Velar had to guide Starlight Glimmer most of the way into the palace. The pony barely seemed conscious—as though she were committing every aspect of herself to the magic. And a terrible spell it was. The smell of blood was rising from the city all around him, strong enough to overcome the flames of torched buildings. They were murdering innocent creatures. They were killing citizens and slaves alike. They weren’t going to spare any of the lives of those in the palace district. That would include the several monasteries on those grounds, which constituted several different religious crimes.
Even so, there was something terrifying about the sound of an army destroying itself. Blood brothers and friends and commanders and colleagues ripped each other apart as though they were the feral spawn of ancient chaos, while they left the unarmed alone.
He could hear the shouts of surprise and relief going up from the checkpoints. “Vengeance and Victory are fighting!” they yelled, the only way for ordinary soldiers to interpret what they were seeing. Velar knew it wasn’t so simple as that. The birds would kill each other until there was no one left, or Starlight’s magic ran out.
“Are you okay?” he asked her again. “If you need to stop, to rest…”
“No. New Scythia lives. Don’t interrupt until it’s done. I… won’t be able to go back to Equestria after this, so got to make it count…”
There was no saying just what that meant. But Velar didn’t interrupt her again, just led her the rest of the way to the palace steps.
A palanquin trundled out from inside, born by several of the palace servants and surrounded by a ragged band of Plumage Guard. Velar recognized his father’s form on the pillow, still wearing Voidsteel. He had one claw in the air and seemed to be gesturing for him.
Velar couldn’t fly, but he could run. He crossed the distance in a dozen strides, skidding to a halt at the edge of the armor. “Father!”
He didn’t look good. He had removed his helmet, and Velar could make out pale skin, dried blood, and a shake to his limbs. His eyes were glazed and unfocused.
“Why aren’t you with the healers?” Velar asked, unable to keep the frustration from his voice. “They could save you, father! Zoya’s magic…”
“That’s… quite the thing for you to say.” Gaius didn’t sound angry, though. He was grinning. “The last time I saw you, you were denying Zoya’s services yourself.” He shook his head. “If I allowed Zoya to perform the Renewal, I would be unconscious for the next few days at least. Under the circumstances… I didn’t think I would wake up.” He sat up suddenly, the armor creaking as he did so. Velar could see it—the Voidsteel was the only reason he was still able to move. The armor gave great strength to its wearer, even a set of damaged armor like this that leaked blood from his chest-wound.
Velar rolled his eyes. “Well, I’m here now. Starlight and I have this well in claw.” He looked past him. “Mateo, carry my father to the artificer’s tent. He will be—”
“Hold.” Gaius raised a claw, clutching it around Velar’s foreleg. “I never imagined I would see my son’s face again. The slaves were right—Unity did preserve you.”
Velar was done correcting. The pony doctors who had done the real work weren’t around to be offended, anyway. “Yes,” Velar said. “I now know why. We’re going to figure this out. We’ll save New Scythia.”
But Gaius didn’t let go. He yanked Velar down a little further, his voice low. “Look after your mother. Be the bird… that Accipio really needed.” His leg fell limply then, his father collapsed on the pillow. Velar’s eyes widened, and he glanced reflexively back at Starlight. But the unicorn wasn’t a doctor, and she was already occupied with saving the whole city.
“Mateo!” Velar shouted, probably a little too loudly. “Go on, get going! Get him to Zoya, right now!” They saluted, then turned to scurry off. But as Velar watched, he felt a terrible weight settle onto his shoulders. One he had dreaded for his entire life, but always known would come. He isn’t going to get better. Stupid old man… put it off too long. Zoya can do miracles with the old magic, but she can’t bring him back from the dead.
Even so, Gaius had remained at his post for the empire. He couldn’t be angry at him for that. Unity guide you, father. I hope I’m wrong.
“Someone’s coming!” The shout went up from the southern blockade, and Velar could barely make out what was approaching from that direction. But as he stared, his armor made the distant space seem closer.
A bird in Voidsteel was cutting through the melee, slaying every one of his own birds he met along the way to reach the palace. It was Santiago, apparently guessing the source of the chaos that had descended on his ranks. He hadn’t relinquished his weapons, but like Velar he had been protected from Starlight Glimmer’s spell. “Anthony!” Velar shouted, and at once not just Anthony but half a dozen of the Plumage Guard were around him. The transition had been as obvious to them as to Velar—they had seen the mantle of leadership passed.
“Get Starlight Glimmer out of sight,” he said. “Starlight, go with them. I will have to fight Santiago myself.”
The unicorn stepped up beside him, and for a moment he could almost hear the old Starlight through all her magic. “I am sorry I can’t help your father.” Then she left, following Anthony into the palace and out of sight. Considering her help in his last few battles, Velar wished she could’ve stuck around. She’s fighting all the other birds at once. To do my part I only need to fight one. Can’t let her show me up like that.
“Tell the birds to get out of Santiago’s way,” Velar ordered. “They can’t pick up their weapons to fight him, or they’ll be taken by the magic same as every other bird. Just get them to move, take cover. I’ll meet him myself.”
He didn’t have long to wait. Santiago struck the barricade with a massive warhammer, shattering it and sending bits and pieces of wood out of the way. An unlucky member of the Guard wasn’t out of the way fast enough and screamed as he was crushed by the assault. Santiago strode through the gore without slowing, making his way straight for the palace.
“I KNEW I SHOULD’VE SUSPECTED SOME EQUESTRIAN ABOMINATION!” he roared, his voice amplified by the armor just like Velar’s had been earlier. “IT’S JUST LIKE THEM TO RAISE THEIR HOOVES TO PROTECT THEIR PUPPETS. BUT I DIDN’T EXPECT THE ‘HONORABLE’ HOUSE VIRTUE TO BEND THE KNEE SO EASILY. IS THAT THE FUTURE YOU’VE CHOSEN FOR US, SLAVES TO EQUESTRIAN LORDS?”
Velar strode slightly to one side, extending one hoof. At his will, a longsword formed there, almost the length of his entire body and made of swirling black metal. “Yes, speak of honor, Santiago. The bird who sent his own ally to die, the bird who was in the very act of burning innocent citizens of the realm… entitled to proper ransom, and slaves entitled to lawful transfer of ownership. You’re slime, Santiago. Your birds receive what they deserve for their actions.”
Santiago stopped dead at the sound of Velar’s voice, staring at the armor. Every set of Voidsteel looked different with a new owner, but there were plenty of elements in common. He would know it had belonged to Giovanni, and what its transfer must mean. “You’re dead,” he said, no longer shouting. But the armor still made him loud enough to understand. “I saw…”
“You would hope so.” Velar advanced a few steps closer, swirling his longsword through the air in an elegant wave. “But Unity protects the virtuous. Unity safeguards the good of Accipio. Equestria destroyed your invasion fleet. Their ships are on their way here. Before you can mount a retreat, they will break you, and we will be helping them. Your betrayal had failed before it even began.”
Velar had hoped that Santiago might be broken by his previous conflicts—fighting those who wore Voidsteel was an ordeal, even for the winners. But he seemed only enraged by the battles, not exhausted as he should’ve been. Or maybe it’s seeing his army destroy itself and him being powerless to help. Had Starlight targeted Virtue birds, they would’ve turned to Zoya’s magic, and they could’ve undone any spell for a price in lives. Considering how many were dying, that probably would’ve been a small price.
But as it turned out, the most skillful zebras wanted nothing to do with a house whose treatment of slaves had earned it a foul reputation. Magic was not a typical weapon for the griffons, and since inter-empire conflicts had never involved other powers before…
“So, you’re a traitor then,” Santiago finally said. “You’re complicit with the Equestrians. They saved your life, and now you’re their slave, slicing the empire into pieces at their will. You should join with my army and turn against the invaders. Together, perhaps we could head them off.”
Velar laughed. “You murder my father and on the same day ask me to fight the ones who saved my life? The ones who wanted only peaceful coexistence with Accipio? I’ve seen Equestria, Santiago. I know they weren’t planning to betray us. All they wanted was for us to stay in our borders and let them live out the catastrophe in safety.”
“Liar!” Santiago advanced towards him. The two began circling—birds cleared out of the way, vacating the space around them. There was no getting between two bearers like them when it came time for a battle. No unarmored bird could make a difference. “They gave us fallow ground. They deprived us of our freedom—demanded we enslave ourselves to their rules. Each new restriction on us was a single thread, Velar. Each one is easy to break on its own, but braided together they would’ve made a noose to hang us. You should’ve seen what they did to Griffonstone. Those birds wanted to be strong, but their spirits had been stolen. They were consumed with petty rivalries, selfishness… I gave them purpose. I even married one of them, though I’ve been separated from her thanks to the Equestrians and their oppressive laws. Is it just to prevent me from seeing my wife, Velar?”
Well that explains how you won over Griffonstone. Political marriages were as old as Accipio itself, though it had been particularly bold of Santiago to marry an outsider. It worked out well for him I guess. Somewhere to manufacture illegal weapons, and a wedge into Equestrian territory. “I’m sure they wouldn’t have restricted you if you didn’t use the monastery to make guns. You could’ve grown wheat and vegetables there, and our ships would still be flowing.”
But Santiago had never been as good a tactitan as Velar himself, even if their dueling records were similar. His father had been the real general of house Vengeance. If you were smart, you would’ve tried to retreat your army. Maybe if they dropped their weapons they would be free from the spell too, and you wouldn’t have to lose them.
But they hadn’t, and now they were killing each other.
“Are you still a male, Velar? Or did they geld you up in one of their cities, turn you into their puppet?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “I challenge house Virtue to the throne of Accipio under the sacred law of Unity. Do you still care about our laws, or do only pony rules matter to you now?”
“I accept your challenge in my father’s name,” Velar answered, loud enough that all his men could hear. The meaning of that statement was obvious—the loser would relinquish their right to rule. If Velar lost, that meant Santiago would become the emperor. If he won, then his army would surrender. Assuming any of them are left. “Send word to your ships through my messengers. It would be improper for Accipian ships to destroy each other.”
Santiago’s eyes narrowed, and Velar could see him about to deny his terms. But then he nodded. “Very well. Bring me a quill. We will do as Unity requires of us.”
And to the victor go the spoils. All Accipio. What’s left of it.