Quill leaned forward and peeked through the carriage curtain. White hilltops rolled by, zigzagging against the sky. Seeing all that high ground made him uneasy. Even when he squinted against the white glare bouncing off the snow, Quill could barely see the many nooks dotting the hillside.
After a minute, Quill let the curtain drop. He would have to move back to the window soon, or risk the possibility of drifting off. The carriage seats had no right to be so comfortable.
What, do they stuff these cushions with cloud fluff?
Quill looked at Shining Armor. “Looks like we’re making good time. Wouldn’t have thought an armed unit would make for a decent running team. The enchantments on these carrigies are quite impressive.”
Shining Armor had spent the better part of the journey staring listlessly into space. Now he was roused from these thoughts like an old dog. He glanced about uncomprehendingly for a moment before finally registering what Quill had said.
“Yes... impressive.”
Quill studied the Captain. Shining Armor’s youthful face betrayed trouble decades older than the stallion.
“I’m surprised I haven’t heard of such an innovation. Perhaps my ear isn’t as close to the ground as I thought it was.”
Shining Armor rested a hoof on the helmet setting beside him. Though still distracted, it seemed that Quill had engaged him for the time being.
“That’s not surprising, actually. These enchantments are fairly new.”
“That so?”
“Yep. We commissioned the Scholars last winter, and these big buggers only rolled in last month.”
Shining Armor tapped beside the window and continued. “Steel wood imported straight from Califoalnia. Enchantments make it incredibly lightweight, and resilient against an array of spells. I was even told it could withstand dragon fire. Although... that could’ve been Misty Vale trying to talk her way into a bonus."
As Shining Armor spoke, Quill chanced a glance at their fellow passengers. The “nobles” -if those are nobles, than I’m a boiled goose- were fast asleep. Beneath the aroma of leather armor and freshly cut lumber, there lay the barest hint of whiskey.
“Color me amazed,” said Quill. “But dragon fire? Really? Isn’t that a bit much?”
Shining Armor frowned. “Like I said, that probably isn’t the case. But you’ve seen how lawless it is out here. We should be ready for anything.”
“What I’ve seen, your highness, are half-starved robbers with the tactical sense of rapid badgers. Even the unicorns running with them are nothing more than scrawny hornheads. Doesn’t seem like the kind of precautions you’d take just for bandits”
Shining Armor’s expression darkened. “You’re insinuating something.”
“Not insinuating. I’m saying that you think I’m a fool.”
One of the sleeping ponies snored suddenly, pulled their cloak tighter around them, then fell still again. Neither captain nor mercenary noticed. Their eyes remained locked on one another.
“I hold you and your expertise in the highest regard,” Shining Armor said, voice low and brooding.
“I don’t doubt that. However, you’ve underestimated my capacity for deductive reasoning. Like right now. I’m trying to understand why we’re trekking to the capital by convoy, why our carriage is outfitted for an outright assault, and more importantly-” Quill gestured to the sleeping ponies. “-why we’re transporting decoys.”
For all his preconceptions of Shining Armor, Quill had to admit that he composed himself admirable. Color drained from his face. Otherwise, Shining Armor remained stoic.
For a long minute there was only the sound of the rumbling hooves and creaking wood. Quill decided to cut the tension with a polite smile.
“Don’t misunderstand me. I appreciate a ruse as much as the next soldier. I only wish you had clued me at our briefing.”
Shining Armor’s eyes narrowed. “You knew from the start, didn’t you?”
“Heh. Now you’re giving me too much credit. Did I suspect something? Yes. I only began to grasp what was happening when we departed.”
Quill dipped a talon into his cloak. Rummaging through the various pouches on his belt, he produced a tin pocket watch. Pressing a tiny button on the side, it flipped open. Nearly noon.
Quill looked back at Shining Armor. The Captain was regarding him warily.
“I don’t need to know all of the inner mechanisms of the Equestrian military, your highness. I’m neither one of your officers, nor one of your soldiers. I’m a sellsword. Your coin buys our talons, our steel, and from time to time, my advice.”
Quill snapped the watch closed. “In return, you disclose the details most vital for Speira and I to do our job. Now tell me, your highness, did you tell us everything we needed to know?”
The question was rhetorical, and yet, Shining Armor’s sour expression answered it plainly enough. Quill nodded.
“There’s a lot of road between here and our destination. Plenty of time for us to reevaluate the specifics of this guard detail…”
Then, as if sucked away by an undertow, all of Quill’s amiable civility vanished. What remained was the cold, calculating gaze of a predator.
“I want to know what we’ve signed up for.”
Shining Armor nodded slowly. He scolded himself for being so negligent. Wasn’t one of the reasons he hired Quill explicitly for the griffon’s ability to see situations in ways he couldn’t? Had absorbing himself in all of this cloak and dagger work made him short sighted?
There was no use in sulking about it now. He wanted Quill in his pocket, and if that meant bringing to light this operation of his… then so be it.
After making sure that their guest were soundly asleep, Shining Armor took a deep breath. He needed a minute to figure out where to begin. But it was as Quill had said, they had plenty of time and road ahead of them.
Except… perhaps there wasn’t as much time or road as they had expected. Even as Shining Armor worked his train of thought into line, something twinkled in the distant hillside…