//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Controlling Interest // Story: The Last Migration // by Starscribe //------------------------------// “Miss Starlight, we’re just about there. If you’d like to join us on the deck, this will be your only chance to see Scythia from above. It’s not an opportunity I would soon miss,” Sure Heading said, stepping aside from the door to her tiny cabin so she could follow. He had been a considerate first-mate during the whole voyage, though she would’ve expected nothing less. Considering what Twilight had paid for this trip, treating her like royalty every made complete sense. “I would like that very much,” Starlight said, following him out of the tiny cabin and up the stairs. “Have you visited Scythia before, Heading?” The old pegasus nodded. “A time ‘er two Miss Starlight, a time ‘er two. There are some goods a pony can only get if they’re willing to trade with the griffons, if you catch my meaning. The Wintergreen trades with everyone.” “What are they like?” Starlight followed as quickly as she could, ignoring the slight airsickness as the ship swayed with the breeze. She had expected that a few days of travel would be enough to get used to it—she had been mistaken. “The griffons, I mean.” Heading met her eyes. “Ever been to Griffonstone?” She nodded. “A few times. That was why Twilight recommended me for this mission.” Up ahead, the doorway onto deck was open, and sunlight streamed in. She could hear voices outside, sailors apparently busy as they prepared for landing. “Well, forget everything you ever saw. Those griffons are like the ones in Accipio the same way your pet cat is like a mountain lion. Some things in common, but… Equestria has tamed those birds. Not the ones you’ll be visiting. Every disturbing rumor you’ve ever heard, it’s true.” They stepped out into the sun. Starlight Glimmer spent a few seconds just standing on the deck, adjusting to her vertigo. The gasbag loomed huge above them, the breeze blasting past. Fresh air helped a little with her airsickness, though not enough to make it vanish immediately. Now that she was on the deck, she could clearly hear the gentle humming of the thaumic impeller engine, which had made this incredibly speedy trip possible. The engine was a prototype, and it was also the payment for this mission. The Daughter of Wintergreen would be richly rewarded for its humanitarian service. “Do they eat meat? Yes. Do they cook it? Not usually. Do they kill each other? Often. Do they keep slaves? More than you can count. Basically, they’re as different from us as somepony could be and still think the same way.” Starlight made her way to the railing, looking down over the edge at Scythia. Like Canterlot, Scythia was built into a mountain. In terms of scale, though, the buildings here made Canterlot look puny. All ancient marble, some yellowed but most scrubbed white. It could’ve held ten ponies to every one that lived in the pony capital. She recognized the straight line of the aqueduct, carrying in the enormous amount of water it took to sustain the city. There wasn’t a single cloud building in sight, or any other overt signs of magic. And indeed, she knew from experience that the griffons had no more magic than most creatures. They weren’t ponies. Most impressive of all were the shipyards. It seemed as though half the city was devoted to docks, wooden platforms that stretched over nothing, with aircraft moored at most of them. It looked like hundreds were under construction. Compared to these great vessels, the Wintergreen was an insect. There were zeppelins here that looked like they could carry ten thousand birds. “You make them sound like monsters,” Starlight said. “I know they aren’t. Celestia wouldn’t be letting them take shelter in Equestria if they were. She would be sending them away.” “Aye, you’d be right there Miss Starlight. They’ve got some things going for them mighty uncommon for ponies. Brave as anything, those birds. I’ve seen bird ships sail straight into a hurricane and fly out the other side. Not only that, but they’ve got an honor right uncommon with pony folk. Say just what they mean, and take what they say to the grave. If a bird is upset with you, they’ll say so. If they plan on killing you, they’ll say that too. And tell you what they’ll do when they’re done.” He shivered once, scratching at the stump on his left side. Sure Heading was a pegasus with only one wing. He’d never said what had happened to the other one. “Well, I need to be attending to my duties. I’d stay away from the edge as we come in for a landing—we tend to bump around quite a lot. Wouldn’t want you to take a tumble.” Starlight didn’t point out that she could fly pretty easily with her magic if the situation called for it. That was an enormously uncommon skill for unicorns, and not something she wanted spread around about her. Most ponies were already uncomfortable with all the magic she could do. Starlight returned to her cabin as they flew down to the docks, packing for her journey to the imperial palace and trying to prepare herself mentally for what was to come. She had read a few old books on the griffons during the trip, at least when she could look at the pages for more than a few minutes without throwing up. She had learned a great deal. She hadn’t wanted to explain it to Heading, but Starlight had another theory about why Celestia and Luna had agreed to take the griffons in. Not because they thought it was going to go well, but because they didn’t feel like they had a choice. The history she’d read about Accipio, what little had been written about them, was terrifying, both in scope and in brutality. The Accipion Empire had started as a single kingdom among many. After conquering the rest of their species, they’d moved on to subjugating and enslaving everypony else in the known world. So far as the books she’d read were concerned, everywhere now bowed to Accipio to one degree or another. Everywhere except Equestria, the only nation they had failed to conquer. They couldn’t conquer ponies, and apparently, they can’t conquer nature either. Nopony could’ve expected the very core of their territory concealed the geologic terror of a megavolcano. It wasn’t just the core of Accipio that was threatened, of course. Equestria would not be escaping the disaster unscathed. But ponies had been prepared in a way the birds were not. She knew they’d finally secured at the dock when she heard the shout of “Crew may disembark!” ringing through the tight wooden halls. She made her way up the steps, feeling a little apprehensive. Heading was waiting for her near the gangplank, marking down the names of ponies as they made their way ashore, as well as writing down when they planned on being back. He waved politely with his single wing as she approached. “Ready to go into the belly of the beast there, Miss Starlight?” She nodded. “I better be. But what’s the worst that could happen? Starting an international incident, provoking an invasion, dooming thousands of ponies to their deaths?” She laughed nervously, starting to hyperventilate. “It’ll be easy. Being the personal student of a princess sure is great!” Heading nodded slightly, apparently understanding her distress enough not to offer empty words like ‘I know just what you’re going through.’ Starlight had come to like these sailors over the last few days—they were far more practical than the average pony. “Well, we’ll be ready to cast by tomorrow, if you need it. We’ll be listening to the signs, ready to fly away if it looks like our predictions are wrong about…” “I don’t think they will be,” Starlight said. “Twilight’s precise with those sorts of calculations. If she says it will take three months, she means three months exactly. If she says six months, two weeks, and one day, that’s what she means. I checked her spell myself—disasters on this scale are easier to see coming than you might think.” “Not so easy somepony saw this coming a hundred years ago, and started moving birds to safe places then. Or started thinkin’ up some way to make it never happen in the first place.” “True, true. But honestly—” She leaned in close, lowering her voice to a whisper. “I’m more afraid of the griffons changing their minds about having us here. I’m only the student of the Princess of Friendship. I’m not as good at this as she is.” Heading leaned back, shrugging one shoulder. “Must be good enough, or else a princess wouldn’t have picked you. I’d say you must be able to handle it.” “Yeah,” she said, smiling in spite of herself. “I guess you’re right.” Of course, she knew full well what all the princesses were doing—preparing Equestria for its population to double. Maybe more. Nopony knew for sure just how many birds there were. And it wasn’t just birds that would be flooding in. Some of the most disturbing reports suggested that half the world might be coming to Equestria. The nation had plenty of empty land, but what it didn’t have was enough of anything to care for that many people. Starlight Glimmer made her way up the gangplank and onto the dock. She had her saddlebags, since she would probably be living in the palace for the next several months. The Daughter of Wintergreen would be ready to leave at a moment’s notice if something went wrong, but otherwise its crew would be getting a few months of paid vacation in a city full of predators. The docks were packed with creatures. There were a few ponies, though almost everything here didn’t seem to be. Griffons moved about in bustling hordes, wearing a great deal more clothing than Starlight was used to. Many of the birds had what looked like uniforms of a sort, made from stiff fabrics and dyed in drab colors. They looked like the same species she was used to from back in Equestria, though something of what Heading had said stuck out about them. They were a little fiercer looking than the birds in Griffonstone, their voices harsher and a little less friendly. Which was saying a lot, since the griffons in Equestria were already a hooffull-and-a-half to deal with. Only a few of them understood the importance of friendship, and those few didn’t seem terribly good at it. These birds had sharp beaks, sharper claws, and eyes that stared with obvious hunger as she passed. The most disturbing thing about Scythia wasn’t the birds, though. It was the slaves. They were everything she’d feared, minotaurs and zebras and stranger things wearing collars around their necks. They worked with downcast eyes, never looking up at her and always getting out of the way of anyone who got too close. It didn’t seem isolated to non-griffons either, because there were some birds with collars as well, working with the same emptiness as any of the others. What kind of civilization is willing to enslave its own people? Starlight didn’t let that line of thinking persist for very long, though. In some ways, she had enslaved her fellow ponies in Our Town. She had used different methods than chains and whips, but it was the same thing in the end. “Equestrian citizen!” called a voice from nearby, loud enough to startle her from her thoughts. “Equestrian citizen!” A bird landed in front of her, a full head taller than she was and wearing a crisply cut uniform. He had a weapon on his belt as well, something made from wood and metal that she recognized from her reading about the griffons. Apparently it was called a “flintlock,” though speculation on just how powerful these weapons actually were varied widely. Ponies agreed they shouldn’t be a threat to a unicorn who could make a good shield, but beyond that nothing was certain. Starlight Glimmer would remain ready to defend herself every moment, just in case. “Yes?” she asked, straightening a little. “How can I help you?” “It’s how I can help you, actually,” the bird responded, his tone almost friendly. “My father is expecting an official representative from Equestria to arrive today. If that’s you, I’m your escort. I’m here to make sure you make it to the palace without any trouble.” Your father. Starlight didn’t know very much about Emperor Gaius Renault, except what Celestia had told her. The bird continued, “Emperor Renault is wise and courteous beyond most others of his kind. I believe he is a ruler who can be trusted.” Starlight nodded. “I’m the envoy, yes. That would make you… a prince?” He shook his head. “We don’t have as many empty titles here. I am his oldest son, if that’s what you mean. Velar Renault, pleased to make your acquaintance.” He extended a claw to her, talons glittering sharp. Sharp enough that she knew without a doubt it could tear flesh. And he probably does. On a daily basis. Starlight reached out anyway with one hoof. “I’m Starlight Glimmer, Celestia’s representative. She would’ve come herself, but preparing for your arrival is going to take all the Alicorn magic we have.” Not-prince Velar gripped her hoof with surprising delicacy. “I’m sure my father understands.” His expression darkened a little, and he lowered his voice to a mutter. “I don’t believe he would have accepted the terms of this treaty otherwise.” He let go, turning for one of the many twisting paths that led up and away from the docks. Starlight realized abruptly that many of the birds standing nearby were all wearing the same uniforms, carrying the same weapons. Velar’s honor guard. “Come on then, Starlight Glimmer. My father is eager to meet you.”