Zine stood outside Gem Stone’s cabin as he looked at the hazy weather outside. With the overcast too thick for the sunlight to shine through, the landscape seemed dull and dreary as Zine spoke, “The sky is dark, the mist is thick and the wind is still… it’s as if all of nature is sending us hints of a bad omen.” He smiled sinisterly “This is gonna be an interesting day.”
Gem Stone who only heard the last part of his statement, exited her cabin wearing a cloak as she replied, “you can still come with us if you want.”
Zine shook his head, “no thanks, I need to meditate anyways.”
Gem shrugged her shoulders, “suit yourself.” She looked through the front door, “Cirrus! Let’s go!”
Cirrus exited the cabin also wearing a cloak, “okay I’m ready… why do we have to wear these again?”
Gem replied, “If the Royal Guards are still after you, we would be better off if we at least tried to keep attention off of us.”
With that said Gem started trotting towards the road as Cirrus replied, “yea… and it would also be easier to hide weapons under cloaks… wouldn’t it?...”
When she heard that Gem stopped as Cirrus continued, “Ms. Stone?...”
Gem replied without turning around, “yes?...”
Cirrus asked, “are you hiding weapons under your cloak?...”
Knowing the answer Zine smiled, “Busted…”
Cirrus held out his hoof, “hand it over…”
Sighing in disappointment, Gem turned around as she trotted to Cirrus and pulled her bow out from under her cloak. As she handed it to Cirrus, He continued, “and the quiver.”
Giving him an annoyed look, Gem unslung her quiver and gave that to Cirrus as she spoke, “there… happy?...”
As she turned to start back down the trail, Cirrus replied, “I will once you give me the dagger you’re hiding.”
Gem paused in shock as Zine spoke up, “whoa… pretty sharp commander… I didn’t even catch that one. Oh and the pun was intended.”
Gem gave Zine a dirty look before turning back to Cirrus as she pulled the dagger from under her cloak and replied, “You can’t blame a mare for trying.”
Tossing the dagger aside, Gem continued, “There… that’s everything. Unless you’re brave enough to check under my bandanna.”
Giving him a look that said don’t even try it, Cirrus replied, “no, no. I believe you.”
Gem nodded her head as she turned to the path, “then let’s go. The sooner we leave, the sooner we get this taken care of.”
With that said, Gem Stone turned and flew into the air towards Canterlot, as Cirrus took off and flew closely behind her.
Although the humidity of the air made visibility poor, it still didn’t slow them down as Cirrus and Gem Stone flew straight to Canterlot and arrived within the hour. As soon as they arrived at the city gates, the two trotted through as Gem spoke, “okay, now let’s go to that castle.”
Cirrus started to reply but as he did a random mare approached Cirrus, “Excuse me, but are you Cirrus Cloud?”
Cirrus started to reply “y-”
before he could finish, Gem stepped between the two as she interrupted, “It depends on who’s asking.”
Seeing that Gem Stone was on guard, the mare replied, “A friend… one who wishes to warn you. The Royal Guards are searching for you. It would be a good idea if you tread carefully sir. I worry that your life may be at risk.”
Afraid that he would say the wrong thing, Cirrus kept his silence as Gem replied, “Thanks… but I think we can manage.”
The mare replied as she nodded her head, “You’re his officer?… understood ma’am. But know that you have our support. Stay safe; Viva La Commander.”
Trying to keep their meeting short, the mare quickly rushed past with nothing more to say. As soon as the mare was out of sight, Cirrus asked, “What was that about? Why did she call you my officer?”
Gem replied, “I’m not sure… but it would be a good idea to heed her words. The best way to not draw attention would be to blend in with a crowd. What’s the most populated road to the castle?”
Cirrus was unsure, “I don’t know, I wasn’t here long enough to know the roads.”
Gem Stone thought to herself, “I would guess Main Street… but then again the city has change completely since I was here last. In fact, it’s been destroyed then rebuilt since then.”
Rolling his eyes Cirrus replied, “Right… sure it has.”
Gem Stone gave him an annoyed look, “don’t tell me that even after using the Lightning Orb, you still don’t believe the stories.”
Cirrus replied, “I have my reasons. One explanation isn’t enough to convince me that any of those stories are true. Even if Commander Bolt was a pegasus, that doesn’t mean I believe he exists or ever did.”
Gem sighed in hopelessness, “I’m done trying to convince you. Let’s just get to the castle.”
With nothing more to say on the subject, the two trotted down the road until they arrived at Main Street. As they began trotting up the street, the two continued as they both kept their head low enough for the hood of their cloaks to cover a portion of their faces. Although they were able to keep their identities hidden form the uniformed guards. It wasn’t long before a guard who was off duty happened to pass the two as he saw Cirrus’s face and recognized him. Keeping his discovery quiet, the off duty soldier acted as if nothing was wrong as he casually trotted passed the two and approached the first uniformed guard he saw and reported his finding, “Sir… Black cloaked duo… one is an unknown mare… but the other is Cirrus Cloud.”
Holding his composure, the uniformed guard nodded his head as he gestured to his fellow guards to follow him. When six guards were gathered, they quickly moved in and surrounded the two as one ordered, “You two! Halt!!!”
Knowing that they were being called, Cirrus and Gem Stone stopped trotting as the group of guards quickly approached the two as the nearby spectators quickly move out of the way from what was happening. As the two were surrounded, One called, “You there! Your Cirrus Cloud aren’t you! You’re coming with us!”
Before Cirrus could reply, Gem Stone replied, “Really?... under what charges?”
The soldier looked at Gem Stone as he replied, “That is none of your concern. So just stay out of it.”
Gem Stone replied, “As a former guard, I know quite well that in order for a Royal Guard to make an arrest, he must first not only know of the charges, but if asked, present them to the suspect in order to ensure that his arrest is not only liable, but legal.”
The guard gave her an annoyed look as he replied, “Be that as is may; this is official business set down by the commander of the Royal Guard. We have no reason to state his charges, nor pass them on to the likes of you.”
Gem Stone smiled confidently as she replied, “Good… then it would seem that your orders are out ranked by ours then. So we will be on our way.”
Thinking she was talking her way out of it, the guard became annoyed, “Out ranked?... Did you not hear me? This is an official order from Commander Mist of the Royal Guard! Stop us, and you will be arrested for interfering with Official business.”
Gem nodded her head, “yes… and it’s out ranked. Say what you want… but we are also under official orders… only this one, is a royal order.”
With that said, all the guards and Cirrus gave Gem Stone a confused look, as the leading guard replied, “royal order… Whose order?”
Gem replied with confidence, “why… Thundaga’s of course. She has entrusted me with training Cirrus Cloud in proper use and control of the Lightning Orb. A task that only I can provide. So by interfering with my orders… you’re interfering with a royal decree.”
Another guard yelled in reply, “You’re Lying! If she had given such an order, we would have been briefed on it!”
Gem replied as she turned her head to that guard, “you would… if you had the clearance for it… however since the subject of the Lightning Orb is a touchy one, she would have only briefed those involved to keep this information from falling into wrong hooves like, oh I don’t know… the rebellion.”
The lead guard spoke again, “This has to be false… there is no way you’re under royal orders.”
Gems smiled sinisterly, “are you sure… if you think I’m lying, then by all means, arrest us… but if I’m telling the truth, then there will be consequences for interfering with a royal decree… ranks might be lost. If not court-martials issued. You know… that sort of thing.”
Feeling unsure of his decision the guard tried to weigh his options as Gem continued, “although… this can be solved peacefully and without fault… all you have to do, is lead us to Thundaga and she will clear it up. If I’m lying, you can arrest us, and if I’m telling the truth, you can pass on knowing that there won’t be any consequences. Your call… lieutenant.”
The guards tried to think of what to do as a few seconds passed before Gem spoke, “Well?...”
The guard became annoyed, “Hold your horses… I’m thinking.”
A second guard replied in anger, “Sir, she’s lying! She is just trying to bluff her way out of this.”
Gem smiled as she gave the soldier a confident look, “An officer of the Royal Guard, never bluffs when his soldier’s life is on the line.”
hearing this comment, the leading guard sighed, “an officer eh… well then ma’am… we will speak with Thundaga and see if this little story of yours is true. If it is, then all will be forgiven… but if it isn’t… then Cirrus will be arrested for conspiracy to commit treason… and you, will be under arrest for impersonating a Royal Guard officer. How’s that?”
Nervous Cirrus looked at Gem as she smiled casually, “Sound good… now lead the way.”
The guard nodded his head as the group turned and began traveling up the road in a formation that kept both Cirrus and Gem Stone surrounded by escorting guards.
Later, Thundaga was standing on a bridge that sat over the waterfall on the edge of town as she looked at the water that poured over the falls and into the hazy valley below. As she watched the falls, a royal adviser stood beside her as he spoke, “As you can see your majesty, the humidity and rain has increase the flow of the falls so much that our water wheels are producing twice as much heat for our iron smelting factories. With this increase in productivity, we will be able to produce twice as much iron for the armories then before.”
Thundaga smiled, “excellent… keep track of the next shipment and notify me of the numbers as soon as you have them. This will be helpful for arming our next batch of recruits.”
The adviser nodded his head, “yes your majesty, I'll see to it personally.”
With that said, the Adviser left the princess as Cirrus, Gem and the escorting guards approached with the lead guard speaking, “Your Majesty! We have to di-”
Before the guard could finish, Thundaga looked at the group as she saw Cirrus and smiled, “Cirrus, it’s good to see you again, and…”
Thundaga gave Gem Stone a curious look, but said nothing as one of the guards spoke, “Your majesty, this mare claims that she was specially chosen by you to train Cirrus Cloud in controlling the Lightning Orb.”
Thundaga replied as she looked closely at Gem Stone and replied, “did she now?...”
The guards started to become irritated, “You mean, you didn’t select her for this task?”
Before Thundaga could reply, Gem Stone lowered the hood on her cloak as she explain, “Well… I didn’t say I was specially chosen. I only said that I was given the task to train him… The stallion who gave me this task, passed it on from you if I’m not mistaken. After all, you know as well as I that Zine will find a way out of doing anything that would even reflect helping others. Wouldn’t you agree your majesty?”
After hearing the explanation Thundaga could only chuckle as she played along, “oh… I see. So when I gave Zine permission to train Cirrus, he just passed it onto you. I must apologies if it was a bother. Zine always did have a way of doing things that was less then… well…”
Cirrus and Gem Stone replied with the same word at the same time, “Trustworthy?...”
Thundaga giggled, “Yes you took the word right out of my mouth.” She looked at the guards, “well it would seem that although they were easily misinterpreted, this mare’s words are in fact true. She is Cirrus’s instructor and is now welcome in my presence.”
Although the guards didn’t like being proven wrong, one still spoke up, “But… your majesty! She claims to be an Ex-Royal Guard. And not just that… She was impersonating an officer!”
Thundaga gave Gem Stone another curious look as she replied, “oh… was she?... I’m sorry to say, I don’t recognize her as any of my previous officers… but I will ask. If you are an ex-guard… then may I have your name and rank?”
Gem Stone smiled with pride, “certainly… My name is Captain Gem Stone… My title, Commanding Captain of the Nightmare Legion.”
As soon as she said that, everypony excluding Cirrus, gave her a shocked look as Thundaga started to reply, “Wh-what did you sa-”
Before she could finish, one of the guards spoke up as he replied in shock, “It… it is her! Look, she looks the same as the painting in the Archery Academy!”
As soon as he said that, another archer mixed amongst the guards spoke up, “You’re right!... but… how is that possible! Didn’t she die over a thousand years ago?”
The leading guard spoke up, “BULL!!! Now this one has to be a lie! Who would be stupid enough to say that she is a thousand year old dead pony when she clearly is standing in front of us? If she is who she says she is… then prove it!”
At that moment the rest of the guards started arguing as they each agreed, “Yea Prove it!” “She’s lying.” “It’s a rebellion trick!”
Holding her silence, Thundaga didn’t stop the guards bickering as she watched Gem Stone in hopes of seeing whatever proof she had to offer for the claim.
As Gem Stone heard all the bickering from the six guards, she could only give a hopeless sigh as she raised her wing enough to bring the cloak up from her flake, revealing her cutiemark as the bickering guards silenced themselves and stared in amazement at her one of a kind cutiemark. With the area silenced by the unmistakable proof, Thundaga could only smile as she looked at the sheath on her father’s sword belt as she replied, “The marks match… although I think I will continue to hold my suspicion… after all, it’s not every day that an ancient mare from a different era comes to visit my kingdom.”
Gem Stone nodded her head as she replied with an unconcerned and rude tone, “Sure… whatever you say…”
After that was said Thundaga started giving Gem Stone an unsure stare as Gem responded with the same stare as the area was soon filled with an awkward silence. Seeing this Cirrus lowered his hood as he spoke up, “Um… your majesty?”
Hearing his words, broke the tension as Thundaga looked at Cirrus, “hmm?... oh that’s right. Cirrus may I ask how your progress is coming along? Have you learned how to control the Lightning Orb yet?”
Cirrus shook his head in disappointment, “um… well… I’ve learned how to use it… sorta… but… you see…”
Seeing his hesitation made Gem Stone sigh, “he’s astraphobic… He managed to create the Lightning Orb at will… but… his fear is too much for him to handle. So after what he considered, a near death experience of using it successfully. Cirrus has sworn away from using it again.
Thundaga gave Cirrus a concerned look, “Astraphobic… you’re afraid of lightning?”
Cirrus nodded his head, “yes…”
Thundaga nodded her head, “then… you came back, to reject my offer then… didn’t you?... Cirrus… I didn’t offer you that because of the Lightning Orb… I offered it to you because of your views on peace.”
Gem Stone replied, “Well I didn’t know anything about an offer… but the reason we are here is because I requested it.”
Thundaga became interested as she replied, “Oh… did you?”
Gem Stone replied with a serious tone, “yes… I needed to speak with you about something.”
Thundaga nodded her head, “I see… and since I know who you are… I wish to ask you something as well.”
Gem nodded her head, “alright… Ask away.”
Thundaga turned to look over the waterfall as she asked, “Are you truly who you say you are?”
Gem nodded her head, “yes… I am Captain Gem Stone.”
Thundaga sighed, “Zine had his hoof in this didn’t he?”
Gem replied with a sigh, “Yea… his signature in this sort of thing has never been subtle has it?”
Thundaga giggled a little, “True, when it comes to subtlety he always find ways around it. So… you have had the pleasure of knowing my father personally, right?”
Gem Stone nodded her head, “I did… yes.”
Thundaga asked, “What was he like? I know I’ve heard it before from Mother, Aunt Tia, and all the Element of harmony users… but… I want to hear it from a soldier’s point of view. From somepony… who fought beside him in battle.”
Gem Stone smiled, “A soldier of soldiers. Just as the stories say. Strong, dependable, and with a sense of justice that made everypony… even his enemies respect him. He would make reckless decisions that only risked his life and would never overlook the wellbeing of his soldiers. Mental, or physical. He was a true commander, and… a true hero.”
Thundaga liked the answer as she smiled, “I wish I could have met him… to… show him the kingdom I created in his name.”
Gem Stone sighed in hopelessness, “yea… sure…”
Although Thundaga heard the disappointment in Gem’s tone, she ignored it as she asked, “So… what is it that you would like to ask of me Captain?”
Gem replied, “Well first… I would like it if you didn’t refer to me as captain… I’m no soldier of yours so I would request you don’t refer to me as if I were.”
Since Gem Stone’s tone wasn’t as disrespectful as the previous comment, Thundaga didn’t take offence to her statement as she replied, “very well, is that all?”
Gem Stone nodded her head, “no… there’s more…” Taking a deep breath to brace herself, Gem Stone gave Thundaga a serious look as she spoke, “Thundaga of Equestria… I’ve come here to ask that you relinquish yourself from the throne.”
As soon as she had said it, Everypony in the area, the guards, Cirrus, and even Thundaga turned and gave Gem Stone a surprised look as Thundaga replied, “u-um… Excuse me?...”
Gem Stone repeated herself, “I Captain Stone of the Nightmare Legion am asking that you step down from the throne of Equestria.”
When they heard her words repeated the guards became irritated as one drew his sword, “What did you say!?! Are you aiming to form a coup d’état? Are you trying to take the throne for yourself!?!”
Gem Stone gave the guard an unconcerned look as she replied, “Not at all… I don’t want to rule anypony nor do I ever want to rule a kingdom… I just don’t want Thundaga to be in control.”
Feeling nervous about how bold her words were, Cirrus held his silence as the same guard started to approach Gem Stone with his sword at the ready, “Why you disrespectful-”
as soon as the soldier approached Gem Stone with his sword at the ready, Thundaga lifted her wing high as her sudden action silenced and stopped the guard from doing anything as she lowered it and spoke, “Ms. Stone… Are you being serious right now?”
Gem nodded her head as she gave her a serious stare, “yes… I’m entirely serious.”
Slowly Thundaga started to smile, as that turned to a small chuckle, until finally ending at full blown laughter. When she laughed, Gem Stone became annoyed as Thundaga slowed her laughter enough to reply, “Now this is a new one… Never in my five hundred years of rule have I ever had this happen to me. I’ve had assassins try to kill me to take the throne for themselves, I’ve had Large armies try to invade to take the kingdom by force, heck I’ve even had princes ask for my hoof in marriage to try to claim the kingdom as their own. But never in my entire life had I ever had a pony kindly ask me to step down. And to make it even stranger, she doesn’t even want the throne herself.”
After that, Thundaga continue laughing as the guards started laughing with her leaving Gem Stone to get irritated, “I wasn’t asking kindly… I was telling you to step down.”
Although the first time she said it made it seem like a possible joke, this time, it seemed more like a threat, as Thundaga’s smile faded as she replied in a serious tone, “Oh… and why should I do that?”
Gem Stone replied, “Look around you… this isn’t the kingdom that Commander Bolt fought for. The military families are treated with favoritism while the civilians who are being protected are starving in the streets. Under your rule, ponies are being forced to join the Royal Guard because in order for them to receive even the slightest attention in this society you have to be or have been a soldier at one time. The slums are full of poverty stricken ponies who haven’t the health or the strength to be soldiers. And the only thing you’ve done to help them, is to force your peace upon them like a tyrannical dictator. You refuse to help those who can’t help themselves, and anypony who complains is silenced. And you do this all in the name of Commander Bolt… you disrespect what he gave his life for… and I can’t accept that.”
Unhappy with Gem Stone’s words, Thundaga gave her an unamused look as she replied, “So… for that, you decided to dethrone me then… is that it?”
Gem Stone nodded her head and replied with determination, “yes… that’s right.”
Thundaga sighed before turning back to the waterfall as she looked into the mist covered valley and replied, “I can’t help but admire your boldness for saying such things… but sadly I will not do as you ask. As a princess I must hold my kingdom’s pride amongst all other things. Including… the rants of an imposter.”
Gem’s expression became annoyed, “What was that?... an Imposter?”
Thundaga replied in anger, “Isn’t it obvious? You faked your name in order to gain Cirrus’s trust, then used the same identity to convince him to bring you to me. Isn’t that right? You see… the real Captain Gem Stone wouldn’t be angry with the way the kingdom is… she would be happy to know that what she and Commander Bolt fought for was being upheld.”
Gem Stone replied with anger in her voice, “what we fought for… We didn’t fight to hold the entire kingdom hostage, let alone the world! We fought to complete Commander Bolt’s goal. To unite the two sisters and bring an end to the fighting!”
Thundaga nodded her head, “yes… and that’s what I did. I brought an end to the fighting… not just here, but everywhere. In this new world, war has become a thing of the past. If anypony starts a war, I and the rest of the world will come down on them, without fear, and without mercy.”
Gem Stone replied, “Exactly, like a tyrant coming down on those weaker then herself. You’re nothing more than a vicious predator. Anytime somepony new shows their face, you kick them down to prove that you’re better than them… you’re no better than a schoolhouse bully.”
Thundaga smiled, “And you a parasite. Probing the trust of a new pony and using him to get close to your goal… you’re nothing more than a hypocrite.”
The tension between the two made Cirrus feel nervous as Gem Stone smiled, “better a hypocrite, than a failure of a daughter.”
This comment proved to be the last of Thundaga’s patients as she replied in anger, “I grow tired of this farce… Soldiers… Dispose of this poser.”
The guard closest to Gem Stone smiled as he replied, “with pleasure your majesty.”
With that, the guard raised his swords into the air with the intent to strike Gem Stone with a vertical swing but before he could, Gem Stone took a quick and saddle step closer as she shifted her body around the solder, grabbed the back of his head and slammed his face into the stone floor beneath them.
The soldier’s body went limp as soon as the impact rendered him unconscious. With quick and hastened movements Gem Stone picked up the soldiers sword as she quickly turned towards Thundaga and charged, “FIGHT YOUR OWN BATTLES!!!”
With those words, Gem Stone charged towards Thundaga with the sword at the ready as two guards between the them tried to stop her. As the first one swung his sword, Gem easily blocked with her sword as she parried the unicorn’s sword away from her. At that time the second soldier also swung his sword vertically as Gem dodged this blade entirely before grabbing the first soldiers horn and slamming his face into his comrade’s rendering them both unconscious. As the two guards fell to the ground, Gem continued her charge with almost no decrease in her previous speed.
As Gem Stone came within striking distance, she jumped in the air and raised her sword to strike Thundaga in the back of her head, however as she did, Thundaga quickly drew her sword, turned around and blocked the attack as she smiled, “You want a fight… you got it!”
With that, Thundaga parried the blade away as she brought up her other hoof and punched Gem Stone in the face with enough force to send her flying into the air away from her. Although the punch caught her off guard, Gem still managed to regain control as she rolled herself over and landed on her hooves as she quickly readied herself for another attack. As soon as she landed, the remaining guards quickly charged at her as Thundaga called, “Stand down!”
Stopping in their tracks, the soldiers looked at Thundaga as she spoke, “If she is Captain Stone, then she shouldn’t have a problem defeating me. So… let’s see if she can prove her identity.”
With that said Thundaga stood at a prepared stance with her sword turned sideways as if to insult Gem Stone by revealing her father and mother’s cutiemarks painted on the side of the blade. Although it did irritate her slightly, Gem Stone could only ready herself as she replied, “Then go ahead and try… but just so you know… you have no right to bear his sword.”
Thundaga ignored the comment as she changed her stance to a defensive one and replied, “Good… it’s been a while since I’ve faced a pony worth my time… so go ahead, I'll let you have one more chance to take me down.”
Gem Stone replied as she began charging, “As you wish!”
Charging out of anger, Gem Stone raised the sword and tried to strike Thundaga with a horizontal swing, however as she swing, Thundaga raised her sword and blocked the attack as she parried it away and took a swing of her own aiming for Gem’s neck. Seeing the swing, Gem managed to duck downward and dodge the attack, however she wasn’t able to dodge the punch that came from her other hoof as the unexpected attack hit Gem Stone in her muzzle as it tossed her away from Thundaga and back to where she originally charged from.
Like before Gem was able to regain her control and land back on her hooves, but this time as she landed, she started to feel dizzy as she dropped to a knee to breathe. Seeing this Cirrus called, “Ms. Stone! Your majesty! I think she’s had enough! Ple-”
“SILENCE!!!”
When he heard the command Cirrus silenced himself as Thundaga looked at him with anger in her eyes, “A soldier chooses for herself when she if finished. You on the other hoof don’t have that right to plea for her life. She is the only one who may plea for the fight to end… but for true soldiers... that won’t happen.” She looked at Gem Stone, “will it Ms. Stone?”
Regaining her breath, Gem Stone stood back up and unlaced her cloak as she let it fall to the ground, “You’re right about that, and we’re just getting started… right?”
Thundaga smiled, “that’s the spirit… now, it’s my turn to go on the offensive.” She changed her stance, “Ready?...”
Changing her stance to defensive, Gem Stone replied, “Whenever you ar-”
Before she could finish, Thundaga opened her wings and used them to thrust herself forward with a speed that was too fast for her to keep up as Thundaga closed the distance and found herself standing within striking distance before Gem could even finish her sentence. Although she was caught off guard from her opponents speed, Gem Stone barely had the time to raise her sword and block Thundaga’s horizontal swing as Thundaga smiled, “Impressive… but still… TOO SLOW!!!”
With that Thundaga parried Gem’s blade as she brought the sword back and hit Gem Stone across her face with the back of the blade. Although the attack stunned her, Gem Stone still managed to ignore enough of the pain as she brought her sword back with the intent on hitting Thundaga on her face with the blade.
Unfortunately her attack was pointless as Thundaga reached up with her opposite hoof and grabbed Gem Stone’s sword wielding hoof before the blade could make contact. Gem Stone struggled to free her hoof as Thundaga smiled, “nice try… but you won’t win that easily.”
With that Thundaga reared her head back before bringing it back in and bashing her head against Gem’s with enough force to stun her and make her release her sword. With Gem too stunned to defend herself, Thundaga had no problem turning and tossing the defenseless mare over her shoulder as Gem flew through the air before colliding with the bridge’s stone railing without any attempt of slowing or softening her impact. As Gem Stone hit the railing overlooking the falls her body fell to the ground as Thundaga picked up the sword she was using as she smiled, “a solder is nothing without her weapon, so here… HAVE THIS BACK!!!”
With that yelled, Thundaga tossed the sword as hard and accurately as she could as the sword flew towards Gem Stone and pierced everything in its path as the tip of the swords blade exposed itself on the opposite side of the stone railing.
Far off in The Everfree forest, Zine immediately broke from his balanced meditation as he fell from his staff and splashed into the shallow pool below. Hearing the splash, Spike quickly looked over at Zine as he started to speak, “Zine? Are yo-”
“S-Spike!”
Hearing the strain in his voice Spike stopped talking as Zine struggled to pick himself up, “W-we… We have to get to Canterlot!... We have to get there now!!!”
Hearing the urgency in his voice, Spike quickly rushed to Zine’s saddlebag as he brought it to him as the weakened zebra picked up his staff, grabbed the saddlebag and started searching for something inside. As he did, Spike spoke with worry, “what is it?... did… did something happen to Gem and Cirrus?”
As he replied, Zine pulled a flask out of his saddlebag and tossed it towards Spike, “Not yet… but if we don’t get there soon… we both are going to die.”
Seeing the urgency in his expression, Spike quickly caught the flask, opened the top and swallowed the potion inside as he braced himself for the pain that came with having wings sprout from his back. As soon as the wings appeared, Spike asked, “What about me… should I try to keep myself hidden?”
Zine replied, “Not really… but if you want, fly high. There is too much mist, fog and haze to make you out in the sky, although we will be seen when we arrive… there is no preventing that. Just hope the guards don’t try to attack you out of fear. I don’t think any of them have seen a dragon before.”
With that Spike nodded his head as he picked up the weak zebra in his claws and took to the sky flying as fast as his wings could carry him.
Back in Canterlot, Gem laid against the stone railing with fear in her eyes as blood ran down from the cut that the sword gave her when it flew by her face and imbedded itself into the stone railing of the bridge. Seeing the terrified expression on Gem’s face made Thundaga smile as she spoke, “come now Ms. Stone. That can’t be everything you have. Unless, you truly are an imposter. But if you aren’t… then quickly recover your weapon… because here I come!”
With that Thundaga charged, this time without the aid of her wings as Gem Stone quickly regained her senses and tried to pull her sword from the stone railing. However with her body too weak from the previous set of attacks that she took, she was unable to pull the sword from the wall as Thundaga reached her and swung horizontally at the cornered mare. Barely able to dodge, Gem dropped to the ground as Thundaga’s sword scraped across the stone railing making a deep cut in the stone. With no room to counter, Gem couldn’t do anything as Thundaga used her other hoof to grab Gem by her bleeding face and slammed the back of her head against the stone rail before tossing the stunned mare over her shoulder again as Gem flew helplessly across the bridge before hitting the railing on the opposite side and falling to the ground in pain.
This time, the impact was too much for Gem to take as she laid helplessly on the ground as Thundaga casually began trotting towards her, “so… you truly are an imposter. If you were her, you would have been able to beat me, after all… my father’s soldier were the strongest this kingdom has ever had. And nopony not even I could ever hope to face on of his officers and win. Especially his most trusted officer.”
“YOUR MAJESTY!!!”
As Thundaga approached Gem, she paused at the call as she looked over at Cirrus who spoke, “Please! Mercy! Can’t you see she’s had enough! She can’t call off the fight because she doesn’t even have the strength to do so! Please, no more! She can’t take anymore, if she does she’ll die! I’m begging you stop this fight!”
Thundaga gave Cirrus an unamused stare as she replied, “Cirrus… why did you bring her here? Was it because of who she said she was? Or was there more too it?”
Cirrus didn’t know how to answer as he hesitated. Trying to peace it together Thundaga pointed her sword at Gem Stone and moved the part of her mane that was covering the weak pegasus’s face as she continued, “can’t you see, she isn’t who she says she is? She’s nothing more than a pawn used by the rebellion to turn you against me… or… were you never on my side to begin with.”
Feeling her mane moved slightly, Gem struggled to try and move to continue the fight, but her efforts proved useless. Seeing this, Thundaga looked down at her and spoke with a sympathetic tone, “here… let me help you with that.”
With that said, a dark haze of magic ran down from Thundaga’s mane as it wrapped itself around Gem’s neck before picking up the stunned mare and carrying her over the river as she dunked the helpless mare into the river and held her under the surface. As Gem’s submerged body struggled for air, Cirrus called, “NO! Ms. Stone! Your majesty please Stop! She’ll drown! Please let her surface!”
After hearing that, Thundaga pulled Gem Stone back out of the water as Gem’s started coughing while Thundaga spoke, “well, well… your cutiemark didn’t wash away. I would have guessed that it was painted on. And yet… you look the exact same as you did before, so it’s obvious that you certainly look like captain Gem Stone. Although… I’m still not convinced.”
Cirrus continued his plea, “Please! Your majesty! She’s had enough. If you let her go now then she can promise to leave the kingdom and never return! Just please, don’t kill her!”
Hearing the continued plea started to make Thundaga think, “Cirrus Cloud! For some time now I’ve been waiting on an answer to your offer… so… What will it be?”
Cirrus was confused with the sudden change in subject, “Wh-what?”
Thundaga continued, “You’ve obviously thrown your hoof in with this rebellion tractor… and yet… you claim that you have no support for the rebellion itself. But on the other hoof… you still haven’t proven to me that you support my cause neither… so where does your support lie… the rebellion, or kingdom?”
Cirrus didn’t know how to react, “Wh-what… I… I um…”
Thundaga looked Cirrus in the eye from a distance, “who do you support… the rebellion or Equestria? War or Peace? This excuse for an imposter or me?”
Cirrus tried to think of what to say as he tried to reply, “I… I um… W-well I uh…”
Seeing that he was stalling more, made her sigh with disappointment as she replied, “very well… then let your actions reply for you.”
With that, Thundaga turned away from the river as she brought Gem Stone to the other side of the bridge where the river turned into a waterfall and held Gem Stone over the falls. With Gem Stone hanging over a tall waterfall, a wave of magic flowed from Thundaga’s mane as it wrapped itself around Gem’s wing as a loud crack was heard followed by a scream from Gem Stones mouth. , “Tell me now Cirrus! Do you wish to save this warmonger! Or save the kingdom! Her life, or the lives of everypony around you! Answer now!”
Cirrus looked at her in shock, “Wh-what did you do?”
Thundaga replied with anger, “I wing is an important part of a pegasi’s body. It can make travel faster, and also, save the pony from a great fall… to bad this imposter’s wing is now dislocated… wonder how she will fare from this height.”
Cirrus couldn’t believe what he heard, “what?... are you going to drop her?”
Thundaga replied with an annoyed expression, “Not if you don’t make me.”
Cirrus quickly tried to think of an answer as Gem Stone Spoke through her pain and fatigue, “you… you coward.”
Thundaga’s eyes shifted to look at Gem Stone, “Excuse me?...”
Gem continued, “you think that bribing him with my life will make him choose a tyrant over the rest of the kingdom?... p-pathetic… this only proves that you don’t have the right to hold his name. An action like this… would only bring shame to both your father and mother.”
Hearing this made Thundaga smile as she figured something out, “wait a second… if I recall… Captain Gem Stone was in love with my father at one time wasn’t she? So that means… oh… oh this is priceless.”
Gem’s struggling expression showed confusion as she replied, “wh-what?...”
Thundaga turned her head to look Gem Stone in the eye as she continued, “this isn’t about the way I rule the kingdom… this isn’t even about how the subjects feel at all. This whole thing is about you, isn’t it? It’s all about you… and your jealousy.”
“wh-what are you talking abo-”
“oh don’t play dumb Captain. This is all about how the stallion you love, ended up with another mare, and gave birth to me, isn’t it? About how you were robbed of your happiness and in the end, I’m the result of your love and another mare, am I right?”
Gem tried to reply, “th-that’s not tr-”
“oh come now, you know it’s true. You never had the happiness you deserved and the stallion you loved lived the remainder of his life with another mare and completely forgot you. That it isn’t it? No happy ending four you is there? You act as if this was to favor the rest of the kingdom, like you were preforming an act of charity towards everypony around you, but in actuality this is nothing more than a selfish act. And a pathetic attempt to get what you want, to make yourself feel better about your death.”
Gem Stone became irritated, “Sh-shut up…”
Thundaga smiled at how her words were sinking in as she continued, “Well if I’m wrong then convince me… Name one pony besides Cirrus or Zine that this would benefit. Name one name… and I'll take it all back.”
Quickly Gem Stone tried to think of a name to give, however, nopony came to mind. Try all she could she never learned the names of anypony other than Cirrus, Zine, and Spike, and for spike’s safety she decided not to say his name. However, when she tried to reply with a random citizen, she had no name to give. With no answer to say, Gem Stone held her silence as Thundaga smiled at her obvious expression, “As I thought… you truly don’t know anypony that this helps do you?... do you even know anypony amongst the rebellion either?... No?... then it’s all true. You’re only doing this for yourself.”
With Gem Stone not saying anything to defend herself, Thundaga shook her head, “How sad… I guess this proves that you are who you say you are… but I never knew that one of the ponies I looked up to, was so selfish… pity.” She looked back at Cirrus, “Cirrus?... have you made your decision? Will you choose me… or her?”
Both Cirrus and Gem Stone only replied to both situations in silence as Thundaga looked at Gem Stone, then back at Cirrus as she sighed, “Very well… then let this decide for you.”
Thundaga turned to Gem Stone as she sheathed her sword, “Sorry captain… but it appears fate isn’t on your side… again.”
With that Thundaga ceased using the magic that held Gem Stone over the waterfall, as the flightless pegasus fell alongside the water in the falls, and vanished into the mist. Seeing this Cirrus called, “GEM STONE!!!”
With that he looked back at Thundaga who smiled, “make your decision now commander… Her… or me.”
Knowing there was almost not time to hesitate, Cirrus quickly rushed to the closest rail as he jumped from the falls and fell into the thick haze as he vanished amongst the mist. When he jumped from the railing, Thundaga took a step towards him as if she was trying to stop him, however after the step she stopped as she could only stand still staring at the railing as she mumbled, “N-no…”
trotting to the railing, Thundaga looked into the mist shrouded valley as she mumbled, “he… he chose her… but I thought he… I… I thought we… could…”
All of a sudden a soldier from inside the city yelled at the top of his lungs “DRAGON!!!”
Reacting to the sudden call, Both Thundaga and the four remaining guards looked to the sky as they saw the massive shadow that Spike and his wings were casting on the haze above. As soon as they saw it, the higher ranking guard looked at the rest of his soldiers, “Battle Stations! Prepare for comba-”
“NO!!!”
Confused, the soldier looked at Thundaga as she gave her orders, “The dragon has shown no hostilities towards us. So we have no reason to harm him. Put all soldiers on standby and wait for my order. If he is here to harm us, then and only then will we fi-”
“HE’S COMING!!!”
Thundaga silenced herself as she looked to the sky as Spike broke through the clouds and flew straight towards them.
Expecting this to be a continued assault from earlier, Thundaga drew here sword and waited for her aggressor to come close enough to strike, however as he got closer, it became clear that Spike wasn’t diving towards her, but instead, he dove past her as the massive dragon flew over the bridge and dove into the valley as he to vanished into the thick and misty haze that concealed the entirety of the valley. As soon as he passed, Thundaga re-sheathed her swords as she mumbled, “that dragon… it was Spike… it has to be. And… if it is… then… is he supporting the attempt to dethrone me? And, why would captain Stone do the same? Do they… truly hate me so?...”
Trying to think to herself, Thundaga’s expression went from confused to angry as if a switch was flipped, “You’re right… my cause is just and my decision final. They are the ones who fight for the wrong reason. And if they try again… it is they who will pay for their treachery.”
The guards gathered around her as the lead soldier spoke, “Your majesty, we have assembled a search party and are ready to pursue Cirrus Cloud and his companion.”
Thundaga shook her head, “no… let them run.”
The guard was shocked, “but your majesty? Th-”
“One is incapable of fighting while the other has lost her will… we have nothing to fear from either one of them. However, heed this order; Cirrus Cloud and the mare referring to herself as Captain Gem Stone are hereby banished from the city of Canterlot. If they show their face here again… they will be captured and executed for conspiracy to commit war on the kingdom. Also bring me Zine… He has gone too far and will be tried for his crimes against nature… his punishment… will also be execution.”
The guard nodded his head as he turned to leave, “yes your majesty. At once.”
Before the guard could get too far away, Thundaga stopped him, “also… Find and bring me commander Mist… it appears I owe him an apology.”
Minutes ago, in the valley Cirrus was diving alongside the falling water as fast as he could as he saw Gem Stone falling below. Diving with as much speed as he could muster, Cirrus managed to catch up to her as he reached out and wrapped his hooves around her to get a good grip. Then as he looked down, he saw the rocky river below approaching as he quickly pulled up into a high speed flight that took him through the hazy valley. As he flew Cirrus found himself dodging strangely shaped rock formations that stuck high out of the river as he zig-zagged through the valley. As he continued dodging what appeared to be tall stones, Cirrus found that with his current strength he was unable to pull up since the obstacles were coming at him too rapidly to change his elevation and Gem’s extra weight made his mass too great for his speed to control properly. As he dodged the rocky towers, Cirrus quickly looked down at Gem’s face to see if she was alright, but as he did, he saw her eyes just opening as an intense flashback of an open battlefield filled his mind causing him to hesitate.
Hesitating too long on the flash back, Cirrus looked back up to see another rock formation coming towards him. With too little time to dodge, Cirrus braced himself as he still made the attempt, however as he did, the obstacle clipped his wing as it caused him to spin out of control and fall into the water with a splash. Although Cirrus knew how to swim, the combination of the strong river current and Gem’s weight made it impossible for him to do so as the water pulled him along making it hard for him to breathe. With the current keeping him underwater too long Cirrus found himself blacking out as he held onto Gem Stone as hard as he could. Soon, the exhausted pegasus started to lose consciousness, however, as he opened his eyes to look around, he could see a large shadow hovering over the water as it reached into the river and grabbed them both just as everything went black.