//------------------------------// // Plans // Story: Equestrian Landings // by qwefg //------------------------------// Valkyrie I rubbed my aching body as I sat back in the chair. Remedy was under guard trying to treat those who had been transformed or affected by the cursed trader. Peter had dropped us off at a place that could repair my damaged armor for free. It was sort of an apology for not being able to help us during the surprise attack or more likely an attempt to earn good will since the issue of who should get the criminals popped up. Midnight was the only pony who could send a quick reply back to Equestria and currently we were waiting for a response to appear. I looked out the window as the city of New Terra wasn’t that bad. On the hill stood a castle that looked far older than the clay like city around it. The only real brick and mortar buildings was the ground based cloud factory which looked like one of those factory buildings with the big chimneys, but instead of smoke it spewed forth steam which was then collected by the pegasi around it. I looked back at the castle on top of the hill as a small artificial lake stood behind it as New Terra even had its own ‘Cloudsdale’ resting above it. The fake Cloudsdale did not share the same majestic look as it’s equestrian counterpart, but unlike it’s ground based counterpart that worked on function over design it seems that the Cloudsdale of New Terra put a lot more emphasis on design. Sure it was being used to help store, transport water and help make weather for the town, but it didn’t seem to be as… stable as the cloud homes in Equestria. When you looked at a cloud in Equestria it had a more solid look to it as if you're staring at a floating ball of wispy cotton… yet the clouds here felt closer to the ones back home making it much easier to believe they were clouds of water moisture that couldn’t support your weight. Were the humans having a hard time making the clouds more ‘solid’ or was it due to the environment? I mean This is a desert and Equestria has a fully functioning city to help produce and guide most of Equestria's weather. Steel shook his head as he spoke out loud “They make trips to the ocean just to bring water back to this place… why do they do it?” Midnight shrugged “I’m more curious about the lake. Did Peter the dragon dig the lake up himself or simply think it would be a good place to set up because there used to be a castle.” She took a long sip from her cup of water “The better question is why they decided to live out in the badlands with this heat.” I rolled my eyes as I knew the answer “Because it’s far from Equestria and none of the nearby nations have really claimed it for themselves. If someone sets up shop here than no one will bother them unless they want to.” Steel looked out at the artificial lake “Nopony would want to attack because this place is too high maintenance for now. They need constant trips to the ocean to supply water. The earth ponies are the only group that is making it possible for those plants to grow… and the unicorns are the only group here with enough magic to burn the water to create their steam for the clouds and to add fresh water to their lake… unless Peter also helps with the steam process.” I looked at the area as they did have a point. From another perspective this place was a money pit. The amount of work needed to get water was ludicrous. The amount of earth ponies needed to work together just to create the green ‘garden’ around the lake seemed insane. In fact getting enough people to come together to keep this place stable seemed insane. Most settlements start of as tiny dots with only a small population. From there the settlements that survive that have found something of value… good soil, valuable natural resources, or a valuable or strategic position when compared to the rest of the nation. The land needed earth pony magic to become fertile. The water was brought in by air shipments from the sea. There was nothing around here as it was far enough from most nations to make strategic value useless… unless you’re talking about being far away from everyone. Still it was the closest thing to a ‘nation’ or place the remnants of humanity had. Sure there were settlements built in Equestria, but those technically could fall under the territory of some random noble and you also had to follow some of Equestria’s rules so you couldn’t set up a settlement in a nature preserve or some noble’s hunting ground otherwise the guard would fly in and inform you about your mistake. Maybe that’s why so many people seemed to be here. It was a place where they weren’t bound to the laws of other nations or there was a valuable resource that made settling here worth the effort being put into it. I looked at some of the shops outside as this town did have a currency. “Where did they get the money?” I whispered to myself as it didn’t make any sense “Where did they even get the money to start their economy? Did they rob a couple of dragons for gold and jewels or did they simply grab a bunch of bits from Equestria and bring it with them out into the desert?” The door opened up as a burst of heat and steam entered the room as a dusty coal gray earth pony named Forge chuckled “We get a large part of the town’s income from processed steel.” He wiped the sweat from his brow and smirked “That’s how we have so many bits in circulation in town.” Steel Halberd shook his head as he glanced at the ponies flying about “So you mine for iron ore? I don’t see how that would offset the cost of building a settlement here.” The former human shook his head “No our main important is processed steel. You see most of the others in the groups lack the whole industrial mass-production process and the surrounding areas tend to be rather descent in iron ore.” He grinned as he continued “The rest was gathering a few like minded folks and those who read a bit too much on wikis and history books as it took a lot of work to remake the Bessemer Process. The key principle is removal of impurities from the iron by oxidation with air being blown through the molten iron. The oxidation also raises the temperature of the iron mass and keeps it molten.” Steel looked outside the window as he seemed to be looking for something as he said “I didn’t see any enchanting facilities or unicorns with forge cutie marks. “Our process doesn’t require magic for it’s mass production method” Forge replied with a hint of pride “ And any other questions you may have can be found in a history book under ‘it’s our business and we’re keeping it that way.’ Yes we can easily fix, mend, or simply make you a new suit of armor, but making a new suit is going to cost a lot of bits… how did you get some of those dents in your armor?” Equestria was getting by, but Steel was expensive as they were using iron for their railroad tracks. Plate or Steel armor was very expensive and hard to find… well I had a hard time trying to find good quality steel armor. Finding out that this slice of humanity had managed to find enough iron ore and get enough people to build a mass production line for steel filled me with pride… and a little bit of fear. I took a deep breath as I replied “A griffin punched me… still can you actually repair my armor?” Forge shrugged “Possibly? All I know the metal in your armor could be some sort of fantasy or magical metal that runs by it’s own rules. What I can do is help fix the damage with normal non-magical Steel.” He motioned us to follow him as we walked out one of the doors as a rush of heat came from the right. I saw a massive almost egg shaped like structure pouring out hot molten metal as various people worked carefully around the machine as they continued their work as we spotted a few dozen similar objects through the windows of the building. I turned my head and noticed Steel Halberd staring at some of the ponies were already trying to make steel beams. Some of the workers seemed to be carrying some of the cooled down metal over to what looked like a group of smiths as I had a feeling they had spent a couple of points in weapon or armor crafting. Sure they could use a mass production model for certain items like kitchen knives or pots and pans… but the high quality repairs or specially made weapons were handed over to the smith builds. The Royal Tinfoil armor that the Royal Guard wore was useful for flight and looking like a unified force in the Royal Guard… but it was also the difference between someone wearing light or possibly ‘costume armor’ vs someone in heavy armor. Forge lead us to another building as he replied “I’m surprised to see a Pegasus wearing a type of plate armor. Most of fliers focus on speed as most of our plate armor goes to earth ponies, diamond dogs, and a few ‘magic knight’ unicorns.” “Of course higher quality steel is a bit more complicated in time, money, resources and of course experimentation.” Forge continued “The standard method for steel armor is sturdy enough to withstand most attacks. Heck a full plate armor suit would make it difficult for anyone to break your armor through normal means.” Steel nodded as he didn’t seem happy at that knowledge… then again just realizing that you had a group making mass produced plate armor and weapons for anyone with the bits was also a bit concerning. I didn’t know if it would make that big of a difference in Equestria. I mean back on earth it was deadly as it took a lot of work to damage a suit of plate armor to the point it was easier knocking a knight unconscious from repeated blows than actually being able to kill a knight. Of course in Equestria a Pegasus could fly above you and zap you with lightning or a unicorn could try out a fireball spell. That’s not even thinking about how you would fair if a large monster like a manticore tried to maul you or if you ticked off a dragon. Plate armor is good… but Equestria and it’s surrounding lands did have it’s fair share of deadly monsters without needing to dip into the villain category threats. “Still if you want high quality stuff is expensive so unless you willing to pay a lot of bits...” Forge chuckled for a moment as he stared at Steel Halberd “Just because we can make it cheap doesn’t mean we have to sell it cheap. Besides people need to see the stuff as expensive to put a greater value on it. They need a reason to flock here and spend money to help bring people to town. The money from the sales help fund the town which in turn helps the economy and make this ‘money trap’ actually turn a decent profit.” He turned back to look at us as he said with a sigh “Still… we promised to help out with the repairs to your armor since you did help us out…” He looked to Steel Halberd and Midnight Vixen with a grin “or do you want to talk prices for a second suit of armor?” Midnight shook her head “If it’s too heavy it won’t be of much use.” Steel Halberd rubbed his back “I wouldn’t push my luck as the first time was hard enough.” I frowned “You do realize that this is the type of armor I’m used to.” Midnight nodded her head “I’ll just look for a set of new wing blades.” Steel shook his head as he couldn’t help but smirk “Halberd… maybe a spare mace… and something sticky to throw at opponents.” Forge’s face scrunched up as he replied “Something sticky?” Steel took a deep breath as he nodded his head “All the ‘unordinary opponents’ lately have been freakishly strong or deadly. In fact I have a hard time thinking of a time where a better quality weapon would have made a difference… maybe some new armor might help… but light and durable would still be my main focus.” I couldn’t help but chuckle “You get a chance for good quality steel armor… and you decided to check the discount bin?” Steel stuck out his tongue at me “The first job of being bait is to avoid getting hit. If something hits me much less catches me than I am already in deep trouble.” I shook my head “How many times have you actually used a halberd in a fight?” He stared at me and replied “A halberd is a perfectly good weapon. You get the point of a spear at the tip and the blade of an axe at the side. The added reach is perfect for flyby strikes against larger foes. Besides it’s a practical weapon when dealing with large beasts or monsters.” I nodded my head “What about close range fight or average sized foes.” Steel rolled his eyes as he quickly countered “What about your tactic of charging and hitting foes with your hooves?” I frowned “It’s called close combat. My hooves are covered in armor and my suit of heavy armor can pack quite the punch and that’s without including the additions to the armor that are built for damage.” He nodded his head “True, but your initial attack just sometimes makes me wonder if you are suppose to be wielding two shields. Sort of like a flying battering ram.” I felt my cheeks burn as I shook my head “Need I remind you who is better in combat?” Steel rolled his eyes once again “Midnight you’re the tie breaker. Hooves vs Halberd. Heavy vs light.” “Tinfoil vs armor.” I countered “Close range vs reach.” Midnight shrugged “You’re asking a pony that spent most of her time watching vases and statues during the middle of the night.” I frowned as that didn’t sound right “Weren’t you picked to guard Lockheart? Also if he really had any problems with your ability I’m pretty sure he would have told Celestia.” Midnight sighed “Are you sure about that?” I nodded my head “He’s not exactly shy… I mean he’s reclusive… and a bit paranoid…. But if he really doubted your ability to protect him then he would have said something.” Midnight nodded her head as she shrugged “Mobility first. I have spent more time trying to avoid objects or trying to help Lockheart avoid stuff than trying to face something head on. Besides wing blades are the best weapons. Unicorns have magic. Earth pony have their freakish strength and we have our wings so why pick anything less?” I shook my head “Aren’t those things kind of hard to use since you also need your wings to fly?” Midnight rolled her eyes “Not all of us fight like griffins. If you are fighting on the ground then why not use your wings? You don’t have to worry about wing blades falling off when you take off and pegasi or bat ponies prefer flyby strikes in the air instead trying to have a grappling match in the middle of the air like griffins tend to have.” I shook my head “I’m not a griffin.” Steel nodded “Yes you’re the other mythical breed of pony rarely known in this world. One blessed with earth pony magic and Pegasus magic allowing you to wield the metal coffin without barely any change in your speed.” I frowned “You do realize that Pegasus magic could also make the armor lighter as it isn’t uncommon to see a Pegasus carrying heavy objects from place to place.” Midnight shrugged as Steel chuckled at my comment as apparently neither of them believed me. Still this felt nice as we didn’t have to worry about anything else. Brass was locked away until Peter and Celestia could agree on who gets custody over her. The freakish bird creature was in a cage… and Remedy was dealing with the transformation issue in town. Too bad it was a dark magic related incident instead of an actually way to turn back to normal or safely change your race. I didn’t know much about dark magic other than the fact that it tended to leave bad side effects. On the low end you had magical artifacts that granted inspiration or power at the cost of one’s sanity and self control. I shivered as I remembered the Sombra future in MLP with the crystal empire citizens being turned into soldiers against their own will. That was higher up on the dark end of dark magic in MLP. Forge opened up a door as he replied “Take a look and let me know what interests you.” Midnight glanced at the various weapons as Steel shook his head “How did you come up with these prices?” Forge shrugged “We had weapons and people had money. The town needed money and they wanted good weapons. I mean it’s a lot easier trying to take down a hydra with a good quality steel sword than a simple iron blade you find outside of a common shop.” I glanced at some of the prices as these weapons were closer to the high end of the scale… then again these were high quality weapons. These weapons were not made to be used for a rare occasion or to be used for common threats. These were weapons made for the intent purpose of harming if not killing your opponent while making sure that you stay alive. I glanced at the various weapons as some were your standard fantasy weapons… and yet you could find a katana sitting right next to a great sword. I looked back at Midnight who was staring at a pair of hook swords with a mixture of interest and confusion. Forge couldn’t help but smirk “Equestria and it’s neighbors do have various weapons… but for those of us who have a skill with a hammer and forge ran into a few issues of supply and demand. Why make a weapon that isn’t native to Equestria if none of the natives will buy it? How can you make ends meet if you don’t make enough bits to buy enough ore to work with?” He shook his head “So most of our local smiths just left a few of their discarded projects here and I can help you get in contact with them if you like their work… or want a more personalized weapon or suit of armor.” Midnight slowly nodded her head “Was this an experiment or…” “Hook swords... an eastern style weapon.” I slowly replied “The five components of the sword are… the back of the sword used as a regular sword. The hook which is used to trip enemies, catch weapons, and used for slashing. The crescent guard is used for blocking and slashing as the end of the hilt is also sharpened. I’m not exactly sure on how you use or link the weapons together to increase your reach, but it’s a specialized weapon that takes a lot of training to use.” My eyes widened as I saw a weapon that caught my interest. I walked over to the display case and stared at it with rapid interest until I realized that I probably couldn’t use it. Steel and Midnight glanced at the dagger I was looking at in confusion. “Why does that weapon look like it’s broken?” Steel replied in confusion. Midnight shook her head “Why does it look like a comb?” I took a deep breath “The Sword Breaker is a very sturdy and solid dagger that has slots cut along one side. While these slots make it look much like a comb. The unique thing about this weapon was that it could be used to capture an enemy's sword. When the enemy swung his sword the sword breaker would catch it in one of the slots. Then a quick twist from it’s owner the dagger could break the enemy’s sword blade.” I rubbed my chin as I studied the ‘teeth’ of the blade “Of course it would be more accurate to call it a sword catcher since it’s more likely to catch a sword or to be used as a defensive weapon than actually being able to catch and break the blade of your opponent. Sword breaker is just the term used to help add in intimidation factor and that it could break your opponent’s weapon.” Steel looked at me in a mixture of confusion and surprise as Midnight replied “How many weapons have you trained with… or that you know of?” I chuckled as I shook my head “I’ve read a lot about a couple of weapons… but I’m mostly good at hitting stuff with my hooves.” Steel glanced at the dagger and then at Forge “How sturdy is the dagger?” Forge grinned as he cheerfully replied “High quality steel. It’s a sturdy dagger, but most adventures tend to deal with wild creatures than sword wielding thugs.” He shook his head as he glanced at the weapons on the wall “Still we get more requests to replace blades as some people tend to forget that weapons and armor require maintenance from time to time or the importance of wiping a blade before you place it back in it’s sheath.” Midnight slowly nodded her head “You don’t seem to have a lot of wing blades.” Forge sighed as he shook his head “They are not as common as some of our other weapons. While some of these weapons are strange or foreign to you they are not that foreign to our clients.” I looked back at my own hooves as I thought about my old character Steel Wings. What would have happened if I picked a different style than my current setup? How did other people deal with their ‘exotic build’ when nobody could repair their weapons or supply them with new ones? I looked back at the weapons as I realized that half of the price was simply because there wasn’t as much of a demand for them… and that this town was one of the few places that could make these weapons. I looked back at Forge who was continuing his speech “Wing blades tend to be lighter weight weapons, but they also need enough strength to hold with a cut. Some people tend to go with a weapon underneath the wings… sometimes all that is needed is replacing the hilt of a saber or a cutlass and fitting the weapon handle and sheath underneath a wing.” He walked over to one of the cases and pointed at a few curved blades. Some of them looked as if they were attached to pieces of armor, while others had hollow handles along with straps to be wrapped or slip over the wing. Forge motioned to the display case “And some refer to a wing blade as a weapon that is attached onto the base or the outer edge of the wing. These weapons have more emphasis on slashing actions than the thrust ability of the under the wing model… so which type are you looking for?” Midnight rubbed her chin “I prefer the under wing method.” She moved to her own wings and pulled out one of her swords… which looked like some sort of odd clips or tags that you put on a bird’s wings. The blade was rather simple kind of like a short sword or a saber as its main job was to be lightweight. I looked at her other wing as I saw the bat pony’s ‘thumb’ and then back at the grove of the wing blade before the blade popped out. I couldn’t help but wonder if the under wing method was mainly for bat ponies due to their thumbs… or if there was a Pegasus version. I looked back at Steel as I always remembered him carrying a halberd… but now I started to wonder how it was set up? I knew he preferred to use it for fly by attacks, but was there some sort of attachment to his armor or did he carry it with his mouth? I shook my head as I really should have played closer attention to it. Midnight must have caught my confused expression as she chuckled “It’s mostly focus on quick thrusts, slashes, attempting to pin the enemy or a surprise attack. Sure they are easier to disarm than the side wing method, but I’m more comfortable with this method.” Steel looked at me in surprise “You didn’t know anything about wing blades?” I shrugged “I was kind of taught wings are more used for flying than fighting. I mean… get jabbed underneath the wing and it hurts a lot… and too much armor over the wing and you can’t fly well as it becomes harder to generate the lift needed to sustain flight.” Forge slowly nodded his head “If you don’t mind leaving one or both of them here I can just get one of the smiths I know to make a copy of these blades with a higher quality of steel.” Midnight nodded as Steel went back to check up on some of the various weapons as I was curious on how many types of weapons were made… or if someone had made a couple of civil war riffles and were selling them to the public. ****** Celestia Celestia looked over the report again as she made the necessary adjustments. The delegates from Thunder Peek were being placed near Saddle Arabia so that they wouldn’t be sitting next to Griffinstone, but not far enough away so that they would think the other group was conspiring in secret with somepony. That would also leave enough space so that Maretonia’s delegates wouldn’t sit next to the delegates from Saddle Arabia’s own delegates but not too far away so that they didn’t think they were being excluded from whatever conversations or peace talks that were being presented. Celestia moaned as she rubbed her forehead “To much distance and they think they're hiding something. Too little and they’ll start getting into fights. Sometimes it feels as if I’m dealing with foals instead of adults.” She couldn’t help but chuckle as she began to wonder if politicians should take a year as an elementary school teacher before stepping into the world of politics first, but that might be because she had a unique perspective on politics since she’s been in office longer than most. Celestia shook her head as she tried to remember if there were any other problems between the nations. Griffinstone was trying to recover and rebuild it’s name. Thunder Peek saw them as a pack of scavengers who finally managed to have one greedy idiot climb to the top of the trash heap. Griffinstone was going through a various reforms as the nation was trying to rebuild itself. Sadly there were still a couple of old birds who still argued or brought up past issues or conflicts that had ended five hundred years ago. Thunder Peek had mocked Griffinstone’s decline since they separated from the Griffin Empire which had also broken up into minor nations and no longer existed… but Thunder Peek liked to skim over that detail as they liked to link their nation to the empire that no longer existed. Griffinstone either had griffins who cared little for the past as they claimed they needed to move on… and those who couldn’t let go of a past that could barely be remembered. “Of course it be much easier if this was only limited to griffins.” Celestia muttered in annoyance as she knew Equines could be just as foolish and stubborn as griffins. Saddle Arabia saw Maretonia as a ‘joke’ claiming them to be well dressed idiots as Celestia ruled their nation for them… and Maretonia still trying to prove they were a separate nation from Equestria as they tried to prove that not all pony nations were ruled by Celestia. They would often snap back at Saddle Arabia calling them backwater savages who can’t even make a working kitchen sink much less a decent day of weather. Maretonia could regulate it’s own weather and Saddle Arabia was more at whim to the random elements of nature than the level of control that Equestria had… something that Maretonia loved to rub their face in. If it wasn’t for the fact that Equestria was the buffer zone between the two nations she wouldn’t be surprised if they started a war. As much as they hated each other… they still preferred their relationship with Equestria than starting a war with a nation on the opposite end of their ‘ally’ nation and both sides didn’t want to test which nation Celestia would support if they ever went to war. Military wise they could be a threat if they attacked Equestria. In terms of economics the war would be short lived as Celestia had a decent amount of weight in both nation’s bank accounts. It’s one thing to go to war for honor and glory… it’s another to tell their soldiers they are not being paid for it. Celestia took a deep breath as she focused on the second problem… Iron Talon. The griffin nation that hadn’t seemed to change since Equestria was born. They still had constant civil wars as each war band would slaughter each other as they always tried to retake control of the capitol before raiding and plundering the surrounding nations. At best the rulers would run their nation as a kingdom of mercenaries ready to take any job just as long as they were paid. At worst they were warlord who conquered anything they could reach… the only reason why Harold stopped his warpath was simply because he couldn’t stretch his armies out any further and his ‘subjects’ were already getting ready for the next line of succession. What bothered her was the letter the old griffin king had sent her as he was asking for a ‘seat’ in the Cultural Festival. The griffin who she had meet once and that was only to mark the end of his territory who reeked of bloodshed with a smile on his face… wanted to talk. “Normally this would be a good sign.” Celestia muttered to herself “It would be a chance to offer them a different method of government or at the very least a different method of succession.” Still there was something about this letter that bothered her as she tried to figure it out. Was he trying to profit from the recent chaos or be given an excuse to bring an army to fight somepony? Was he coming to Equestria to challenge Celestia or somepony to a duel as he wanted to die fighting… or he wanted to test the strength of some of the adventurers? Celestia bit her lip as this could always be a cheap excuse to scout her territory. A chance to take a look at her lands before trying to finally break past the border and strike out taking everything they could get their talons on as it would be one final war before retreating back to their territory as their next bloody civil war. To tell the truth the last option seemed the most likely as the griffin king knew his kingdom would fall apart right after he died. It was the sad truth about their nation as it always fell to ruin right after their leader died the nation would tear itself apart in civil war until a new leader sat upon the throne drenched in the blood of his rivals. Celestia shook her head “And all it would take to ruin his nation before he attacks is a simple slip of poison in his next meal.” That was why none of the other nations near Iron Talon feared him. If worse came to worse than a single assassin could destroy the nation as they would just have to get one lucky shot and then let the nation tear itself apart. Celestia shook her head as she muttered “I know two alicorns who would call me fools for allowing this request.” She sighed as she pulled out a new scroll “Still if I can get one of those griffins to listen to reason then maybe everypony near Iron Talon won’t be shivering in fear when the next line of succession and ‘restoration’ comes into play.” “Besides…” Celestia muttered to herself sadly “At the very least I’ll be able to tell what he plans to do next and nip it in the bud if it is a problem to Equestria.” Celestia finished the letter as she sealed it up and placed it on her desk as she planned to check with her court advisers to see if they also agreed on letting the griffin visit their nation. Maybe she was being too harsh as one could claim she held a grudge against Iron Talon in the same way the Yaks held a grudge against Equestria. Of course maybe the advisers agreed with personal distrust of the nation as Iron Talon really was just as bad as she thought the nation was. Maybe she just needed somepony else to nod their head and agree that it was a bad idea to invite them to Equestria. A burst of green flames appeared in front of her face snapping her back to reality as she grasped the letter that had appeared in front of her. What should have been a simple assignment and a chance to help guide or help a city that had refused to give up their attempt to settle in the badlands had turned out with mixed results. Celestia had sent them there in an attempt to relax and cool down… Valkyrie and Steel Halberd recovering from their fight with Brass and cure of Valkyrie’s petrifaction… Remedy Cross and Midnight Vixen after Lockheart’s fallout. Celestia gritted her teeth as things turned out much better and worse than she had expected. Midnight’s self confidence had seemed to have recovered. Remedy Cross wasn’t treating the assignment like she was being punished as Steel and Valkyrie seemed to be getting over their mistakes from the Tartarus Jail Break which was good. The only problem was that the mayor of the city… who also happened to be a dragon had tried to escort them to New Terra. Apparently there was an issue involving the cursed trader who was changing various races into other races with dark magic. To make things worse he tried to attack Remedy Cross in transit. Celestia face hoofed as this wasn’t what she had planned on dealing with. On the bright side Remedy was able to treat those who had been affected as she also was requesting a couple of book on biology, dark magic symptoms, and… mythology? What bothered Celestia the most was that Brass had been nearly fillynapped by the cursed trader who escaped. Brass was currently behind bars with another doctor named Mort who had a rather impressive charges, medical skill and knowledge about treating other races. Then to top it all off an unknown avian like race was captured who was working with the cursed trader. Celestia sighed as she was now going to have to figure out how to negotiate with the settlement and figure out any possible connection with the various events. She chuckled in a mixture of annoyance and joy as she didn’t have to worry about finding Brass or worrying about what Valkyrie or Steel would do if they encountered her since that issue was already resolved. She used her magic to gather up a few nearby books and muttered to herself “You’d think that after all these years things would get easier. Dealing with politics would be child’s play if you’ve been doing it longer than nations around you have existed. Figuring out motives would be simple once you’ve seen all the tricks somepony can play.” She cracked open one of the books as she continued “The Yaks are about to get some reinforcements. Griffinstone is trying to rebuild and more importantly step back into the world instead of hiding behind the ruins of their history.” Celestia felt herself smile as this year might have finally been giving her a break. Brass was captured as it would be easy to have her transported to Equestria. Then from there she could easily find the ponies responsible for the Tartarus Jail break. If the Yak expedition force ran into any problems she could send some of her own soldiers to help under the guise of ‘checking borders’ or rumors about feral nests. She pulled out her dream journal as she looked over all the problems. She had found a solution to the changeling queen… she found a way to track down Tirek. Now all she had to figure out who the last foe was and how to deal with him. If the current books in the Canterlot Library had nothing on this unseen foe than maybe one of the three tribes got lucky and wrote something about him or his race as a rumor or myth. Celestia bit her lip as someponies had a hard time believing that the windigos actually existed. “Is he a new threat or an ancient threat?” Celestia muttered to herself “Let’s see what I can find.” ****** Herald The griffin king sighed as he sharpened his weapons. His guards kept patrolling as the lesser houses were debating on how the land should be ruled. The soldiers were finishing up their training as each group was being split into divisions. Herald looked at his own reflection in the shine of his hand axe as he recognized the look on his face. Right now it felt like the last few days before his own birthday as a hatchling. He knew that his presents were being tucked away in the closet as his parents were baking the cake. He could feel the joy that would soon arrive only for the sweet temptation to drift into the air as he was forced to wait as he tried to ignore the siren’s call. Herald placed down his axe and moved onto his sword as he went over the plan once again in his mind. The Cultural Festival was when he could finally unleash his blades and be allowed to fight. Until the signal was given he would have to contend with trying to talk with the others nations and seeing what defenses they had. The smaller details didn’t matter… like how he would deploy his troops or what tactics he should use to counter the Royal Guard. Those things always changed when you engaged the enemy and all you really needed to do was kill the person shouting orders. The fact that he would be left deep in enemy territory also didn’t matter because that was where most of the best fighters also would be stationed. Herald watched the sparks flew from his sword as he couldn’t help but think about the real prize of battle. How would the commanders fair? Were they the noble warriors who fought on the front line leading his troops or the skill strategist that focused on the entire layout of the battle. They would be sending messages or moving their forces to pull back, reinforce, or lull the enemy into a false sense of security before unleashing their wicked trap! He grinned as he focus on the sound of the grindstone sharpening his blade as he couldn’t help but wonder how his beloved nephew and his mate would act? Would they unleash traps or follow the battle on a larger scale or did they lead their troops like he did? Would Celestia join the field of battle or sit upon her throne directing her troops? Herald chuckled to himself as he tried to figure out how she would fight. Would she go straight for the throat and use her hooves to smash all those who stood in her way? Did she fly about the battlefield picking people off and dives down from the skies with her pegasi skewering her foes with steel tipped lances? Maybe she would stand back and unleash an arcane barrage made up from the countless spells she had learned throughout history? He placed the sword aside and moved onto the next weapon as he tried to picture the fight against Celestia. Would she use swords held in her magic? Did she have her own unique style of combat or did she switch to whatever method that might be more suited against the enemy? “Will she force me to fight her to the death…” Herald whispered to himself “Or can I tie her down to the ground and claim her along with her kingdom for myself?” Herald looked back at his collection of weapons with mixed feelings. In the old days he’d just simply grab an axe to start a battle and then simply pick up the weapons off the battlefield when a blade was caked in too much blood or chipped to pieces by a foe. Unicorns did prefer to use magic instead of swords and blades while earth ponies seemed to prefer iron boots to crush their foes. “Two thirds that use weapons I can’t use.” Herald muttered to himself “And the commanders probably have some really good armor.” He looked back at his assortment of weapons… both old and new as it also seemed cruel to force him to pick which weapons he would be forced to leave behind. The door to the room opened up forcing him to leave his thoughts of the upcoming battle as he would be forced to deal with the lesser tasks of ruling his kingdom. Herald watched the servant walk into the room as he began to grow more irritated at what minor task they needed him to solve. Was some small clan or family butting heads with another family? Hadn’t they all realized by now that Herald really didn’t care as they all lost to him. He owned their lands, houses, and he also had a much larger army ready to fight for him than they did. Herald took a deep breath as he replied “I’m a simple king as I have just one rule. Don’t make me come over there.” “It’s a little bit more than that…” The servant replied with a hint of fear. The griffin king went back to examining his weapons “I just ask for a small amount of soldiers for my armor. That they pay their taxes then they can ‘rule’ the small patch of lands they are on unless they want me to try conquering them a second time.” “It’s not an issue with the noble houses.” The servant spoke out only this time he was hiding behind the thick sturdy door “Your nephew has returned had has gotten into an argument with your associates.” Herald rubbed his chin as he held one of his axes in his talons “Didn’t I make it clear cut that I have taken an interest in supporting his activities?” The servant nodded “No he is having a problem with the other associates he works with.” Herald turned to stare at the servant in confusion “The ones that hired him?” “You mean the tag along group.” The griffin king replied “What do the idiots that ride on my nephew’s tail want to complain about?” The servant coughed “It’s more of an issue about verification. Your nephew wants to check on something in Equestria… and he seems to be paranoid of both the griffin that travels with him and his own allies who are currently refusing his request.” Herald shook his head as he thought he had an idea on what was going on. Brass was a wanted criminal and the group she was working with was a bunch of cowards. Swift just wanted to make sure that his ‘associates’ hadn’t backed out or traded Brass to save their own hides. He quickly grabbed his cape and strapped a short axe and shield to his side as he prepared to deal with the current problem. Maybe they were talking about something else… but Herald couldn’t think of anything that could make his nephew act out in anger especially since he wasn’t in the room with him. ****** Herald sat in his chair bored out of his mind as he looked at the two parties complaining. Normally he enjoyed a good shouting match, but that was always because the argument ended when they would either start a duel or back off. Sadly these ‘civilized’ races had yet to use duels to stop pointless arguments. Swift gritted his teeth “I just simply want to see how Brass is doing.” The adventurer unicorn shook her head “And I am telling you she is doing just fine.” Swift shook his head “Then can you have her send me a message? A simple message will do just fine.” The unicorn shook her head “As I told you before she’s busy.” “Busy doing what?” Swift replied as he glared at the unicorn. “That’s classified.” The unicorn replied. Herald face palmed as he couldn’t take it anymore. What was with the whole point of this act? He knew that some of the adventures had some sort of system that let them contact each other over long distances… something they refused to share with Herald and his kin. The griffin king shook his head “Let’s cut to the chase. Swift… why do you think the unicorn is lying?” The unicorn turned to face him as she shouted “My name is…” “I don’t care.” Herald replied “All you do is send messages back and forth. Now Swift… why do you think the unicorn is lying?” Swift glanced at the griffin beside him before he replied “The contact that I was suppose to meet was a trap. Instead of a griffin I ran into a changeling working with Gaichu.” The unicorn glared at the second griffin “And we do not know of a griffin named William.” The griffin rolled his eyes “Figures… deliver packages and everybody calls you package guy. Get called on a mission you don’t want to do and everyone forgets you.” Herald couldn’t help but chuckle at that comment “So William is being claimed be a liar for helping rescue my nephew… when the two allies you sent with him returned without him. Now that you are being asked for one simple check on his ally you suddenly can’t comply with his request.” The unicorn frowned “I am telling you that he isn’t a part of our group!” Herald glanced back at the delivery griffin. Swift’s associates didn’t believe in rescuing their ally and yet this griffin was supposedly sent to rescue him. The unicorn claimed the griffin was lying or a spy… and the griffin claimed that they were lying. Herald sighed as he shook his head “Let’s make this simple then. How about you simply let Swift ask Brass his question and if he gets the answer he is expecting… then obviously the delivery griffin is lying. If you can’t deliver the message than obviously your group is lying.” The griffin in question shrugged “Fair enough.” The unicorn shouted “You can’t honestly believe that imposter over your own allies!” Herald glanced at William “Because he is willing to take punishment if he is wrong. If he is lying than he’s a spy and since this is my kingdom I’ll probably put him to death. You on the other claw just have to send a simple message and you keep complaining.” He glared at the unicorn in question “So tell me the reason why you can’t send a simple question that actually makes sense little unicorn?” The unicorn thrust her a hoof out at William “He’s obviously a changeling in disguise!” The griffin shrugged “I’m willing to take a test to prove I’m not a changeling only if Swift agrees to the person giving the test.” The unicorn shouted in rage “What do you mean by that?” The griffin rolled his eyes “You claim I am lying so why should I trust you to do the test?” Herald glanced at the others in the room. The ones standing with the unicorn stood ready to defend her. The guards in the room seemed ready to attack Swift’s former associates. Normally they would stand waiting for their king’s command or getting ready to follow the plans of their clans. Come to think of it there seemed to be more guards than usual. Herald glanced at the griffin in question “Give me your arm for one moment.” The griffin nodded “so you’re going to pluck a feather or…” His eyes went wide when he saw Herald pull out his axe. In an instant he started screaming like a coward as he tried to pull his arm away, but the griffin king’s grip was too strong. The axe bit into the griffin’s arm as blood dripped onto the table as the adventures fell out of their seats as they stared at Herald in terror. Swift shouted in panic “What are you doing!” The griffin king stared at the bleeding arm as William kept cursing “Shit, Shit, fuck, shit, fucking shit.” Herald glanced at all the surrounding guards as one of them had switched to a stance ready for combat. His guards were better trained than this. They wouldn’t prepare for a fight whenever he left a simple scratch on somebody in question. Herald let of William’s bleeding arm as the griffin in question kept whimpering in pain as he clutched his bleeding arm. Swift quickly pulled out a set of bandages and tried tending to the wound while Swift’s former associates were shivering in fear. William spoke in a mixture of frustration and pain “Is this good enough?” Herald kept an eye on that guard that had reacted “Changelings tend to drop their disguise when they’ve been attacked as suddenly as this. Now he was willing to go with my test to prove himself… so are you able to grant their simple request?” The unicorn was shivering in fear along with her allies as Swift was glaring daggers into the back of his uncle’s head. He couldn’t help but grunt in annoyance as he simply speed everything up. William wasn’t a changeling or he was a great actor and now all they had to do was answer a simple question or tell the truth. Herald smiled “If it helps you can simply tell your boss that you have an axe held against your neck as we are waiting for a response.” The unicorn to her credit nodded as she did her strange magic trick. Her eyes seemed to be staring at something they couldn’t see as sweat rolled off her body. Herald glanced back at the guard that had reacted as his body seemed to tense up. “Brass is currently investigating the where Gaichu is possibly hiding.” The unicorn replied in panic “She didn’t take one of our associates so we can’t send you an immediate response.” She shook her head “Would you prefer asking someone else or…” Swift gritted his teeth as he replied “Ask Tracer… What’s in the sack?” Herald watched everyone in the room as he felt the air grow tense. The fake guard looked tense as the unicorn’s allies watched everyone in panic. William seemed to watch them in fear as Swift was waiting for the question to be answered. The unicorn finally spoke up “A sack full of rocks?” Swift sighed as he shook his head “Alright so where did Brass go?” The unicorn paused for a moment before replying “She went south. Are there any other questions?” Swift shook his head “That’s all I wanted to know. Now if you excuse me I need to make sure William doesn’t bleed out.” Herald watched Swift walk out of the room as he began to wonder who was telling the truth. Could William have been lying to his nephew in an attempt to fracture the trust between Swift and his allies… or had Swift’s allies started to move without him as they were preparing to betray Brass. The easiest course of action would be to simply ask their leader face to face, but that wasn’t likely to happen. The second action was far easier to check as Herald motioned for all the guards to leave the room with him. All he had to do was simply force the guard who acted differently to spill his guts and see why he was impersonating one of his guards. Herald waiting until they were far away from the room until he turned around “Now I need you all to…” He frowned as he saw he was missing one of his guards… to be more precise it was the guard in question. He walked back to the hallway and stared at it in confusion. Seven guards had followed him… and yet there were only six guards left. The hallway was empty as there weren’t any windows for the guard to escape. There weren’t any other doors or hallways he could have turned down and Herald remembered seven sets of armored guards following him down the hallway until he turned the corner. He stared at the wall as he couldn’t help but chuckle as he rubbed the wall “Get me a map of the castle.” One of the guards spoke up “Is there a reason why?” Herald chuckled as he stared at the uneven laws on the wall. The biggest problem most people ran into is that they never doubted the information they had unless it could harm them. Herald couldn’t help but chuckle as he felt a groove in the wall… almost as if there was a hidden exit in this hallway. “Now just who are you?” Herald whispered to himself “And who are you working for?” ****** William William shook his head as he kept a tight grip on his arm. His arm had nearly been hacked off by that freaking crazy king just to prove he wasn’t a changeling. He shivered as he had no doubt in his mind that the griffin king would have hacked his head off if he actually was a changeling. The room was almost bare except for the single bed and dresser in the room as two guards rested outside for William’s own ‘safety’ just in case Swift’s former allies tried something against him. The wall cracked open as a griffin in armor walked into the room “So how was Swift’s paranoia?” William groaned as he held up his bandaged arm “Better than his uncle’s paranoia. You do realize the job didn’t include the possible chance of dismemberment.” The griffin sighed as he disappeared in a burst of green flames only to reveal a pony in a cloak “And I’m sorry for that as I didn’t expect him to nearly try hacking your hand off. Still hopefully this can help as an apology.” A bag was placed at the edge of the bed as William opened it up and grinned. Various diamonds were poured out onto the bed as this amount of money would have easily made up for the loss of his right talon. “So is your arm okay or…” The pony replied. William rubbed his arm “It’ll be sore for quite a while, but I accept your apology.” He quickly scooped up all the gems “Did you find out what you were looking for?” The pony hung his head in disappointment “I reach Iron Talon only to find out Brass isn’t anywhere nearby.” He sighed shaking his head “I also have no idea where she is or where her secrets lie. If they had managed to contact Brass than one of them would have made a method quickly return to their hideout.” William slowly nodded his head “So I take it you want to extend the contract and try to help sow a few more seeds of doubt between them?” The pony nodded his head “If possible, but I understand if you want to leave.” William laughed as he clutched the bag full of diamonds “Are you kidding me? This insane job pays more that most griffins make their entire lives. Heck when I return to Griffinstone I could buy myself a mansion and live is luxury.” The pony stared at him in confusion “Isn’t griffinstone… kind of down in the dumps?” William shrugged “It was when I left, but apparently some random griffin managed to find the lost idol and is actually starting to rebuild the nation. So a chance between a house in Equestria or a founding member of my nation is going to cost a lot more gems and bits… so of course I’m going to stay and take a few more gems from your pockets.” The pony chuckled “Just make sure you stick to the script.” William grinned as he placed the bag of diamonds into his saddlebags. All he had to do was continue following the pony’s advice and everything would be alright. Besides it not as if he should care what happened to Iron Talon or the group that attacked Equestria. All he had to do was continue asking a few simple questions as he continued pretending he was used to deliver packages for them. The pony tapped the wall as a doorway appeared once again “Well let me know if anything goes wrong as I try to get plan C ready.” William nodded as he gazed back at the diamond he had been given. The pony found him in a bar one day and offered him a lot of gems to escort another griffin back home. He just pushed aside any questions about what the pony was doing or why he wanted revenge against Brass. All that mattered was that William could pass as a griffin because he was a griffin and for him to just recite a few lines. The door opened up as Swift walked into the room as the griffin looked worried. William smiled “So I take it you don’t think I’m a changeling infiltrator anymore?” Swift sighed as William knew the griffin was feeling guilty about his uncle’s rash changeling detection technique. He had been expecting some sort of magic scan or feathers suddenly being plucked… not nearly having his hand hacked off. Swift shook his head “I’m surprised you’re not asking what the message I sent was.” In truth William didn’t care what the message was. All that mattered was that he was getting paid and for Swift to feel uneasy about his allies. After all his client wanted to remove Brass’s allies if he couldn’t find her himself. Swift shook his head “What if it was a message claiming you’re a spy?” William shrugged “Then I thank you for not telling your uncle to hack my head off. So how is Brass actually doing?” Swift groaned as he shook his head “How can you be so calm after that?” He couldn’t help but chuckle “By feeling relieved that I’m not in the same room as your uncle anymore. So did anyone remember who I am or does everyone forget the names of the people delivering their mail?” Swift sighed in annoyance as he replied “Other than the fact that you drop your supplies at drop off point so you never had any idea where the main base was.” William shrugged as he tried not to panic “I can neither confirm nor deny what you said.” Swift rolled his eyes “You still won’t give me a straight answer?” William nodded his head as he didn’t know if Swift was trying to test him once again or if that was the truth. The pony just told him to keep up with vague statements and pretend that he was on the bottom of the barrel. “Let’s see… I spent most of my days picking up random groceries until I was forced to do this crazy mission.” He rubbed his chin “And now two heavily armored guards stand outside as your uncle doesn’t even bother remember anyone who isn’t listed as ‘important’ as my job falls under that category.” He couldn’t help but grin “So forgive me if I still want to be as vague as possible if only to make myself seem important enough not to take another changeling test.” Swift sighed as he promptly face palmed “Now you see why I was hesitant on relying on the assistance of my uncle.” William couldn’t help but nod to that comment. While his arm still ached in pain as it felt like the crazy griffin was ready to hack his hand off… the gems still worth it. That and he finally had Swift to shift his paranoia over to his own allies. Hopefully the rest of this job would be easy. Sticking to a script was easy. Having an axe pointed at him wasn't something he wanted to repeat again.