The chariot landed roughly, and Gale cursed at the thought of breaking another axle. He stepped out onto the ground, shuddering as the brisk wind caught his face. His neck throbbed, the chill aggravating the sprain he had received in battle. He winced as he turned to look out at the horizon. He could just see the looming white towers of Cloudwatch out in the distance.
He nodded to the chariot drivers, who saluted him before taking off. The empty chariot bumped over the uneven ground before becoming airborne.
Gale watched it disappear. Custom dictated that he return to the city himself, and he agreed with it- no proud battle commander should return on a chariot. He stretched his wings and took to the air, fighting a slight headwind as he flew.
He watched the rough scrub bushes below him streak by. Eventually, they gave way to signs of civilization- ramshackle huts and rough dirt paths. The town beneath Cloudwatch was home to most of the lower-class citizens- those too poor, old, or wounded to live in the massive floating keep resided here. Gale knew that life was a constant struggle there- hunger and raids by roaming Griffon war parties were nearly a part of daily life.
Thermals from the sandy plains below pushed him skyward as he approached Cloudwatch. The keep was built three generations ago by Gale’s paternal great-grandparents, and had stood unopposed ever since. Who could oppose it? Griffons were too disorganized and barbaric to form a proper army, and Dragons had no interest in the clouds.
Gale landed outside the gilded gates, servants rushing to offer him water and to shine his armor. He brushed them aside- he would prefer his father to see that his victory wasn’t easily won.
Moving into the castle courtyard, Gale kept his eyes locked ahead, ignoring the fanfare and applause that had been prepared for him. An honor guard detail flanked his path, keeping a welcome barrier of stoicism between him and the crowd. He ascended the steps of the throne room tower, once again alone with his thoughts as the noises receded.
Taking a deep breath, he pushed open the massive white doors, ornately detailed with depictions of past battles, that stood as the entrance to his father’s throne room. The first comfort he received was the sight of his family there to greet him.
His mother, Spring Rain, wordlessly embraced him, struggling to hold back her tears.
“Mother” he murmured, relieved to find that she was still in good health.
Then came his younger brother, Shear Wind, and his paternal cousin, Dust Devil. They were both respected commanders in their own right. Shear Wind greeted him with a salute, which Gale returned with a grin. Dust Devil’s preferred method of greeting was to tackle him to the ground. As they tussled, Gale managed to get on top and get his cousin in a hooflock. Dust Devil laughed.
“Okay, Okay! I give up.” Gale relented, allowing his cousin to stand up and give him a proper embrace. Gale grinned as he noticed a fresh scar marring Dust Devil’s sandy tan coat, just above his left eye. The pale brown of that eye glinted at him, full of energy. “Looking good, Dusty. Did you get too fresh with one of those mares from court?” He said, teasingly.
Dust Devil scoffed. “I wish. This is a token of esteem from a very pleasant Griffon who we caught out on the plains. Don’t worry, I taught that worthless cat-bird a lesson.”
“I’m sure you did.” Gale replied, before he remembered the task at hand. He steeled himself and walked forward.
His father, Cirrus, sat on the cloudy throne at the other end of the long hall. When Gale reached it, he withdrew a tattered piece of fabric from behind his breastplate and placed it on the ground before bowing low.
Cirrus rose from the throne. His father had earned the title of High Commander through blood and ambition, and it showed. His silvery coat bore a hundred scars and his breathing was ragged. “Rise, son.” He spoke, picking up the cloth. He unfolded it, taking in the golden sigil on the forest green cloth- a depiction of Storm’s Break surrounded by great trees.
Gale rose. “It is done, High Commander. Storm’s Break is yours. Her spoils are yours. The Earth Tribe’s greatest army is defeated.”
Cirrus closed his eyes. “Twenty years, we’ve been fighting. And now it’s over…” He sat back on the throne, groaning at the movement. “Did I tell you the story of the first time we met Rockjaw in battle?”
Gale knew the story inside and out, but he shook his head respectfully. “No, High Commander. You have not.”
Cirrus chuckled. “Enough with the titles. You’ve been calling me that since I won the throne. You were so young then, you didn’t know what it meant…”
Gale shuffled uncomfortably. “Very well… Father.”
Cirrus stared off as he spoke. “It was on the shores of the Black Pit- you’ve seen it? The lake seemed to swallow all color. It was cold, even then. Rockjaw met our force with a thousand warriors. Head-to-hoof in iron armor, spikes on their shoes three inches long, they would go right through you.”
He paused to grunt as he shifted to a more comfortable position. Gale wondered how clouds could possibly be uncomfortable.
“And he won, you know. We were routed. I lost most of my soldiers. But not before I met him in single combat, right on the water’s edge. I gave him that ugly scar and took his eye with a swipe of my wing. Did you see him?”
Gale reflected on their mutual adversary. He had been full of vitriol then, in the battle, but in the grand scheme of things Gale almost regretted destroying such a legendary opponent. Rockjaw had been ruler of the forestlands for nearly thirty years, and had a fearsome reputation for it.
And yet he had been dragged from his castle keep alongside his sons and put to the blade. He had spat insults at Gale until his last breath.
Gale nodded. “Yes, father. I met him. He refused to yield the castle, as you said.”
Cirrus coughed, a laborious, dry crackle from his throat. “Too proud. Too dumb, maybe. But I knew my son could do it. It had to be my blood to take that castle. If not Twister, than you.”
Gale soured at the mention of his brother, but he managed to keep his outward composure. Twister had been the favorite son. He’d led armies against the griffons and earth tribe, and he had been legendary for it. He was everything that Gale wanted to be. And then disease had cut him down within a fortnight. And suddenly that responsibility that Gale so craved had been laid on his shoulders.
Cirrus sighed. “I don’t mean it that way. You’ve proven yourself more than capable now. And now that you’ve been proven, I need you now more than ever.”
Gale bowed. “What would you have me do?”
Cirrus replied bluntly. “I’m dying. Each day I waste away a little more. I can’t fly for more than a few seconds, and soon I won’t be able to walk either. The time has come to pass on the leadership.”
Gale frowned. “Father, I’m far too young to-”
Cirrus cut him off. “To rule, I know. The throne is yours by right, but someone more capable should rule in your stead until you gain that experience. Which you will get as the new Wing Commander of our royal army.”
Gale was taken aback. This was an honor he had never expected to receive. He thought of words he could use to convey the sense of pride he felt, but decided getting down to business might impress his father more. “What would you have me do?” He asked.
His father closed his eyes. “We might have defeated the Earth Tribe, for all intents and purposes, but this world is still full of danger for us. The food you took will feed us for a few months. The earth pony growers you captured can make food enough to support Cloudwatch, but the peasants down in the plains towns…? It’s still not enough for them.”
Cirrus’ hoof twitched as he spoke. Gale noticed his father’s movements were shakier and more labored than the last time he had stood here. It was four months ago he had been given command of the force to take Storm’s Break and sent away. Not long, perhaps, but he still felt like he had matured greatly on the journey. But for as much as he had grown, his father had seemed to deteriorate in his absence.
Cirrus broke the silence. “It’s bad enough we have to deal with Griffon raiders. We still have the Unicorns, hiding behind their shield. We think they’re planning something.”
Gale scowled. “We’ve seen naught of them for twenty years, father. I’ve only met two in my life.”
“They aren’t as reclusive as you think. We may not know what’s going on behind that magic wall, but we know they have to eat, too. And now we have the advantage in that area.”
“But the barrier. Even if we can outlast them in a siege, we can’t break that wall. It’s made to keep out dragons, not just pegasi.”
Cirrus had a hint of a grin as he spoke. “They aren’t as reclusive as you think, I said. For the past year, they’ve been opening a hole in the barrier in strategic places to send out scouting parties. We’ve never captured any of them, but we know they’re out and about, and they’re looking for something.”
Gale pondered that, and he had to jar himself back to reality to focus on what Cirrus was saying next.
“Your first mission, Wing Commander Gale, is to capture one of these scouting parties. You will interrogate them for information, and you will use that information to determine when the barrier will open next. You will then take a small complement of our best fighters into the Round Table, and from there you will execute guerilla attacks on the barrier mages until it’s weak enough that we can smash through it with lightning.”
Gale was conflicted. On one side, this was to be a mission like no one had ever performed. No pegasus had ever stepped a hoof inside the unicorn’s wall. And weakening them could bring an end to the seemingly endless conflicts and secure his race’s superiority for all time.
But it was cowardly, too. He preferred to face opponents on the open field and win through superior strategy and bravery, not through subterfuge and backstabbing. But orders were orders, and he would carry them out. He would prove to his father that he was worthy.
He bowed low. “Then it will be so, father. May I have my leave?’
Cirrus waved him off. “Go, go. Clean yourself up and break your fast. Enjoy the comforts of home while you can.”
Gale rose and wordlessly walked out of the room. His family waited for him outside the throne room, and they looked at him expectantly.
He sighed. “I need something to eat.”