//------------------------------// // Alternate Ways In // Story: The Olden World // by Czar_Yoshi //------------------------------// "Well, you'd certainly stand a better chance than either of us, my dear," Grandpapa chuckled, getting back to his hooves and offering a wing to help Kouskous do the same. "Provided, of course, you were willing to wait a year to get in on the next one. This year's has already begun, I'm afraid." Valey blinked, her sails completely robbed of their wind. "A year!?" she whined in surprise, ears falling. That was what Yakyakistan needed to give them passage for free! "I'm pretty sure I won't still be around here then..." "Technically-" Kouskous raised a hoof. "No." Grandpapa firmly cut him off. "I know what you're going to say, and you know how I'm going to answer. Best not to even begin planting the seeds of bad ideas in this one's head." "Buh?" Valey perked up again in interest. "Hey, so there is a way in? Getting conflicting messages, here." Grandpapa sighed. "You'll take a refusal of information as a challenge to figure it out for yourself, won't you? Very well... Suffice it to say that this tournament is, in essence, an event put on for the entertainment of commoners and nobles. There are strict rules to contend with, but cheating creates drama, and could be considered one of the tenets of the tournament altogether. So yes, there are ways for you get a shot at this year's prize... ways that are unlawful, immoral, and that I will ask you personally and politely not to look into because you succeeding with them would be a great disservice to the public image of our race, which is an image I assure you needs no further tarnishing. Have I sufficiently dissuaded you yet?" He raised a dangerous eyebrow. "Uhhhh..." Valey took a careful step back, weighing his words. On the one hoof, they were just extreme and targeted toward her own dislikes enough to tick her hyperbole detector, but that meant he had a hidden motive he didn't want to say to her face. On the other, she really did have more pressing things to worry about, didn't want to put her safety or reputation on the line for Gerardo's goal, and would get the same best outcome by waiting a year for Yakyakistan in the first place. "Sure thing, Gramps," she decided, rolling her shoulders and sitting back down. "So you guys are straight and true, then?" "We fight for our own reasons," Kouskous said. "For Dazzle and me, it's a way of making money. You know where Gyre is, right? Long, flat province that makes up the eastern half of the border with the Misty Mountains up north? It's kind of the middle of nowhere. Lots of mainlanders see it as practically bat country, or not even part of the Empire. Opportunities are slim, and the smartest, strongest, and most importantly lucky rise. Our ruling lord, Gondolus Gyre, is ambitious and wants to see the province earn its respect among the others, but that hasn't done much for the common folk. We're just fortunate to be talented in a scrap." He nodded to the elder stallion. "Grandpapa, now, his past is a mystery. He's from the Misty Mountains and came to Gyre when he was young, but... well, see how much he feels like telling you." Grandpapa glanced across the bed where Dazzle lay, grumbling deep in his throat. "A long time ago, I was an acolyte in service of the Night Mother. But there was an incident that caused me to lose faith, and so I left the northern lands for the Empire. Better to be looked down upon than pitied, I supposed, and I was tired of well-meaning attempts to convince me to return to my ways. Here, at least, my worth is judged on my own power, and likely will be until the day I die." Kouskous nodded. "That's about it." "Heh." Valey stiffly rubbed her neck. "Well, I know basically nothing about this Night Mother, so you won't get heckling from me. Sounds like she's pretty popular with other batponies, though?" "Oh, she is. And I don't begrudge them for it." Grandpapa walked around the wooden trunk where their belongings were stored, his wings restless at his sides. "It's far too easy to feel on your own in a world this wide and uncaring, and she is a friendly voice you can seek council from any night you please. Those who think they can go without her are quite hardy indeed." Valey tipped her head. "Hold on. I thought you said you lost faith?" "There is a difference between believing someone exists and exalting them in worship," Grandpapa said. "A very big one. I believe you exist, after all, yet it would surprise me greatly if you were some mythical creature descended from the heavens, or anything other than an unusually skilled ordinary sarosian." Valey nearly choked from the irony, and only saved herself from making a reaction with the sudden cold fear that he might actually be fishing for one. Mysterious past, and all that... Who knew what he knew? She flexed a foreleg instead, grimacing slightly as it reminded her that she had walked quite a few miles that day after a poor night's rest. "I mean, if you think this is only worth being called 'unusually skilled'..." "Ho! Well, I'll let you describe your proficiencies." If Grandpapa had been fishing, he didn't show any sign of disappointment. Instead, he waited half a second before narrowing his eyes in concern. "And... not to pry, but I've been watching you, and there's something off about the way you hold yourself, my dear. I recall you speaking poorly of the city when you arrived... You aren't by any chance injured, are you, my dear?" "Buh?" Valey blinked and stretched again, feeling the massive knots in her sides where her wings attached and the broken looseness in her legs that promised they'd hurt in the morning. "Injured, no, but I'm stupidly cramped and kinda tired..." "Cramps, you say." Grandpapa was again at her side faster than any old pony had a right to be moving, holding out the tentative tips of his wings. "Permission to touch you, my dear? I've been in this line of work long enough to know a thing or two about pony muscle anatomy." "I'd strongly advise it," Kouskous recommended. "Grandpapa is practically a professional. He always knows how to fix me or Dazzle up if we get roughed up during training or a match. If you're all knotted up, he should be able to fix you in a snap." Valey blinked at the other batpony, realizing what he was asking to do. "Uh, sure," she agreed, sensing nothing bad from her cutie mark. "I mean, you already tried to punch me. Just keep it clean, okay? You're not really my type." In a flash, Valey found herself belly-down on the wooden trunk, legs and wings splayed, being thoroughly and carefully checked over. Grandpapa progressively frowned harder and harder, finally poking her repeatedly in the sides and leaning over. "Whatever did you do to yourself, my dear?" he asked in blatant concern. "I can't imagine how you could fly with knots like these." "Ow," Valey groaned, already tenser after being prodded with his sharp wingtips. "Spent a night semi-wet in a cave smaller than this box with a rainstorm right in front of my nose after flying without rests all day, then also flew without rests the entire next day before hiding and holding still for several hours on some boats, then walked like a billion miles and crawled through a ridiculously small pipe, and also punched a few bozos... all while probably still recovering from getting heavily dunked on a few weeks ago..." Grandpapa clicked his tongue in disapproval. "I'd say I'm appalled at you for fighting and pushing yourself with your body in this condition, but in times and places like these, I understand you have to do it anyway. I am feeling slightly worse over that impromptu test of skill earlier, though, and hope you can forgive us for it." "Are you kidding, Grandpapa?" Kouskous looked shocked. "She beat both of us that handily when we had the element of surprise and were working together while effectively disabled and without flight, shadow sneaking of her full range of motion even as options?" "Told you I'm tough," Valey grunted, wincing as both of Grandpapa's wingtips dug into a mass of tense muscle just beneath her left wing joint. "Ow! Hey, that's..." Suddenly, as if a switch had been thrown, her side spasmed involuntarily, twitching rapidly like a spring that had been released and was bouncing with stored energy. After a second of shudders, it drained, and Valey felt a local relaxation so strong her body felt like it would curl from the difference in tension between her two sides. "Yo, what did you do?" "Put my skills to good use," Grandpapa chuckled, standing back and watching her flap her wing experimentally. "I don't advise doing any more stunts before getting a good night's rest, but let me work a little on the rest of you and see what I can make happen. I promise it'll be worth your while." Valey nodded, moaned, and shifted as he went to untangle her other wing, relishing being able to move the one without her entire back locking up. As she did, Kouskous walked around into her field of vision, tilting his head. "So," he began, "we told you who we are. How about a bit of information about yourself, then? I'd like to know who I just got my tail hoofed to me by." "Nyaaaaaah..." Valey groaned as her other wing came undone, wriggling slightly on the wooden trunk top. "Not a crazy lot to say. I was coming in on a ship with some friends, got separated, had to fly the rest of the way... Trying to find them, and pretty sure they're in this castle somewhere. You know anything about a griffon named Kero?" Kouskous nodded unhappily. "He's all over the news after something happened in Ironridge. Sounds like a bit of a braggart to me. You know him?" "Bananas." Valey hissed, realizing Amber had been right about who the griffon in the news really was. "Uhh... let's go with maybe. For a different reason, though. Better question: you know where I could find him?" Kouskous rubbed his chin. "Perhaps. As far as I know, there's two good ways you could go about looking for him, and it depends on what you know and want him for." He stopped, expecting an answer Valey didn't want to give. "Uhhh..." She glanced away. "What are my options?" "Fine, then," Kouskous sighed. "Way number one is Wallace Whitewing. Both him and Kero are from Izvaldi, so they probably know each other. Wallace is participating in pools right now... We're in lodging beneath the stadium where the tournament's first round is taking place, just so you know. He's staying somewhere fancier, but if you wait around for tomorrow and hang out in the crowd, there's a small chance you could get his attention. He might even come visit us, since apparently he was watching when Dazzle got her game ended and felt bad over it." Valey nodded. "Wallace Whitewing. Might have heard the name, don't remember. Way number two?" Kouskous swallowed. "If you're feeling risky and in a hurry, or if Kero wouldn't want to meet you, you could always try to sneak your way to him. These sewer tunnels are connected to just about everything, including the castle. Grandpapa?" "That's very true," Grandpapa murmured, having moved on to Valey's shoulders. "You can get just about anywhere from the sewers, including the main castle itself, if you know how to shadow sneak. I've been staying in these rooms during tournaments for so many decades I practically know the layout of the entire city! If it's truly what you want, I could take you as far as an entrance to the castle, but from there, you'd be on your own." "Huh." Valey licked her lips; that sounded much more appealing. It would involve getting past guards and sneaking a lot, but she'd be reliant on nothing but herself, and if her wings were working... "Yeah, let's go with that. Feeling up to the trip, Gramps?" "Oh, I might be." Grandpapa flashed a faint smile. "The question will be when you want me to stop this so we can leave."