape but could have used a preening. I did what I could with magic.
The morning of the fourth day (the 22nd of Third according to my tally of days) it was time for me to start my planting. The griffon and I washed ourselves in turn, then dried off.
“Can you hunt for yourself, sir?” I asked as the griffon spread his wings to dry.
He nodded.
I rose. “Then I bid you good day, sir.”
“Silver.”
“What’s that?”
“You may call me ‘Silver’.”
“Then I bid you good day, Silver. Fly well.” I hopped down from the rock, put on my old saddlebags and started toward the Dead Land, hopefully dead no longer.
“Wait,” said Silver. “What are you going to do?”
“Grow plants, Silver. I am a farmer as well as a healer.”
“I want to watch.”
“I’ve no objection.”
Silver walked next to me as I trotted to where I’d first mixed the Sweet Apple Acres soil with the dead soil. I tested it with a hoof and found soil every bit as good as my composted tomato field. I used magic to lay out a small garden, then pulled the vegetable seeds from my pack. I planted kale, cabbage, corn, beets and some other simple vegetables using magic to set the rows. Next, I pulled out the tree seeds and trotted almost all the way around the circle, planting them randomly until I ran out. Silver stretched out and watched me, leaving once or twice to hunt. I watched him fly over and found his appearance striking; a very handsome creature indeed.
Finally, I pulled out the wildflower and wild grass seeds and walked to the middle of the circle. I scattered the seeds using a touch of magic, then trotted back to my garden. I took a breath, then called my full magic. I pushed it into the Earth while using my Earth pony senses at the same time. The seeds took root and started to grow, the grasses first, then my garden and finally the trees. I stopped when the plants reached about a month’s growth since more than that would kill them.
I sat down rather heavily and surveyed what I’d accomplished. Where before there was the Dead Land, now grass blew in the light Wind. My garden should yield in another month or so and I could sense tree seedlings around the border. The World would take over from here. I still hadn’t found Ground Zero where Tia had cast the Curse but eliminating the Dead Land should weaken the Dark Magic considerably.
I’d forgotten to eat lunch and was very hungry from using so much magic. I foraged a bit at the pond, ate some more roots, found some mushrooms in a damp patch of forest and ate those, then went back to my camp and had some rations. My old saddlebag had some seed packets left in case I found any other barren areas and I still had plenty of dirt and three more vials of blood.
My silver shadow followed me back to camp and stretched out on the same rock he’d used the last few days.
“Why would you do this for us?” asked Silver as I splashed around in the Spring. “Why would you help the griffons?”
“Because of the War, you mean?” I asked. Time to get that out in the open.
Silver nodded.
“One of my people did a great wrong to the griffons after the Last Battle. I am here to undo that wrong.”
Silver said nothing.
“Apologies, Silver, I’m very tired. I’ll see you in the morning?”
Silver, grim as ever, nodded.
The Mad King knew his time had come. He’d killed two of those who had attacked him, but two other ponies had finished the job with a sword through an eye and a spear to his side. I Curse this place, he thought, and I Curse all for betraying me. The Mad King’s last sight was a young silver griffon, face in a grimace of hate, raising a sword in both claws and bringing it down on his skull.
I woke up, then left the shelter. The stars were very bright and the River of Time visible. I named some of the Spring constellations to myself, used the latrine, then checked on Silver. He was sound asleep. I knew his story now since I’d lived it myself, not on this World, no, but on others. The same story, over and over again, I thought, sadly. This time, though, I had a chance, a slender thread of a chance, to heal the wounds, to end the bitterness of the Griffon War and to change their culture so no more Mad Kings could arise. And it was time for me to face my own fears as well. I lay down again and dropped off at once.