Gylpher ended up taking a walk through the city. Of course, two guard ponies were constantly tailing him. Tempting as it was to use his power to order them to go away, he was already on thin ice with their government after that mess with the prosecutor. He wasn't ready to give them more ammo that would only work against him. He'd rather find something that could really turn the tide against Sombra and finally end the war.
Given the sky's crimson cloud layer, it was difficult to remember what other colors were. All of the buildings reflected ugly red tints of whatever they were supposed to be. Most of the windows on the lower levels were boarded up. At one corner, a pony in rags was pacing around. She shook a can around while a gurgling came from under her skin-covered rib cage.
On another street, there were broken signs planted in the ground. Many of them had the same picture on the front. Were the three, purple horseshoes supposed to mean something? The gryphon shook his head. He lifted his wings over his head to avoid rubbing against the signs.
He nearly ran beak-first into a pony passing across. Upon another look, Gylpher saw at least a few ponies limping along. Bandaging and red spots were haphazardly arranged on their limbs. One member of the crowd fell to the ground in a coughing fit. Right as Gylpher decided to turn around and regroup with his guards, an irritating voice broke through the sickly cries of pain.
"Step right up, every pony! Step right up! Have I got just the thing to make all your problems a thing of imagination!"
Gylpher tilted his head and raised his brow. Further along the street, he saw an off-white unicorn twirling a red mustache. That unicorn was wearing a pair of blue overalls and an almost flat hat. In a matter of seconds, the stallion had fit as many unrelated adjectives together to describe a tower of bottles labeled "Flam's Miraculous Gin". A random pony on crutches took a swig, then started tap-dancing with a grin on her face.
The lone gryphon rolled his eyes and turned to leave. However, he halted and did a double-take. Both of his escorts had managed to get to the front of the line and were trading bits for a bottle. He gently rubbed his eyes with his right wing.
"Why, I guarantee this stuff will make you strong enough to challenge a gryphon!"
"Huh?" Gylpher pulled his limb away and stared at the swindler.
"What do you say, Beak-Mouth?" Flam called out. "Care to try your luck against a genuine, gin-nfied customer?"
"I'll take him on!"
All eyes turned to see a unicorn stallion in rags. He gulped down the contents of a whole bottle. He chucked the bottle at the ground where it crashed into pieces. He then proceeded to rip off his rags with one hoof. The gathered crowd voiced their awe.
Gylpher deadpanned. The unicorn confidently trotted toward him. The colors and mane looked an awful lot like Flam, minus the facial hair. There was also a thin layer of green magic surrounding the horn and the hoof. He leaned back up on his hind hooves and punched the air a couple times.
"Come on, Bird-Brain! Give me your best shot!"
Gylpher closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "You don't really want to do this." He stared at the taunting pony. "Do you?"
The red winged lights raced forth from his vision. Instantly, the naked stallion went back down onto all fours. His bravado gave way to a quivering lip and his mane stood on end. He trotted backwards a few steps.
"Brother, what are you doing?" Flam asked. "We practiced this!"
His brother turned his head and his body shook all over. "I...I don't want to do this." In the next moment, he was galloping away at full speed. Flam stammered and chuckled nervously. Many of the sick and weaker ponies stumbled away. Betrayal and disgust washed over the crowd.
Flam marched up and practically whacked his horn against the gryphon's beak. "What the hay did you do to my brother? We were just trying to make an honest living here!"
"Oh, sure. I won't judge you for taking part in preying on the insecurities of others." Gylpher shrugged his wings. "That's just life. But lying about another creature's strength to meet those ends?" He ran a talon through one of the pony's overall straps. "I take issue with that."
Glittering magic adjusted the unicorn's hat. Flam's mustache turned bristly as he turned around. He walked away about ten paces before looking back. "This isn't over, buck-beak. I'm going to make your life a living hell. You watch."
After the unicorn was a speck in the distance, Gylpher chuckled. "Too late. I have already reserved a dance with the devil."
---
"For someone so worried about abusing your power, you haven't exactly been cautious."
Rukh had found an old red ball. She was repeatedly tossing it just above her standing height. She didn't even look at the door as her eternal companion entered the room. After she heard the sound of the door closing, she glanced over. She switched the ball-tossing motion from her talon to her green-spotted tail.
Gylpher took four steps into the room. Then, his chest hit the floor. All of his talons were pulling at tufts on his head. He shut his eyes. He scraped the upper and lower parts of his beak against each other. A pulsing sound was echoing in his head that wouldn't stop.
But then, it did stop. He opened his eyes and blinked twice. When had he rolled onto his back? Why did it feel like something was scratching his belly? He craned his neck and saw Rukh's face pressed up against his torso.
He asked, "What the fluff are you doing?"
"Taking advantage of you." Despite her muffled voice, Rukh's words were still clear. "It has been too long since I could buzz the fur of a teddy."
"You snuggled me last night!" Gylpher tried to slide away, but failed.
"If you're a good little birdie, I might give you even more snuggles." She pulled him back within face-distance.
"Don't dress up your kink as a favor!" He tried to swat her with his wing. However, it didn't get far from under his back before swishing nothing but air.
Rukh pretended to pout. "And here I thought gryphons could only mate through anger nowadays."
"I thought you only knew about Griffonstone through my memories." Gylpher finally managed to roll over. "From where are you getting this vulgar information?"
"Your neighbors weren't exactly quiet during the red-eye hours." Her lifeless expression returned.
He shook his head. "Fair enough."
---
Guided hailstones littered the battlefield. Upon impact with the ground, they spread into glaciers. When the ice sapphire arrows hit soldiers on the field, they turned into blue ice sculptures with red splatters. Sombra's army even fired these arrows upon their own units if they could unnerve Celestia's squads in the general vicinity.
Two mares with straight mane-cuts, one pink and one gray, charged at the glaciers. Their front hooves jabbed out faster than any creature could see. A pegasus with one metal wing swooped down through the new opening in the ice. A couple dragons followed soon after.
A large feather floated down, momentarily catching the younger dragon's eye. In that moment, a talon ripped one of her fangs out. This talon was attached to a gryphon wearing a helmet of Sombra's army. The dragon attempted to breathe fire at her attacker, but the gryphon's other talon shoved an ice arrow through the flame. The dragon's eyes went wide as her frozen body was sent hurtling toward the ground.
Her vision went black as she heard a clay pot shatter.
---
As days passed in Canterlot, Gylpher wore a blindfold more frequently when he wasn't working. There were too many creatures with eyes. He could compel any of them with a command or a suggestion. He picked up a plank of wood on the road and used it as a makeshift walking stick.
Rukh had vanished at some point. Gylpher had tried to call her name a few times. Then, some pony told him that she wasn't nearby. Nobody knew where she was. He sighed and walked away. Rukh was immortal. She could take care of herself.
He spent his next several meal times with Cold Quartz. Most of their chats went absolutely nowhere. But the two hypocrites enjoyed each other's company.
A talon tapped Gylpher's shoulder. He reflexively swatted with his wing, but it was stopped by another.
"Celestia's back. She wants a word with you."
Gylpher lifted his blindfold slightly. "Where have you been?"
Rukh pointed both her wings toward one wall. "Visiting the Crystal Empire. I wanted to see an 'important wizard'. The reality was disappointing."
Cold Quartz gawked. "You went to the Crystal Empire?! Are you insane?"
Rukh shook her head. "I went mad several hundred years ago. It was boring, so I swam back to the surface."
Gylpher exhaled. "You dodged the part where she asked about going to Sombra's HQ."
"Compulsion-related magic doesn't work on me. Remember?" Rukh turned around. "Anyway, I gave you Celestia's message. I'm going to go sleep."
Gylpher shoved his empty can across the table. "You want to go with me?"
"Huh?" Cold Quartz blinked twice. "The princess didn't call for me. I can't just walk up to her."
Gylpher shrugged his wings. "I'll say you're my escort for today. If anyone has a problem with that, I can order them to leave you alone."
"Well, sure, you can do that. But, you shouldn't." She grimaced.
He slowly stood up. As he took a few steps, he lightly tapped his wooden plank along the floor. Quartz nearly bit her hoof while she looked left and right. Her hide glistened as she abruptly stood up. She galloped over to the gryphon's side.
---
Gylpher pulled down his blindfold and let it hang around his neck. Celestia had an extra line under each of her eyes. After a few seconds, Gylpher felt like his head was about to reel. He turned his gaze to his own talons to avoid pointing his power at the one occupant who could bounce it back.
"Can you endure it?" asked Celestia.
"It feels like a killer migraine about an hour after I give a command." Gylpher shrugged his wings. "Other than that, it settles okay."
Celestia turned her head. "And how are you, Cold Quartz?"
Quartz's eyes opened wide. "You know my name?"
Celestia kept an even smile. "Why yes. I've made a mental note of Patient Zero."
Gylpher crossed his arms. "My eyes aren't really a cure, so much as a workaround."
"A treatment, then," Celestia amended.
"Hmm, fair point." Gylpher nodded once. "Was there a reason you wanted to see me? Or did you just want to chat?"
Golden light surrounded Celestia's horn and a nearby prop. A wooden board and several, carved pieces arranged themselves along the floor. Celestia levitated all of the darker pawns to about eye-level. They shook around and tapped against the lighter opponents before settling down on either side.
"We've liberated several of Sombra's slaves, and he started to take notice," she explained. "When this war started, his attacks were in a line and plowing through the lands. Now, his pattern has switched to more hit-and-run tactics."
"That doesn't sound like him." Cold Quartz squinted. "He never gives a thought toward the lives under his hoof."
Gylpher scoffed. "Sounds like the king is getting desperate, if he's trying to preserve even the parts he doesn't care about."
Celestia nodded. "I believe we should use his paranoia as an opportunity. Most of our efforts so far have been warding him off, keeping resources out of his hooves. I doubt he'll expect a small team to risk entering the heart of his capital city."
"Was that why Rukh entered the Crystal Empire alone?" Gylpher glanced up.
Celestia blinked twice. "She did what?"
"Ah, that was for her own reason." Gylpher shook his head. "I should have known."
Celestia cleared her throat. "I probably don't have to worry about her, but do you know when she left?"
Quartz shrugged. "No, but she came back a few minutes ago. She said she was going to take a nap."
Celestia chuckled. "That does sound like her." She slid two pieces around on the board. "I called you here to ask if you'd be willing to lead this small team."
Gylpher deadpanned. "We've been over this. I can command five crystal ponies to stand down, no problem. But an entire army surrounding me on all sides is going to be impossible."
"You needn't convince the entire army." Celestia tapped the intricate dark piece. "You just need to convince one individual to stop the war."
The eyes of gryphon and crystal pony widened as they realized the implication.
Rukh slipped into the room and flicked the king piece with her tail. "Checkmate."
---