//------------------------------// // Chapter 12: The Arrival // Story: Casualties of War // by Deathscar //------------------------------// The light that approached the group increased in intensity with each passing second. Twilight stood on the road, her determined eyes staring straight at the light. “Twilight! Get out of the way!” Rarity shouted, but Twilight stood firm. As the shape of the griffin appeared, it only tempted her to leap out of the way to safety. What if it was him? The griffin that caused suffering and grief to her and her friends? The thing that was approaching her started to become clear. The griffin was not dressed in any sort of armor and also lacked any menacing gaze in his eyes. He was pulling along a large wagon, cuboid in shape and holding presumably his goods. A lantern hung off one end of the wagon, just behind him, the only source of light in the darkness of the forest they were all too familiar with. “Twilight! He’s not noticing you!” Rarity yelled as loud as she could. She prepared to charge forward, tackling Twilight away to safety but turning her head to her right and seeing Rainbow’s third color fade away, it only forced her to remember that this was something that needed to be done. The griffin squinted his eyes and could barely make out an odd, small shape in front of him. As he travelled closer, his eyes widened at the clear sight of the figure. The details of her purple coat and horn clear to him. He dug his claws deep into the ground, hoping to slow himself down enough to avoid the pony that stood, firm in front of him. Twilight didn’t twitch as the griffin came within inches away from her face before halting. Her friends, however, were not as sure as she was, yelling in desperation for Twilight to dive away before letting out a sigh of relief as the cart came to a stop, barely avoiding Twilight. “Get out of my way, pony!” The griffin’s voice didn’t seem different from any others she had heard. Low, booming, commanding. Twilight felt an immense amount of fear, but one quick glance at Rainbow brought her motivation back. “Please, we need a ride to Gryphus!” Twilight begged, not wanting to waste any time Rainbow might have left. The griffin scoffed. “Ponies are not welcomed in Gryphus! Now get out of my way!” “Please, I’m begging you. We need a ride to Gryphus.” Twilight stared up at the griffin with pleading eyes. “And why should I give it to you?” “Because my friend won’t make it if we don’t get there.” Twilight stared at Rainbow, who seemed lifeless as she laid on the grass. Fluttershy stood next to her, her muzzle lowered onto Rainbow as she stared at her with tear-filled eyes. When the griffin saw the injured cyan pony, his glare changed from one of anger to one of pity. His eyesbrows raised and arched away from each other, his beak hung slightly open. When he turned back to the purple unicorn in front of him, he was met with another plea. “Please. I’ll give you anything you want if you would just take us to Gryphus. She needs medical attention or she’ll...” Twilight swallowed the last of her words, tears of her own at the edge of her eyes. The griffin went silent for a few seconds, but each second of silence sounded like an eternity for Twilight, who desperately needed this one kind act. She prayed in her mind to Celestia for this. “I...” Twilight braced herself for what the griffin might say. “Get in.” The words caused everypony to look up to the griffin, whose gaze was locked onto Rainbow. “You’ll-You’ll take us?” Twilight was on the edge of crying out of joy. The griffin gave a short nod. That was all that was needed to send tears flowing down Twilight’s face. “Thank you so much!” “Quickly, get inside the wagon. It serves as a warm shelter for all of you,” the griffin commanded, which Twilight happily followed. “Girls! Inside! Now!” Twilight continued the command, her hooves shaking terribly. Fluttershy quickly lifted Pinkie onto her back and trotted into the wagon, with Applejack following closely, Rainbow Dash unmoving on her back. Rarity followed closely and just as Twilight was about to step in herself, she heard the griffin call out to her. “Purple unicorn, would you mind sitting at the top of the wagon? I have some questions.” Twilight paused for a moment, but was afraid to offend him and their only way to Gryphus. She climbed onto the top of the wagon, just behind the griffin as he continued to walk forward at a much slower pace then he was before. Twilight sat in awkward silence for a good few minutes, the only sound was the wooden wheels with squeaked and shook every time it ran over even the smallest of rocks. The griffin walked silently, his eyes fixated on the dirt road in front of him. Twilight didn’t know whether to speak up, or wait. As the uncomfortable feeling of sitting there, staring at the identical trees that passed her by, soaked in, she finally decided to speak up. “Umm, Mr Griffin, sir?” “Call me Rolant.” “R-Rolant,” Twilight corrected herself, “you said you had questions for me?” “Yes, I do,” he answered, never breaking his sight on the road. “Forgive me for the silence. I was collecting my thoughts.” “Well, I’ll answer whatever questions they may be,” Twilight replied, a smile on her face. “Thank you, for doing this. If you hadn't come along, we would be-” “No need for thanks, Miss...?” The griffin paused, hoping for his sentence to be completed. “Sparkle. Twilight Sparkle.” “What an odd name, Miss Sparkle.” “Call me, Twilight,” she insisted. “Very well. Twilight, the most obvious question would be, what were all of you doing in the middle of the Duskbringer Forest at night?” “Duskbringer Forest?” Twilight repeated. “Yes, that is the name of this forest that we’re in.” “O-Oh.” Twilight turned her head away from the griffin. “We’re... on a mission.” “Interesting. Then, what is your goal in Gryphus? Or is that part of a mission too?” “Yes, it is,” Twilight answered. “Oh, very well. Next question.” The words the griffin muttered caught Twilight entirely off-guard. She was sure that she knew what the next question was going to be. On impulse, she asked. “Aren’t you going to try to ask what the mission is?” The griffin shook his head lightly. “I’ve lived for a long time, seen many things, been part of many events that have happened over the years in the Griffin Kingdoms. From all my years of experience, I have found never to dug into ‘missions’ that do not include me.” Twilight didn’t reply, for she didn’t know how. “What happened to your friend? That blue pony.” “R-Rainbow? Oh she was attacked.” Twilight closed her eyes shut as she said the words. “Attacked? What could possibly have done that much damage to her?” Twilight didn’t want to answer. “I’d...rather not say.” “Why not?” “You’ll get mad.” “I won’t, I promise,” Roland assured the unicorn. Twilight didn’t know why, but she felt like she could trust him. She took one deep breath before answering. “A griffin.” Twilight braced for Roland to yell in anger, spin around or abandon her friends altogether. She closed her eyes and prepared for a backlash, but none came. Opening her eyes, she saw Roland, keeping his pace with his eyes staring at the ground beneath him. “You’re not mad?” “I told you, Twilight. I would not get mad and I keep to my words,” Roland explained. “R-Right,” Twilight was afraid that she might have just offended her savior. “S-Sorry.” “Apologies are not needed,” Roland responded. “Do you have any more questions?” “Yes, I do. However, I’m afraid we do not have time to go through them all. We’re reaching Gryphus.” “H-How do you know that?” Twilight asked as the way in front of her still seemed to be filled with trees. “I’m a traveller. I’ve walked down this very path thousands of times. In fact, it was probably I who created this very dirt path you see. It was a much better job than my former one.” “What was your former job?” Twilight asked, curious. There was a moment of silence before Roland answered. “A war medic. Now go, hide back in the wagon with your friends. As I’ve said, ponies are not welcomed in Gryphus. If they notice you, they will have your heads and mine.” “B-But where are we supposed to go if ponies are hated in Gryphus!?” “I’ll drop you off at the hospital. The hospital is empty, I assure you. And the griffins there would be more then happy to help both you and your friends, possibly providing shelter, food and water. Now quickly!” Roland hurried Twilight. “The hospital is... empty?” “There is no time to explain! Into the wagon! Now!” Roland’s commanding voice returned to him, shocking Twilight into teleporting directly in the wagon, entering the dark, enclosed room. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light, her heart started to sink once more. Rainbow lay to her left, her mane had lost its orange color, leaving only the red to stand alone. Fluttershy was crying endlessly, her whimpers the only sound throughout the close walls of the wagon they were in as she leaned over her dying friend, tears falling onto her cyan coat. Pinkie lay at the opposite side of the wagon of Rainbow, turning towards the wall. Rarity stood beside her, petting Pinkie’s mane and speaking no words. Applejack stood in front of Twilight, staring at the same scene she was. It was clear that the scene in front of both ponies tore at their hearts with each passing second. Twilight trotted up to Fluttershy, nudging her and getting her attention. Twilight moved forward, slipping her hooves around the pegasus’s neck and pulling her tightly into a hug. “We’re reaching Gryphus,” Twilight whispered into Fluttershy’s ear, “she’s going to be okay. I promise. But right now, I need you to keep quiet for a little while. Alright, Fluttershy?” Fluttershy gave a slow, heartbroken nod. Summoning all her strength, she bit down on the bottom of her lip, stifling any cries she wanted to emit. The silence made it easy for Twilight to hear the enclosed wagon coming to a stop. The sound of more claws hitting dirt was also very audible. Then, Twilight heard a phrase that caused her heart to skip a beat. “You know the drill, Roland! Open up your wagon!” Twilight closed her eyes, praying that Roland would be able to find a way to coax them out of it. “Now, guards. I doubt that’s nescessary. I’ve never smuggled any illegal goods in, what makes you think I would now?” “This isn’t a negotiation, Roland. Open your wagon! It’s protocol!’ “Gentlecolts, how many years have I passed through these very gates?” “T-Twenty years.” “And for how many years have you checked my goods?” “Twenty.” “And how many illegal goods have you confiscated?” “Z-Zero.” “Now, I am in a rush. If you would kindly let me through once, after these twenty years, I would appreciate it.” There was a tense moment with no words said. Twilight hugged Fluttershy tighter than ever, anxious to hear the next sentence. After a few more seconds, she finally heard the next sentence. “Open the gates! Roland is coming into Gryphus!” The defeaning sounds of large gates being opened filled the wagon and after that sound stopped, the sound of the wagon moving once again took over. This time, however, it was no longer the sound of wooden wheels on dirt. It was the sound of wooden wheels on stone floors. They were here. They were finally in...Gryphus.