Hoofsteps echoed across the common room.
Seraphimus looked up from a lonesome stupor. Her charcoal brown eyes adjusted to an approaching figure.
Flynn trotted briskly towards her side of the room. At last, the balding stallion approached the pipework she was handcuffed to. Levitating a wrench or two, he proceeded to tighten the rivets of the brass array above the griffon.
Seraphimus watched in contemplative silence.
Flynn continued working... working...
At last, it was Seraphimus who cleared her throat and said something. "Is there a purpose to this?"
"Uh huh..." he said, kept working, albeit with a subtle frown.
More silence.
"Would I benefit in any way from knowing?" Seraphimus droned.
Flynn's nostrils flared. "I'm attempting to adjust the air filtration of the facility in order to ease up on the power supply. We'll need all the crystals we can preserve for the inevitable trip ahead."
"I'm chained to these pipes," Seraphimus said. "Does this have a chance of scalding me to a roasted death?"
"The Hell do I care?" Flynn groaned.
Seraphimus calmly nodded. "Indeed."
And—just like that—silence returned.
Seraphimus grew noticeably restless, and it wasn't because of the work Flynn was doing to the pipes. "Your friend was in here earlier," she stated. "The one they call 'Big Show.'"
Flynn's jaw muscles tightened. Her grumbled inwardly. "Mmmmmmhmmmm..."
"He is... a creature of remarkable depth," Seraphimus said, her tone of voice faltering slightly. The griffon's hawkeyes fell to the stone floor of the common room. "Suffered through many hardships... many conflicts—both physical and otherwise."
Flynn twisted and grinded with the wrench harder.
Seraphimus continued. "He was... simply telling me earlier how he had—"
"Yeah, look." Flynn stopped dead in his works to glare down at the griffon with one angry eye. "I know he told you things. Why? I haven't the faintest goddess-damned clue. Guess trusting in his friends just doesn't cut it anymore. Damn bitter bastard feels like he has to consort with a putrid, homicidal bum instead. Makes you wonder where we went wrong..."
"He values h-his friendship with you." Seraphimus found herself stammering. "I simply find it... remarkable that a pony of such principles could—"
"Could what?!" Flynn's metal lens extended like a knife. He spat, "Risk his fat hide for a psychopath like you?! Cuz then—yeah—me too! Hell, I'm still shocked he hasn't friggin' pissed down your neck by now."
Seraphimus took a fuming breath. "You underestimate the pony's ethical restraint—"
"No! I know all about it!" Flynn gnashed his teeth. "That's just the whole point! Where was your moral insight when you chased us to the edges of the earth, threatening to murder every single damn thing in your path?!" He hissed, "Isn't it awfully convenient to throw reason and respect out the window? Thinking of us as nothing but 'blighted meatbags' must have made the whole ruthless attack on the Gondola way the Hell easier. We almost lost more than one 'remarkable' soul thanks to you."
Seraphimus tried to frown, but her headcrest had drooped noticeably. " You misunderstand me—"
"No, I know all that you're about," Flynn said. "So you lost your whole family to the Great Thaw after Verlaxion bit it. So what? We've all lost something before joining the Herald. Thing is—we've all chosen to put our strengths into improving this world... as well as worlds beyond. But you? Just because Verlaxion took everything precious away from you, that somehow gives you license to be a murderous, selfish bucktard. Selfish enough that you're willing to throw away your own life just to make other ponies miserable. Well, if you're suddenly and inexplicably feeling guilty now, you can just go sit on my forhead and rotate, you sorry sack of self-righteous shit."
Seraphimus took a long, concentrated breath. Her eyes narrowed. "Are you quite finished?"
"No! I'm not!" Flynn shook in place, attempting—in vain—to temper the anger. "Y'know... none of us set out to murder the Frost Queen of Rohbredden. If anything, we just wanted to expose her... to open everypony's eyes to the web and lies she had weaved throughout the ages. Turns out the whole 'roll over and die' thing was her idea... a cruel stunt pre-planned at everypony's expense. So it's no damn surprise that a pitiful griffon like you would worship to her. What irony that you can't see beyond your own sorrow to understand the real tragedy here." Flynn leaned back, exhaling. "You were as much a pawn of this whole mess as Rainbow Dash was. Difference is... Rainbow's got a shred of decency."
"In what way?"
"Because she's keeping us all from slitting your damned throat!" Flynn grumbled. "Even after all the crud you've done! She still has hope for you! Goddess knows why!" At long last, he gathered the semblance of a normal breath. "So—to reiterate—no... my tweaking these pipes isn't going to scaled you to death." Frowning, he returned to the pipework with his wrench. "Besides, you're doing burns enough to yourself to last a lifetime..."
Seraphimus blinked up at him. Her beak opened to say something, but a shiny gray shape reflected off her eyes. She looked across the common room.
Flynn noticed it. He turned to glance behind him.
Ariel hovered beside a stairwell, squinting at the two. "... ... ...having a little moment?"
Flynn's brow furrowed. "What's it to you?"
Ariel rolled her ocean blue eyes. "Whatever." She motioned with her hoof. "Come quick. Kepler's discovered the last log."
"...!" Flynn instantly dropped his wrench and galloped out of the room.
"What...?" Seraphimus craned her neck. "What has he discovered?" She called out louder. "What happened to the ancient ponies of this place?"
Ariel and Flynn were gone.
Seraphimus slumped back against the pipes. For some reason... she was short of breath. Her shackled talons wrung each other anxiously as her mind reeled with the stallion's words.