Vessel

by Lusaminia

Chapter 1 - The Friend That You Need Part 1

The dragon limped, blood covering his body, wincing at the pain he felt. He had expected many things when he attacked the wolf, when he crushed the canon, but none of them led to this. Only one pony tribe used magic such as the kind he had witnessed: the umbrum. Black of heart, created instead of born, with a strong affinity towards dark arts, and almost purely evil. Everything about modern day Equestria, compared to the Equestria he had attempted to destroy a thousand years ago, told him that they had been wiped out. Yet, that night, after so easily crushing those that the alicorn had placed her faith in, he had found out he was wrong. One still lived, and they were nothing short of a monster.

His pupils couldn’t break contact with his wounded form, gashes and cuts the result of said pony. He knew he was dying, that he wouldn’t make it back to Canterlot, but he would make sure one more pony died before his breathing stopped. That meant pushing through the pain, keeping his feet moving, and doing everything he could to not let the immense blood loss get to him. Dragons weren’t like ponies, as he was built to withstand punishment just like this.

The dragon heard something land behind him, and he dared to stop and look, knowing that with each second his quarry got farther away. A painful breath escaped his lungs as he saw another dragon, a familiar dragon, standing before him. Her scales a beautiful yellow and wings a crimson red. In her hand was a spear, the bottom and top of it’s neck had ornaments hanging from them. He took a step towards her, forgetting about his quarrel with the umbrum and overjoyed to see the figure in front of him. It was impossible not to smile, seeing one of his own, and his sister no less, having come to his aid.

“Topaz, is that truly you? Are my eyes deceiving me?” He asked, reaching a hand out as he slowly limped towards her.

Topaz smiled, the injured dragon before her blinded by joy to see the anger that lies under it. “Yes, Tholak, it is. Aurora bid me come and assist you,” She said, knowing that the very mention of the pegasi’s name, while she was not present, would make him angry. “You are in terrible shape.”

“The mare sent me to die, sister,” Tholak said. “She made no mention of a griffon or an umbrum. She thought that they would kill me before I was able to destroy the canon, but Aurora is a fool,” He gave a wicked smile, raising a clenched fist. “I live, sister, live! I see now that her love for me was only a means to an end, that she means to off me. She cares not for the dragons, but only of her own agenda. Don’t you see this sister?”

“I see that you are convinced of these words you speak, aye,” Topaz answered, reaching out her left hand, the one without a spear. “Come brother, let me embrace you one last time.”

“It shall not be the last sister,” Tholak says, grabbing her hand and pulling her in, using his free hand to grab the spear. His smile turned to a frown as his sister struggled to pull away from his grip. “Not if you understand what I see now, what these wounds have shown me.”

“Brother, what are you talking about?”

“Don’t you lie to me!” He shouted, the pain of doing so leading to a fit of coughs. He leaned in to his sister, his snout on her ear. “Sister, listen to me, what other cause would our enemy have for us once she regained the throne? We were fools to not kill her when she came begging. Do you not see how our men - our sons - look to her now?” Topaz was caught off guard by the question, and though she wished to answer he gave her no chance to. “They trust in a pony more than their own kin. A pony over kin Topaz! She has no need for us, and that’s why she sent you to kill me.”

“How… how did you know?” Topaz asked. 

She could not see the smile on her brother's face, one that spoke of the true reason behind his words. He loved his sister, but she was so easily convinced, manipulated, whatever word one wished to use. A kind heart like her was rare in dragons, but Tholak knew that just because someone was kind, doesn’t mean they were always good. No doubt Aurora’s honey words had convinced his sister to her side, and it was not the first. It was Topaz, after all, who had been gullible enough to think the pegasus could be trusted. Her sense of good had been twisted once before, all he had to do was twist it back, like he had done so many times before.

Though it pains me to think of my own kin as such, Topaz is the perfect tool. He thought. All I need to do is say the right words at the right time and I shall live. The right words will give me life, and she will once again believe every word I say.

“Tell me, Topaz, would this not be considered treason? She still considers me among her men, correct?” Tholak asked rhetorically. “She does, doesn’t she, for what other name would she use to rally the troops? Yet think of this sister, if she sent you here to kill me, and I am a commander of her troops, does that not make you a traitor.”

“A… a traitor?” Topaz mimicked the words her brother was telling her, the words poisoning her mind. Yet, she didn’t let go of the spear. “No, that couldn’t be possible. I was sent to get a mare, Luminous. She was among the ponies you were hunting.”

“You mean one of the ponies that were guarding the canon? One of the ponies who did this to me?” Tholak replied, continuing to riddle his sister’s thoughts with his own twisted visions of the events. It wasn’t even that they weren’t all true, and a part of him was now convinced that he was saving his sister from her own death. “Topaz, she sends you to your death, just as she sent you to bring mine. Do you truly think that she would send you for a single mare? A mare that is one of her enemies?”

Tholak didn’t see the look on his sister’s face, but he felt the weight of the spear completely transfer to him. Her arms had gone limp, and she fell into her brother’s bloody arms. She didn’t cry, at least not out loud, but the weak hug she gave him was enough to tell Tholak his words had won. Part of him felt terrible doing this to a fellow dragon, and his own sister no less, but part of him also felt justified. He wrapped his arms around his sister, but his thoughts were not on the dragoness, but of Aurora. Something suddenly seemed strange to him about the mare, the second Queen of Equestria. He thought that she only wished for her kingdom back from the alicorns, but something about this all told him she had ulterior motives. Something no dragon, pony, or otherwise knew about.

“The… the ponies trust me, Tholak,” Topaz said. “I know of a town nearby that might be willing to heal you, if you don’t mind taking healing from them.”

“Such will be required for my plan anyways, dear sister,” Tholak said, his word no longer that of a manipulator, but of a leader and commander of armies. “That mare is a danger to all of dragon kind, both past and present. Thus, we must play the game that she played with us.”

“And what game would that be?” Topaz asked.

Tholak smiled, his answer coming in the form of a quote. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

A shot sounded throughout the streets of Klugetown, a crowd of people, none of which ponies, laughing at the unfortunate soul now dead in the streets. Someone would grieve, there was no doubt about that, but all would agree that he got what he deserved. It’s what the shark got for going up against Verko Gibs, who could only give a hearty laugh at the entire situation. There weren’t many rules in Klugetown, but there was one that only the dumbest of individuals break: don’t cheat out the kingpin.

The crowd dispersed as he handed the pistol back to the parrot next to him, ordering a pair of mole rats to clean up the mess. They obeyed, as they rightly should, even if they weren’t one of his henchmen. The idea of ending up like the poor sap they carried off was enough to make them obey, and it wasn’t like there were guards they could turn to. Verko owned the guards, not to mention a sizable portion of the very city he lived in. The reason for owning them was simple: money. The more money he had, the more who were willing to look away, work for him, and the more he would own the Klugetown.

“Put the place back on the market, burn or get rid of anything showing he lived there,” Verko ordered the parrot. The parrot bowed, walking down the street as Verko let out a small laugh, adjusting his glasses. “Hate to lose them, but that only means a smarter individual will come along, one that follows the rules.”

On the side of the street Verko wasn’t facing, three figures watched with varying reactions. The red griffon, Emperor Gabriel Derev of the Griffon Empire, silently offered a prayer to the deceased, though he didn’t truly know if they deserved it. The tall, light pink alicorn, wings hidden under a rather low quality cloak, was horrified at how little the crowd had cared for the sight. Empress Flurry Heart had been made plenty aware during her rule of the nature of this port, seeing how they had offered a trade proposal to her, but this was worse than she originally thought. Yet to her disbelief, the creature next to her, Silvia Holveneart, a so-called “wise wolf”, only reacted with disinterest.

“Are you crazy?” Flurry whispered to the wolf. “He is your contact? He is this friend that you told us about?”

“You’re concerned?” Silvia asked, the gaze she gave the alicorn one that conveyed a false sense of innocence. Flurry Heart gawked at the lack of care her companion showed.

“Of course I’m concerned! How are you not concerned!” Flurry asked, her reply coming in the form of a sigh. “Well?”

“I told you when I explained my goal that we’re doing things my way,” Silvia said “Remember?”

“Hold on, let me get this straight,” Flurry Heart said. “You mean to tell me that because we have no way of getting help from both the Griffon and Crystal Empires, which both of us are the rulers of mind you,” She pointed between Gabriel and herself, the former enjoying a smoothie. “Your plan is to travel in to a part of the world unknown to literally all of Equestria, recruit a nation of dark magic wielding ponies and vampires from another dimension, and use that to stop this alicorn-hating, hero killing, pegasus,” Silvia nodded. “Does that, I don’t know, seem a little much to you?”

“Flurry Heart, how much do you know about Aurora Oracle, second ruler of Equestria and one of only two in history to take the title of queen?” The wolf asked. The alicorn stayed quiet. “Exactly, none, like most of Equestria. There is a reason that she was wiped from historical records, because the methods she went to, her fighting prowess, and what she did after exile are crimes and actions that many wouldn’t want to remember.”

“Even if it’s for the better of Equestria to know it,” Gabriel replied.

Silvia nodded. “Yes, even if it’s better to know it,” She agreed, followed by shaking the somber thoughts from her head. “Aurora is persuasive, thus how she managed to completely unite an Equestria which was losing a war. Despite the bad blood between the three tribes back then, she managed to gain the favor of all three, something even Princess Platinum couldn’t do. Imagine what a pony like that, with such hatred towards alicorns, would mean for us all if that view leaked into the foals of Equestria and those easily manipulated?”

The room went silent, neither griffon or pony willing to answer the question despite knowing what it meant. Very few knew about the Bygone Barrier, the source of stability of the multiverse, and how the canon’s powered it. They, however, knew full well about its existence, and what would happen if every canon was destroyed. Flurry Heart felt her body tense, a hoof going to her heart - her canon - the only thing that was keeping the universe stable now that Twilight was dead.

“Right, so why do you want us to come with you?” Flurry asked.

“I was getting to that,” Silvia said, turning to Gabriel. “As much as I hate to admit it, I’m not the best to relay this message. My only interest in this is keeping my daughter alive, and making sure she has a world to live in when she wakes up,” She took a deep breath in, and exhaled. “Gabriel, you saved me when I first landed in this Equestria, showing me that something would come that would be my reason to live. Would you be willing to come with me, as the one to tell Rosa of our plans.”

“You do realize that I did more than just tell you not to off yourself, right?” Gabriel reminded the wolf. Though his beak didn’t allow him, Silvia was sure she saw something resembling a smile on his face. “I was the first individual you ever told about the Bygone Barrier, about the time you spent wandering outside of it after your Equestria collapsed. That day, I made a promise that the griffons would stand with you when something threatened our Equestria, and I stand by that promise.”

Silvia couldn’t help but tear up a little, a part of her happy to see that someone was fighting for a reason not as selfish as she was. She had to do everything she could to not cry and let her inner mom thank the griffon. To fight for Equestria, for all that you know and don’t know, and not just for the preservation of a single soul. That was why Gabriel was such a remarkable griffon, and why she envied him so much. Knowing that the silence was starting to get awkward, she turned to Flurry Heart.

“As for why I want you to come along, wouldn’t you agree that we are a little too close to Equestria's borders?” Silvia asked the alicorn. “With Twilight gone, Celestia dead, and Luna having long ago destroyed her canon, you are our only hope, and I’m not holding hope that your mother is alive,” She couldn’t help but feel bad as she mentioned Flurry’s parents, noticing the way she recoiled just at the mention of them. “Sorry, that's too personal.”

“No, I came to terms long ago that, somehow, they aren’t alive anymore,” Flurry Heart lied, doing a poor job to hide her sadness. “If you really think it’s a good idea, then I’ll go with you.”

“Thanks, Empress,” Silvia replied, forcing a cough to try and disperse the heavy nature of the room. “I’ve already spoken to Thorax about sending word to the Hippogriffs, though considering that they have a larger navy than ground force, don’t expect much. Nonetheless, once I convince my friend to lend us an airship, we shall briefly drop his missive off to them, then make our way west,” Silvia started pacing back and forth as she talked. “That said, I'm the leader, since I’m the one here that knows where we are going. That means we do things my way, and my way is what it takes.”

“True, she did warn us,” Gabriel replied, finishing his prayer. “What, is this a bit much for you, your majesty?”

“And what gives you any right to say that, emperor?” Flurry replied, doing her best to stand proud and hold her head up. “I just can’t believe individuals would stoop so low, or that our leader would be willing to aid such a low life.”

“Two things about that. One, Verko runs at least sixty percent of this joint,” Silvia explained matter-of-factually, pointing a paw at the mole rat. “In a town of low lives, you learn to find where you fit in, and that’s either with one group of criminals or another. I just so happened to fall in with him due to my, ahem, profession,” She then placed the same paw on her chest. “Second, a paradox hunter does things their way, no rules. We choose how we go about finding, judging, and delivering the exact fate of a paradox based on the harm they cause to the world and the barrier. There is nothing too low for a murderer.”

“You’re not a murderer, Silvia,” Gabriel told the wolf, but she shook her head.

“Tell that to all the ponies, dragons, griffons,” Silvia’s ears went flat as she talked, looking to the ground. “Foals, newborns… It's our code. To roughly translate the body motions into words, the code is “thy predator stains red so others stay pure”,” She looked to Gabriel. “Different cultures, different universes. Keep that in mind when you’re dealing with Rosa.”

Before Gabriel or Flurry Heart could respond, Silvia walked ahead. They fell in line behind her, Gabriel doing his best to try and figure out some way to convince Silvia she was wrong. He truly didn’t understand, and for the exact reason that Silvia had just told him. She wasn’t of this Equestria, but one where the sun and moon never shone, where Celestia and Luna had long ago died, and ponykind hid behind walls in fear at the creatures who had called it their home. The closest thing he could think of to anything like that in his Equestria was the Everfree forest outside of Ponyville, but that didn’t seem to do justice to what she had described. Layer on that a race of canines with intelligence far higher than that of even Diamond Dogs, with a language based not around words but body motions. It was exactly as she had said “different cultures, different universes”.

“Verko!” Silvia called out to the rat. He turned his head instantly at the sound of his name, giving a smile that Flurry Heart couldn’t tell was crazy or insane, if there was a difference.

“Ah, if it isn’t my favorite, and only, hunter and canine pal,” Verko said, his hands going into the sky, that smile never breaking. One hand landed on Silvia’s head, ruffling up her fur and, to Flurry’s awe, enjoying every second of it. “A little bug told me you would be coming this way, and what a perfect time for you to come as well. Who are your friends here?”

Both Flurry and Gabriel stiffened a little as Verko examined them like a noble in a boutique. Flurry had to hold back the urge to gag as he took her hoof in his hands, feeling not only the grime and dirt on it, but also the filth of a man who looked like he’d cheated on his wife several times before. Gabriel managed to keep his cool far more than Flurry did, though he was appalled at how rough he was with the griffon’s wings. He finally stepped over the line when he lifted Flurry’s cloak, letting out a gasp of excitement as the alicorn’s face turned cherry red. He grabbed her neck, pulling her head down to his level and pointing at Flurry in excitement.

“A-a-are you sellin’?” Verko asked, sounding like a dog waiting for somepony to throw a ball.

“How dare you think she would sell the Empress of the Crystal Empire!” Flurry Heart exclaimed. “I assure you that Silvia is nowhere near the level of low that a dirty crimi-”

Silvia smiled. “How much are you offering?”

Flurry Heart’s jaw dropped as she heard those words, Verko falling down laughing at the alicorn’s sheer disbelief. Even Gabriel couldn’t help but giggle a little, but stopped and looked away as Flurry glared at him in discontent. After a few seconds, Verko found the strength to stand again, but barely enough to make it to Silvia before falling on her shoulder wheezing like a hyena. He turned to the wolf, that smile still on his face, and pointed to her.

“That… is the best laugh I’ve had… in months,” He told her, before falling back dramatically. “Oh how I’ve missed having you around my favorite, fluffy, murderous bitch. You bring laughter to this dying rat.”

“Glad to hear I’ve made your day better, but I’m sure our little messenger bug told you we weren’t here for shits and giggles,” Silvia replied. She could audibly hear the sounds coming out of Flurry Heart’s muzzle as she not only heard what Verko had called her, but how she nonchalantly replied with a similar swear. “What? Is my language too improper for you, empwess?”

“N-n-no! I can handle it,” Flurry lied, unwilling to admit that was the first time anyone had actually swore around her. “And don’t you dare talk to me like a filly!”

“Okay, okay, cut the chatter, business time,” Verko said, his voice more serious but still smiling. “So, I hear you are looking for a certain captain and her crew. A crew that, if it is led to be believed, went into the so-called ‘unexplored west’ and came back with a fully charted map of all Equis!” He leaned in and whispered into Silvia’s ear. “Is that correct?”

“You could say so, and whatever price you want you get,” Silvia replied, looking knowingly at Flurry Heart, whose expression was somewhere between a disbelief and awe at the wolf’s audacity.

“Well I would take the pony princess but I want a living space and making a new one is a waste of money. Just as much as it would be wasting your time here by wanting bits instead of service,” He replied, proceeding to walk past Silvia and guide her to his side.

Flurry Heart looked to Gabriel, who only shrugged as he started to follow the rat and wolf. Flurry, with a sigh and highly regretting her life decisions, followed suit, listening to Verko and Silvia converse. By the end of it, she would start wondering how the wolf or her daughter weren’t swearing like sailors back in Silver Shoals.

“So, yeah, that’s the entire mess you saw earlier today. Would send his family flowers but after his sister and brother and other brother I honestly don’t even bother anymore,” Verko finished telling Silvia, getting the wolf mostly up to date with what his life has been like. He had requested for both Flurry Heart and Gabriel to stay out of his home, which they did despite the offense the former took from it. “Anyways, that was that, now it’s this, business goes on in my wacky world. Not saying this Aurora mare wasn’t a pain in my booty but eh, Klugetown is used to her kind. We held together after she marched through. Still, it sounds like she’s the real deal if your information is accurate.”

“Oh, it’s the most accurate source you’ll be able to get, I can guarantee you,” Silvia replied. “I’m sure you see why we are here now.”

“Trade routes ain’t open through Equestria so those two can’t send orders and amass an army for you, so go on a trip around the world,” Verko summed up. “I tell you, the Flurry filly, cute as hell but man is she dumb as hell. Offered her a trade agreement years ago but said no, and this was after her parents disappeared. Figure with her little treaty with the dragons she’d be smart enough to know to play dirty.”

“You’ve met Flurry Heart before?” Silvia asked. “It looked like you two met for the first time back in the market.”

“Never in person, but don’t regret it. Seriously, you’ll have to find some way for her to spend some time with me when this is all set and the world is saved. I may be a crook but I’m a damn gentleman when I see a fine gal,” He told the wolf, striking a pose he thought was charming but only got an eye roll from Silvia. For the first time since they had seen each other, his smile dropped. “Last time that worked on you.”

“I’ve raised my standards,” Silvia said, her fur standing on end when she remembered the time she had to spend the night with him. He wasn’t bad, actually, but it was one of her more regretful actions after first arriving in Equestria. “Anyway, Captain Celano?”

“Out for another day at least, which gives you plenty of time to work your magic, you know? Got a little problem on my hands,” Verko explained. “Tell me, did you hear anyone mention a little menace nicknamed “Clockwork” around town?”

That question was what finally made Silvia click, the excitement falling off her face. He knew exactly what Verko was asking of her: hunting down a paradox. She knew of some that called this town home, most of which she had deemed harmful to Equestria and had to kill, but not all of them. Yet, this paradox, this Clockwork, had made the biggest mistake in the world and it was now going to cost them their lives. She didn’t need to judge, not when Verko no doubt already laid out what he wanted ahead of time.

“I assume that you have information regarding the paradox?” Luminous asked.

“Ah yes, indeed. The biggest of course being that he doesn’t really hide himself that well. Caught the sucker in the middle of a murder first day he landed,” Verko explained. She was happy to see him use the proper term for a freshly arrived paradox as well, but didn’t say anything. “Now, I like being a happy go-getter, but that kid had the nerves to mess with me. Took some of my customers, damaging property, even attempted to take my own life. I’m sure you had seen one of its victims.”

It took Silvia a minute to realize he wasn’t referring to the shark Verko had killed, but rather of his personal “guards”. One was indeed missing, a tortoise if she remembered correctly, and Silvia knew from experience that these were more than just guards to him. Even criminals had friends, and it wouldn’t be wrong to say that tortoises, along with the parrot she had seen, were far closer to Verko than most of his underlings. The picture was becoming clearer, but simply knowing what the paradox did to Verko was little help to defeating it.

“Anything you can tell me about the pony? Any hint at what kind of world they came from or what they can do,” Silvia asked.

“That is the interesting part of this predicament,” Verko explained, reaching into a nearby drawer and grabbing a small box. He brought it to Silvia and opened it, showing a bunch of rust colored bolts, screws and such. “Our little troublemaker isn’t flesh and blood you see, and he most certainly isn’t completely together. An automaton, I believe. Doesn’t seem like he is really thinking as much as he is following orders. Like a… last directive, if it’s at all similar to that other paradox you told me about.”

“I’ve seen this style of screw before, though slightly different in shape,” Silvia told the kingpin, a low growl emanating from her throat. As she did, she focused on a gear, one of the larger pieces in here. “In fiction, ponies call it steampunk. Heard of it?” Verko nodded. “Seems like we are dealing with the invention from a steampunk world of some kind. Take a closer look at this screw.”

Verko leaned in as Silvia focused her magic, which was channeled through sound instead of horn, on a particular screw. It wasn’t bronze like the rest, or originally bronze anyway. He made out what looked like straw inside of it, which had seemingly been covered in a bronze coating. Now that he looked inside the box again, he realized that it wasn’t the only oddity. They were all bronze, but each piece he picked out seemed to originally be some other material. One was wood, another stone, he was pretty sure he one was made of bone, but all of them were covered much like an amber, except with bronze instead of risen.

“A friend of mine recently came up with a name for the strange powers that we paradoxes have: anomalies,” Silvia said, resting her voice and allowing the screw to fall back into the box. “This would explain how this paradox, this clockwork pony, is still moving despite apparently falling apart. His anomaly allows him to turn anything into bronze, and likely any shape as well, thus allowing him to fix his own body and keep moving. Something along those lines, at the very least.”

“Now, obviously, if it wasn’t trying to kill me or make me waste my money I wouldn’t bother with him, but he’s a threat to my business,” Verko said, less interested in the specifics on his enemy than Silvia was. “Now, I have a mare, a very good mare in fact, tracking this Clockwork and studying him. She should be able to tell you the rest. So, uh… is that-”

“I accept your task and judgement that this clockwork pony is to be brought to death,” Silvia responded, nodding and smiling. “If that is what you need for us to meet the captain, then I’m more than happy to oblige.”

“I just don’t understand!” Flurry said, pacing as thought after thought raced through her mind. “I’ve never seen Silvia act so… carefree! How could she let a creature so filthy treat her like that,” She turned to Gabriel, who had once again managed to find himself a drink on the way, non-alcoholic sadly. He heard that Klugetown actually had excellent beer. “You heard what he called her, right? That rat called her a bi… b-b-b-”

“Bitch. The word your mouth can’t seem to say is Bitch,” Gabriel said between sips. “You got some sort of filter spell on you that makes you incapable of talking dirty?”

“No, and honestly I don’t see how you are so find just saying a word like that so… normal!” Flurry explained. “I mean your royalty just as much as I am royalty. In case you have forgotten ponies and griffons look to us for, ahem, leadership. I personally find nothing very leaderly in words such as bi… biththhth…,” She sighed. “You know what I mean.”

“And you have never seen the Griffon council on a good day, or bad day, or any day now that I think of it,” Gabriel replied, throwing the now empty beer to the side. “If you feel that way then maybe discussing it while we have an entourage is not exactly the best idea.”

Flurry Heart raised an eyebrow at the statement. Gabriel, in turn, rolled his eyes and motioned to the pony that had been staring at them for the past couple of minutes. They didn’t really stand out that much with the brown coat and similar brown mane and tail in a very simplistic style. She couldn’t help but feel unnerved by them, however, simply for how incredible still they seemed to be. They stood there, unblinking, unmoving, and as far as she could tell not even breathing. She looked to Gabriel, who once again directed her to the pony, and sighed.

“How long has she been staring there?” Flurry asked, getting a shrug in response. With a gulp she turned back to the pony and waved. “Uh, hey, you need something?”

There was no response, no movement. The pony just stood there, staring at them.

“Um… hello?” Flurry Heart called, but again got nothing. She turned to Gabriel. “Am I, uh, doing something wrong here?” She turned back. “Listen, no offense but you’re kinda freaking me out. Can you just, I don’t know, give a wave or something? I don’t bite, I promise.”

There was still no response, and Gabriel sighed. “Alright, let me try.”

Gabriel walked over to the pony, unnerved at how it was so much staring at him as it was staring past him. Even as he stood beak to nose with them they didn’t move, didn’t follow the direction of his head, or react when he proceeded to pat them on the head. He looked back to Flurry Heart, who was just as shocked as he was about what was going on. Part of him wanted to say it was a statue, but considering how real the mane, tail, and fur felt, that couldn’t be right. It was as he was stroking the pony’s back, doing everything he could to get some reaction out of them, that it finally happened.

It started when he accidentally dug his talons into her skin, creating a gash. He jolted back a bit, only to wince and grab just below his neck. Though it had mostly healed thanks to magic and changeling medicine, the wound Tholak had given him hadn’t fully healed. When he recovered he first thought to apologize, only to be stunned at what he saw under the cut he had created. Where there should have been blood was instead an iron shell. He blinked, and looked again. He rubbed his eyes and looked once more, but it was still there. Only one word rang in his mind that could possibly describe something like this.

“Flurry, we got some sort of robot paradox,” He shouted across the street. Inching back towards said paradox, he banged on the metal shell. “And this is a new one, that’s for sure. Did it run out of battery or something?”

His question was answered as the machine finally moved, putting a hoof on his talon’s. He looked to see that the pony was looking at him, and before he was able to ask a question found himself being thrown across the street. Flurry gasped at the action, but didn’t react in time to dodge the griffon now flying at her. The impact sent both of them to the ground, the alicorn using her magic to keep her head from hitting the ground. They sat there for a minute, thinking over everything that had just happened before hearing the sounds of hooves getting farther and farther away. Finally, Flurry let go of her magic, allowing herself to fall to the ground with far less force than she would have otherwise.

“Okay, off you go,” She told Gabriel, shoving him off her chest. Getting into a sitting position, she saw that the pony had disappeared. “That was… strange.”

“You can say that again,” Gabriel replied, rubbing the bottom of his neck. “Sweet Celestia that hurt. Should have agreed to Arcane’s numbing hex.”

The door to a nearby building opened, and Silvia walked out. She blinked as she saw the two sitting in the middle of the street. “Did I… miss something?”

“Oh, hey Silvia,” Gabriel said with what hardly qualified as a wave. “Don’t mind us, just recovering from a run in with a paradox. Seemed to be a machine of some kind.”

Silvia’s eyes went wide at hearing that, and before either the griffon or pony could say any more to her, she bolted down the street. So, with nothing better to do, they decided to just lay there. It looked like it might rain later today based on the clouds. That might be nice, but would also make the stone cold, and then cold by proxi. Gabriel and Flurry Heart sighed simultaneously and looked at each other.

“So…” Flurry said. “Are we gonna chase after her or not?”

They blinked, and turned back to the sky.

“Nah.”

Silvia raced from street to street, only pausing whenever she reached an intersection. Considering what she had been told, how this paradox had killed ponies, she was thankful that it had chosen to spare Gabriel (she highly doubted the machine knew about alicorn canons). The thought that it could have, though, was enough to send her speeding through the streets of Klugetown, bobbing and weaving past people as she did. This hunt however, could be totally worthless if she had been wrong  about one thing: the direction it went.

Thinking it over, she had quickly realized that she had no idea what direction the paradox had gone in. She could have asked Gabriel, which would have been the reasonable thing to do, but she stupidly panicked. That alone led her up and down, left and right, and in a circle at least once in the search for something she wasn’t even sure was in front of her. After a time she stopped in the market and found out she was breathing heavily. She looked around for something, anything, that could be her target, but found nothing and put sharks, rats, and otherwise in her vicinity. She sat down and exhaled before slamming the back of her head against a wooden building.

“Damn it!” She cried out. Looking up to the sky, something else came to her head. “I don’t even know what direction I came from, do I? Ugh, should have thought this out better. Hopefully they can find me.”

“I think they’ll find you first,” Silvia turned to see a pony, mane a nice shade of purple and coat a vibrant pink. What really caught her attention, however, was the pirate-esq uniform and double lightning bolt cutie mark the mare had. “It’s been a while, Silvia Holveneart.”