//------------------------------// // Chapter 13 // Story: Got Your Six // by Revel Montaro //------------------------------// Something had tickled Flash Sentry’s senses. While pegasi in general did not have keen senses of magic like unicorns, any pony could attune themselves to the most basic of magical sensations around them. The fine hairs on his ears tended to stand up and itch when a unicorn cast a shield barrier near him even if he did not see it. There was a subtle, change in the way the air smells when a basic magic bolt was gathered and fired not unlike hot, molten metal of the forge. Part of it might have had to do with the fact that his mother was a unicorn and some of the latent magic was in his blood. Stranger things had happened in the world. There was even extensive research on the matter though he had only ever skimmed it since most of that made his eyes cross with math, science, and speculation. The entire evening had been setting his instincts off ever since he had returned to the officer’s quarters. It was quiet, not unheard of but certainly unusual. Guards in general, unless the mission required it, were not a quiet bunch. Often they had to remain quiet and focused while concentrating on the crowds and citizens they were ordered to protect. Interactions were not forbidden, but distractions could be deadly. That being the case, when the shift was over many relished being able to chat about their day to their fellow guards, tell them about who and what they saw. Often times it centered around some pretty, young mare whose gaze lingered on a stallion in uniform for longer than necessary. Sometimes it got more crude, but that depended on who was telling the story and the surrounding company. But not tonight. Everything felt… muted. Not long after he had finished his dinner and began to settle in for the night with a book he felt the hairs on his ears rise and itch. Flash had left his quarters and strolled about the officer's barracks and a bit outside, but he could not pinpoint the magical field that was setting his senses off. With a shrug, he returned to his quarters and settled in again. At some point the events of the last few days and hard training had caught up with him and he dozed off with the book resting on his chest. That was when he felt more than heard the sensation disappear, the sudden change disturbing his slumber like a balloon popping. The hairs settled and Flash once again stepped out. This time he could hear the heavy hoof fall of armored shoes on wooden planks and the casual back and forth of guard chatter. It was then that he realized that it was shift change and the late night watch company was preparing for their turn. That put the time at near midnight. Flash stepped back out of the officer’s barracks and stood in the yard, but nothing looked or felt out of place. His eyes turned to the captain’s annex across the yard, the lights out, nothing appearing unusual from a distance. “Oh, are we allowed to move about out of our rooms now?” “What kind of stupid order was that anyhow? Tyrannical even for the new captain if I'm allowed to say.” Flash looked behind himself as two young guards were finishing strapping their armor and kit into place. He turned to them and cleared his throat. The two pegasi came to a stop and saluted. “Lieutenant! Are you out for a stroll or are you planning to pull some extra hours and suit up with us, sir?” “Just out for a stroll, got a funny feeling is all. Like somepony had stuffed wax in my ears and suddenly now I can hear again. Anyhow, what was that about the captain’s orders?” The shale colored pegasus pointed back to the regular guard’s barracks. “Last minute order from the captain apparently. All of C company on third shift tonight were to bunk in and not leave under any circumstances. They even put a sound proof barrier up over us. I wonder if it popping is what woke you up. Odd they would put it over the officer’s quarters too though. I mean if lieutenants can’t follow orders then we’re all doomed, am I right?” Flash did not bother answering. He quickly trotted to the guard barracks and found the piece of parchment in question nailed to the door. It bore the seal of the office of guard captain. At least the old one since Tempest had not had her own seal commissioned yet, bureaucratic hoof dragging had delayed it. However, there were a few things that seemed off. While it was possible Tempest could have had another pony other than Flash write the order, considering her own hornwriting was so shaky, that would have been unusual. It was not until he reached the bottom that his eyes went wide and a bolt of fear shot through his core. The signature, while it read Captain Tempest Shadow was no where near close to hers. He had seen it enough over the last few weeks to know with absolute certainty. Flash galloped away from the barracks straight for the captain’s annex. It was then, less obscured by dark or distance, that he saw something was wrong. There were obvious signs of some sort of fight or struggle in the markings on the ground and the air smelled of burnt hair as well as magical electricity that often followed when Tempest’s horn was leaking unchecked mana. The door also looked as if it had been hastily set back in place, pieces of the wood damaged or missing entirely. Slowly, Flash tested to see if it was warded and found only wood. He pulled the door and it began to fall on him. Flash leapt away and reached for his extendable staff only to roll his eyes when he remembered not only was he missing his weapons, but he also had no armor on. After a few seconds of no imminent danger Flash approached the threshold again. “Captain? You in there?” Unsurprising and more nerve racking, there was no answer. Flash felt the air move above him and the fine neck hairs of his mane bristled. His eyes moved to look up when he caught the moonlight glint off armored hooves coming at him. He rolled with the surprise attack maneuver, but the assailant was faster, getting between his hooves and pinned his face and chest to the wall of the annex. Flash tried to turn his eyes to see who was holding him, but they were ridiculously strong and had better leverage. Flash felt breath on his ear and a familiar female voice whispered, “You keep twisting like that I’ll have to pop your foreleg from its socket and don’t fool yourself, it hurts. A lot.” “Sugarcoat?” Her response was to apply more pressure on his limbs, his forelegs bound tightly against his wings. Flash winced, bearing his teeth with a growl. The display probably had little intimidating effect against a thestral though. Several more swoops were heard even though he could not see them. At least he could still speak. “Corporal, you need to release me this instant. Something is very wrong and I came to check on the captain and she is not in her office.” “Let him go, corporal. I’m willing to entertain Sentry’s side of things since thus far he has not shown me reason to suspect him.” Flash felt the thestral let go and back away. He took a moment to shake out his limbs and turned to find himself surrounded by four thestrals. He knew all of them well and the careful glares they were leveling at him, their body language controlled aggression and ready to pounce on command. Flanker took a step forward nodding to his fellow lieutenant. That seemed to relax the others as they folded their leathery wings and moved to at ease. They really were a disciplined bunch. “You’ve been working along side Captain Shadow since she joined the guard, I believe it is safe to say you know her best short of the princess and her advisors. In addition to what we discussed on that first day.” “Okay, sure. What’s your point?” Sugarcoat retrieved a piece of parchment from her pouch and passed it to Flash. Once again, it looked like official orders with an official seal and a signature that was not anywhere close to correct. “This looks like the same forgery that was posted at the guard’s barracks ordering C company to stay inside until shift change.” “Look closer and read it.” Flash did so. According to the orders all the thestrals were to gear up and gather in a barn outside of town and await further orders that would arrive at midnight for a secret mission. It was not unheard of, but it was a bit counterintuitive to leave a paper trail for a secret mission. “Well, other than the fact that this is NOT the captain’s signature, I can testify to that considering how many documents I have now touched with her mark on them. I don’t get what’s going on.” “Somepony tried to murder all my brothers and sisters,” said Sugarcoat with a hiss under her breath. “I did not receive the orders right away because I went back to my home to spend some time with my wife and rest up after my all night recon mission. When I heard that all the others in Canterlot were to be deployed I found it odd, but hurried to catch up. As it was, I chose to conduct a perimeter patrol rather than sit in a barn in the dark. I barely found a unicorn about to finish a ritual that would have sent a magical surge to the powered runes that had been etched onto the barn setting it instantly ablaze with no chance for escape or survival.” Flanker picked up the story. “We immediately returned, first to check on the princess, who is still safely sleeping in her bed chambers, and next to find a silencing barrier over the entire barracks. The unicorns that had been casting it unfortunately were not identified and slipped back amongst the other guards.” “And that’s when you jumped me, coming to check on the captain. The next most important pony in your chain of command.” Flash looked back to the dark empty doorway, concern clearly etched on his face. Flanker gestured for Private Even Stream to investigate. “Move slowly in case there are traps.” The private saluted and did so. Flash wanted to help in any way he could, choosing to move to the disturbed area on the ground that had caught his eye before. It was difficult to make out any quality details in the dark. At least for his eyes that is. “There was a fight here, you can tell from hoof marks that somepony was shifting around in a circular motion as if surrounded," said Sugarcoat at Flash's side, once again with a masterfully silent approach. "Plus, I can smell blood that is still partially fresh.” Sugarcoat pointed to the marks Flash could just barely make out. “Look there, some sort of heavy impact and gouges. Possibly a midsize dragon or large griffon. Good eyes for a feather wing, LT. You ever considered undergoing thestral training?” “Flanker, Luna, and I talked about it once. I told them I had to think about it.” Sugarcoat shook her head. “Then it’s not for you. What it takes to become one of us, the personal and social sacrifices we make to serve our mistress and Equestria as a whole is not something that takes longer than a day to think on. You are either that committed and know it or you are not. Ultimately irrelevant right now. I was just making conversation to take my mind off the horrible things it is conjuring of what the captain is likely going through. You know, if she’s not already dead.” Flash was about to reply to the bluntly honest assessment when approaching hoofsteps caught his attention. “Well, that was SPECTACULARLY unsuccessful!” A familiar voice spat out in the dark. A moment later a familiar pale yellow earth pony with bubble gum pink and blue mane emerged from the shadows she had been using to travel through. “My agents and I managed to secure some documents that might come in handy eventually, but Day Riser is in the wind. The bastard was definitely in on all of this from the beginning, making sure to have those who were loyal to the princess put out farther away or on miserable watches. I knew I should have questioned him sooner. Raven is going to get a piece of my mind when this is over, that's for sure.” “It’s always the quiet ones ponies miss, beat yourself up about it later,” commented Sugarcoat, chillingly blunt as ever. Flash winced but, the sobering words did their job bringing the EIS director back into focus. Sour Sweet flashed a small smile and nodded. “Anything we can use to help narrow the search for what they did with the captain or who we can and can’t trust?” “I’ve got Rolley combing over it like a, well, fine tooth comb. He has this speed reading spell ability, but it will still take time for him to determine what is relevant. And you and Flanker were right, Flag Staff is also gone.” “Dammit,” Flash cursed. “So how many ponies does that leave us with that we know for certain are loyal to the captain and the princess?” Flanker grimaced. “Not enough.” No one said anything for a long, unbearable minute. Flash wanted to kick and scream, but it would draw too much attention and in the end would be a waste of valuable energy. He needed caffeine… and his armor. A plan would be good too. “Okay, fine, everypony in tight,” commented Flash to those nearby. “Let’s take a moment to consider out assets, how many ponies we have on our side, and what our options are. To start with, Flanker, how many thestrals are in the city right now?” “Twelve, well, thirteen now with Sugarcoat.” Flash nodded. “Sour Sweet, how many agents do you have and do you trust them all without question?” Sour scoffed. “If I didn’t trust them they would not be working for me, boy toy. Of course, that’s easy to say when I only have six agents to oversee.” “Plus me, that makes twenty-one.” “Twenty ponies against the entire Canterlot guard plus the nobility’s private forces. They have our captain as a hostage or worse and we have no idea what their end game is or the timetable. Those are very bad odds.” Sour Sweet rolled her eyes and nudged Sugarcoat. The thestral just shrugged. “Well, they are.” Flash wanted to argue that it could not be the entire guard. He did not want to imagine that so many of his fellows in the service of the princess would turn their backs on their oaths and more than a thousand years of Equestrian tradition. However, his logic brain eventually conceded to his strategic brain that they were in a bad situation with far too many unknown, likely hostile elements. Break it down, focus on what can be done and not the entire battlefield as a whole. “Okay, first and foremost. Is Princess Twilight safe? Can we trust the guards watching over her?” “Two of my thestrals peeked in on the princess and found her asleep in her chambers along with Spike in his adjacent chamber. I won’t go as far as to say the guards are loyal, but whatever the plan is, it does not involve attacking her in the middle of the night.” Flanker shrugged. “Besides, I know for a fact that Princess Twilight wards hers and Spike’s rooms when they bed down for the night. The guards are outside those wards with no chance of breaking through without alerting her.” “Judging by these claw and hoof marks in the soil about a dozen creatures surrounded the captain. I’m nearly certain one of them is a dragon. That is going to require a large space for them to avoid detection. Assuming they are even still in the city,” added Sugarcoat. “Let’s start there. We scout the warehouse district and the older, more dilapidated section of the city near the railroad tracks. With luck, we can foil whatever their plan is before the dawn.” Flanker paused, turning to Flash. “Do you concur, Lieutenant Sentry?” “We have to do something. It’s as good a place as any to start.” Flanker reached into his side pouch and retrieved a small blue stone. “This has a homing spell enchantment. Crack it and it will set off all the other stones we have drawing us to it. Whoever finds their hideout, the captain, or both can call the rest of us in to take them down.” Flash nodded. It was time to get armored up and go hunting. ---------- Tempest was awoken with a cold bucket of water thrown in her face. She gasped and sputtered, hairs if her mane separating and falling into her face. Once she became aware of her surroundings she attempted to move only to find that she was tightly tied down to a chair. This angered her, which naturally sent excess power to her horn. However the power did not pour forth, only a few sparks trickling through the inhibitor ring that was secured to her horn. It was not a perfect fit, she could not see it, but the fact that some power leaked through meant that someone had tried to pin or crimp it to her broken horn stump. The power feedback gave Tempest a headache, but considering her whole body ached that was barely noticeable. “Welcome back, Stumpy. Enjoy your nap?” Tempest took note of her surroundings. She was indeed tied to a chair and surrounded by a mix of guards and former members of the Storm Guard. Some she knew, others were not worth knowing, but they still kept their armor and weapons that gave them away. From what she could see with her limited movement she was in an old storage warehouse, some of the mercenaries sitting on the crates with arrogant and uncomfortable lust in their smiles. There were small windows near the roof edge and the sky was indigo indicating that Twilight would need to wake in a few hours to finish raising the sun. She must have been out for several hours. The fact that she could feel that they had stripped her of her black body suit before restraining her sent her thoughts to all kinds of uncomfortable places. She had no doubt they could smell what her body was going through. Had they violated her while she was unconscious? That thought sent shivers all the way to the tips of her hooves. It was then that she spotted Flag Staff leaning against a support post wearing HER ferronite armor. It was not sized for him and even with the plates strapped down to their tightest they still fit loose. She would have laughed at him were she not seething with rage. “I am going to strip my armor off your pulpy corpse, traitor.” A fist collided with Tempest’s face. She gasped and cried out at the stinging pain. Tempest turned her eyes to Garkiss and he punched her again, blood trickling from her nose and split gums. “Damn, was hoping to knock a tooth loose out of that ugly face of yours. Ah well. I’m sure I’ll get one eventually. I do still owe you for snapping off my horn and ruining my eye in our last big throw down.” Tempest spat and coughed. “If you are trying to motivate me to flip to your side you can all go straight to Tartarus.” “Nah, no point. You drew your lines and loyalty. For all that matters anymore. You know, I think we’ll take this moment to tell those who are not in the know yours and mines little history. You see, little ponies, Tempest here was considered one of the most ruthless fighters and killers in the entire Storm Guard. Killed her way to the top for sure. They said she never hesitated. But I knew she was still just a damn soft, silky pony under all that hate and power. So, one evening I had my boys put her in her place. Broken and in the dirt. But naturally, she didn’t stay there. Afterwards, she got a nice new set of our best armor and came after me even though I didn’t lay one finger on her. “Whoo boy, did we tear up the home base that day. The Storm King had to separate us lest we destroy the entire operations center. He knew after that day we were more powerful that he could ever be. If we ever teamed up he’d never stand a chance, so we were sent two different directions and never to cross paths again. Of course, I suppose he was half right. You and your pony friends really were his downfall.” “Are you done grand standing?” Garkiss smiled. He set a bucket on the ground and filled it with water. In one swift movement he seized the back of the chair and pushed it forward until Tempest's muzzle was submerged, held in place by a massive satyr claw. Tempest thrashed about trying to throw as much water out as she could, but her lungs were burning, demanding she take a breath. Her own horn and panic betrayed her sending bolts of electricity through the water, causing her to gasp and gulp down a lungful of water. Garkiss set the chair back, punching Tempest in the gut forcing her to vomit water and what little was still in her stomach. The mulberry pony gasped and shuddered while the surrounding creatures laughed. “Ain’t no one coming for you, Stumpy. And no matter how tough you are, how much you think you can take, I will break you before the night is out.” “And then what?” Tempest managed to wheeze out between gasps, “Twilight will never believe I just disappeared. The truth will come to light and you, and you, and ESPECIALLY YOU, will all be in chains on a one way trip to the deepest pits of Tartarus. I may be dead when this is over, but your lives are over as well.” Garkiss answered the statement with another sharp jab to Tempest’s bloody and swollen face. He punched her again, and again. After nearly a minute he stepped back and shook out his fists. Tempest coughed, her left eye beginning to swell so bad it was nearly impossible to see out of. The mulberry pony struggled to raise her head, finally looking her hated foe in the eye and spitting out a broken tooth and a stream of blood at him. Garkiss just brushed the mess away with a laugh. “Don’t want to do that too much. Might accidentally knock that ring loose.” Garkiss turned back to the rogue guards and his mercenaries flashing them all a toothy smile. “So, how about we move onto some real fun. How many of you ever seen a dragon fuck a pony?” Tempest gasped, swallowing some blood that caused her to cough and hack. The surrounding guards and mercs chuckled, hooted and hollered. Though she could only see out of one eye the jade orb went wide as a shadow passed over her, the hot dragon breath on her neck sending nothing but fearful chills through her body. Despite the pain, Tempest struggled against the binds as her horn tried to spark. NO! NOT AGAIN! “Now Scalder here, is no stranger to the females of all kinds. He’s even got a little stick he notches for all his many conquests. Ain’t that right?” The dragon stepped into the center space and Tempest finally got a good look at him. He did not seem that large, by dragon standards, but was still twice as tall as the cackling satyr, dark blue colored scales that showed some signs of battle damage or personal mutilation, it was difficult to tell, and sickly yellow eyes without a hint of remorse. His wings were currently draped over his shoulders like a cape while his tail, which featured a wicked spiked mace, swished about. “Now, I asked him once why he likes sticking his meat in all these different species of females and what did you tell me again?” Scalder chucked, flashing his sharp, yellowed teeth. “I like to hear them scream.” “There is no way he is going to fit. Twenty bits says he breaks her hips apart trying.” Garkiss bellowed at the overheard side statement. “I can see why you might think that, but here’s a little secret about dragons for you. Not all of them can do it, but some have the special ability to transform their size to fit the room. Some sort of hold over power from their occasional if sudden greed induced growth. The ones that learn how to control it can make themselves so small they can fit in my palm or be as big as a castle. All it takes is practice and energy. Though from what I gather my friend here prefers to use his energy elsewhere.” Scalder laughed and much to Tempest and some of the other pony’s surprise the dragon actually did shrink down a bit, now only standing about twice the size of Tempest as oppose to nearly scraping the ceiling. “I like the ponies the best. I wanna see if I can start my own Kirin village of bastards just like the legends say my kind did before the two sisters put a stop to it. What say you, wanna carry my bastard?” “Don’t you bucking touch me!” The mercenaries laughed, the rogue guards laughed, and worst, through it all she could hear that familiar, haunting laugh from Garkiss. Tempest could feel her heart racing, blood pounding in her ears as she continued to struggle desperately. She knew the pain was making her cry, but she grit her teeth, still refusing to stop pouring power into her horn in the hope she could dislodge the imperfect seal of the inhibitor ring. “Sounds like she still has some fight in her.” Garkiss waved his hand about to those gathered. “I would expect no less from the once great Commander Tempest. But we can’t have all that fight ruin our show so how about all you fine creatures come up and get a good shot in on her before we get the main event started. Watch the horn though, don’t want her to get loose.” Flag Staff was the first to happily step up. He sneered down at his former captain, eyes filled with gleeful malice. “You deserve every horror that is about to happen to you, bitch. This is for Canterlot.” His armored hoof connected with Tempest’s jaw and she felt another tooth loosen, more blood dripping from her split lips. The crowd cheered and the next guard stepped up. ---------- It had been easy enough to quietly relay the plan to the rest of the thestrals while Sour Sweet slipped back into the shadows to inform her agents what was happening. What came next was easy in concept, but would be difficult in practice. A city wide search on a time limit for their missing captain. Despite the danger to the individual guards, it was easier to spread out to avoid detection by the other guards of C company. Since there was no way to know who to trust each thestral was instructed to search an area while staying to the shadows. Sugarcoat waited for the two unicorns in the patrol to pass before moving to the next building across the street from the one she had searched. Normally, she loved being under her mistress Luna’s full moonlight. However, this one time, she wished the celestial body was not quite so bright even while approaching the horizon. Dawn was near and she and her brothers and sisters had been quietly searching for hours all while avoiding the other guards. It had not been difficult to outmaneuver C company. In fact, it had been pathetically easy, but to be fair, the guards were looking for thugs and petty thieves, not warriors skilled at moving without a sound and familiar with their terrain. A discussion for another day. The door to the warehouse she was about to search suddenly opened with creaky hinges protesting, forcing Sugarcoat to dive for the alley and wedge herself between the wall and a dumpster. Ugh. Going to need a long bath and mimosa when this is all over. “As much as I’d love to see her get bucked up I need to go check on the preparations for the morning meeting. It’s supposed to start not long after breakfast. Remind Garkiss that his people move in after we have dealt with Sparkle. There will be protests, but the guard and nobility will handle most of the damage control.” Sugarcoat could not make out what the reply was or if it was just a grunt noise. Once the door closed she risked a peek to see a unicorn stallion walking away wearing black armor that was obviously too big for him. It took a moment to remember, but she recalled that the Storm Guard favored black armor and that Tempest had a set. Once she was certain that the rogue guard was gone Sugarcoat cracked her tracking stone and flew to the top of the warehouse to search for an opening or window that would allow her to see what was going on. Though it was muffled by insulation and thick walls, she could make out quite the commotion inside. There had to be a dozen different voices at least. After a minute of searching, she found a gap in the wooden wall panel and was able to peek inside. Her view was limited but the warehouse floor was mostly open, the boxes having all been pushed to the sides with guards and other creatures such at griffons and hippogriffs on them. The large satyr who appeared to be the ringmaster eventually moved and Sugarcoat was able to see the battered and bleeding mulberry pony tied to a chair in the center under the node powered overhead lights. The gathered crowd began to chant and cheer, for what she did not know… until she saw the dragon step up, kick the chair over and break two of the wooden legs off. He carefully striped the bottom seat from the chair. Sugarcoat’s wide eyes narrowed and she hissed as she realized exactly what was about to happen. Garkiss yanked Tempest’s head up, waiting until her one good, if bleary eye met his while she ground her blood stained teeth. “You’re going to die now, very badly.” “Then just bucking kill me! If you have even an ounce of decency in you just get it over with.” Tempest tried to fight down the tears and sob that escaped, but she could feel the dragon behind her now, letting out a tear filled whimper when she felt the foreign object slide against her most sacred of places. “Not this… please, Goddess of Creation, not again!” Garkiss placed the bucket of freshly filled water down and submerged Tempest head again. She made no attempt to fight back, hoping that she might drown before the inevitable split her body and soul apart. Even with her face under water Tempest’s ears were free and could hear everything. Including when the cheers suddenly became gasps and panicked shouts of surprise. The lights all fizzled at once accompanied by the loud thunder clap of a sudden electrical discharge. “Damn, breaker must have blown.” One of the guards moved off, fumbling a bit in the low light. A few of the unicorns lit their horns for ambient light. Tempest lifted her head choking and gasping when she felt the dragon suddenly pull away from her. Though she had her eyes already closed it was still difficult to make out much beyond silhouettes in the dark. A sudden movement to her right caught her attention and she turned to see a mercenary be pulled over the crate. He barely had a chance to gasp or cry out before something happened to him. What ever was done it sounded painful and possibly fatal. “We’re not alone, scatter!” shouted Garkiss. The satyr looked down at Tempest who once again renewed her struggle to break free. He placed one cloven hoof on her head and pressed her back into the water. “You’re not going anywhere.” Garkiss squinted in the dark. He could hear his troops scuffling about along with the guards who should have been watching the perimeter. Too late to blame them, they were terrible at their job anyhow, he thought. However, with each scream, each bloody cry in the dark the satyr’s confidence in controlling and containing the situation ebbed. There was something out there in the dark and it was quickly cutting down his people without mercy. He turned to Scalder and shouted, “Burn this place down them we make a break for it. The boss will just have to conduct her coup on her own.” The dragon nodded and took a deep breath when the windows near the ceiling crashed in and several fast moving bodies swarmed the already confused and frazzled mercenaries. Scalder waved his arms as shards of glass were thrown in his face. “Subdue the suspects! Take as many alive for questioning as you can!” Garkiss turned, unsheathing his sword from his belt and pointing it at the large grey bat pony who had barked the orders. The pony’s yellow serpent eyes narrowed at Tempest who was still struggling to breathe with the satyr standing on her head. He flared his wings revealing the blades that ran along the wing's edge and turned his bladed gauntlets to a defensive position. “Get off my captain.” Two guards who knew exactly who had crashed the party ran for the side exit door. Every pony in the guard had heard stories of how Luna had once been a ferocious and feared warrior in the early days of Equestria even before the tribes crowned her as a diarch. She retained that knowledge and mercilessness and passed it on to the thestral through additional training separate from the rest of the guard. Seeing it first hoof, the speed, the efficient killing without hesitation or sound. It was the stuff of nightmares. “I’m not paid enough for this!” The pegasus guard opened the rusty door and was surprised to find a pale yellow earth pony with a bowtie standing there waiting. She smiled at the two guards broadly and waved a hoof. “HIIIII! I’m the distraction!” The pegasus guard never saw the staff until it caught him right between the eyes. The unicorn guard tried to light his horn for a counterattack when the follow up strike caught his horn followed by several punches to the face. Flash Sentry next tripped the dirty guards and stomped down on his head to incapacitate him. When he looked back over his armored shoulder Sour Sweet already had the other guard tied and secured. She nudged Flash away, pointing to the warehouse. “Go on and find her, lieutenant. I’ve got these idiots.” “I shouldn’t leave you alone in the dark.” “She’s not alone, sir.” Flash looked up and found another thestral hanging upside down from the light post who gave a simple salute with a wing, grinning at him. Scalder growled and narrowed his eyes at the thestral stallion who was dueling Garkiss. The two were dodging and occasionally parrying blades, appearing equally matched in strength and skill. However, the dragon knew that his friend could not keep up and extended fight at his age and with his bad leg. He took in another breath, preparing to shoot flame when a thin wire rope wrapped around his neck and was drawn tight to choke him. He managed to turn his eye and found a female thestral with blood stained forelegs crossed pulling the rope as hard as she could. “If I continue to strangle you at this crucial moment you will either suffocate from lack of oxygen or your fire gland, which you already ignited, will explode in your chest, cooking your insides. You might want to give up now.” Scalder could feel the gland already expanding in his chest. He had heard that some dragons would test each other’s resolve by trying to hold in the fire as long as possible. It was not unheard of that some would die from a rupture. Instead of surrendering however, the dragon forced his body to grow. Sugarcoat gasped as she held on and was smashed into the wooden ceiling planks. Shattered and falling debris knocked her helmet off, gashing the side of her face, but she refused to let go. She tighten the threaded cable rope attached to her gauntlets, feeling the strain on herself and her opponent. The thickness of his neck was now threatening to rip her forelegs from their sockets if he continued to expand. Still, Sugarcoat hissed and pulled harder, loosing a scream at the pain. Tempest rolled to the side away from the bucket and onto her back. It took only a second for her to realize that was not the safest course of action as small fights raged all about and now the dragon was thrashing with Sugarcoat attempting to subdue him. “Tempest!” Tempest could hear Flash call her name even amongst the chaos, but did not see where he was. Her attention however was diverted back to the dragon as he smashed through part of the rafters overhead and debris began to fall. There was little Tempest could do, squeezing her eyes shut as splinters and timber planks landed about. One of the ceiling plank caught Tempest on the side of the head. She winced and cried out from the additional pain, but it was quickly forgotten as the soothing rush of mana surged through her being once more. When she opened her right eye, Tempest found that the fallen rafter beam had not only struck her head, but had dislodged the poorly held inhibitor ring as well. With burning righteous fury, Tempest set the ropes binding her on fire, ignoring the small singes the falling strands left on her fur. Her teal eye took on a blue-white glow as she gathered all her magic into an attack. Tempest heard Sugarcoat cry out as her forelegs were about to be torn from her body. Too late to cut the rope attached to her gauntlets. The mulberry mare turned her gathered fury to the strangling dragon, the glowing spot under his scales just below his heart catching her attention. Dragons by their very nature were resistant to magical attacks. But no creature was completely resistant to the laws of physics. Tempest compressed her attack into a solid mass of energy about the size of a bowling ball and hurled it like a cannonball at the dragon’s overcharged gland. The impact caused the fire to rupture inside his body and with his esophagus cut off he exploded inside. Thankfully, only a small amount of molten gore escaped as he fell to the ground dead. Sugarcoat rolled away from the body in case it could still explode further. Tempest turned around, her horn gathering power once again as her fury continued to fuel her spells. Through broken teeth and dripping blood Tempest screamed the name of her focused hated. “GARKISS!” The satyr pushed the thestral back and turned. He never had a chance to block or dodge as an overcharged lightning blast was unleashed directly in his face. The mercenary leader screamed as his body convulsed and seized up, fur charring and skin blistering. A moment later he fell to the ground, smoke wisps rising off his entire form along with the putrid smell of burnt hair. Tempest stepped up to the fallen creature she hated more than anything else in the world. She stared down at the unconscious satyr's burnt face, taking note that his chest was still rising and falling even with a wheeze to his breathing. Her horn sparked and crackled with rage powered energy. Tempest would have rather he been aware he was about to die and that it was she that would deal the killing blow, but it would not matter in another few seconds. “Captain.” Tempest turned to her left. Flash removed his helmet and unceremoniously dropped it to the dirt. He held up his hooves defensively so as to not accidentally draw her fire. “I know you’re angry, but we need him alive to question him. Please, Tempest, stand down.” Tempest flashed her bloodied and broken teeth, her right eye glowing with excess magical energy. “How can you ask that of me?! He doesn’t deserve mercy! NONE OF THEM DO!” Flash kept his distance, but met her fury filled eye with sympathy and calm. There was little solace he could offer her. Even after his years of service in both Equestria and The Crystal Empire he had not suffered like she had. Flash knew he had no right to stop her, but also knew in his heart it was wrong to slay a downed adversary. He played the only card he had left that they both would understand. He appealed to her sense of honor. “I know. But in Equestria, we don’t kill enemies who are defeated and lying on their backs. We’re better than that. You’re better than that, Tempest. Twilight knew that when she chose you to be captain and right now that is what we need you to be. Twilight might be in danger and we need to know what they were planning. Please, you need to be the bigger pony, ma’am. You’re not a murderer. You are Tempest Shadow, Captain of the Royal Guard.” Tempest let out a haggard breath and released her gathered lightning storm, discharging it into the ground and remaining building. Slowly, she hobbled her way over to Flash Sentry. Now up close he could see the tears leaking from both her open eye and the swollen one. He offered his forelegs and she fell into his waiting embrace. He held her as she sobbed and shuddered, the tension of not just the night, but years of pent up rage leaving her. Nothing else needed to be said. Tempest relished the warmth of his forelegs and soft caressing wings. He smelled so good, welcoming, safe. Each limb gently stroking and massaging her, picking up smears of blood on his fur and armor that he could not be bothered to care about. All that mattered was that she knew it was over and she was safe. It took several minutes before she felt composed enough to step back, quietly apologizing for the blood stains. Flash just shook his head, keeping a hoof on her side in case she fell over. Tempest tried to save some face amongst her subordinates by standing up straight even though everything hurt to do so. While Flash had been comforting their captain, reassuring her the fight was over, Flanker had summoned their medic. A small unicorn thestral named Golden Aloe, but all the other thestrals just called her Stitches. With some gentle nudges, Stitches got Tempest to turn to her. “Let me take a closer look at you, captain.” Stitches cast a scan spell, hissing and growling at the sheer magnitude of physical trauma. The thestral’s serpent eyes fluttered open, her jaw hanging open a bit as she gawked at her captain. “How bad?” asked Flanker. “Honestly, I don’t know how in Mistress Luna’s name she is still standing. Contusions, lacerations, swollen left eye, her nose is broken in two places, two missing teeth, a cracked jaw, three cracked ribs, and internal hemorrhaging, which we need to take care of immediately before she bleeds to death inside. We need to get you back to the infirmary, ma’am.” “Just heal me here as best you can. I don’t have time for anything else.” Stitches flailed, looking to Flash and Flanker for any help in regards to getting the captain to change her mind. “If you don’t lie down you could pass out and injure yourself worse! You need a surgeon and bed rest. My best healing spells will only stop the bleeding and maybe reduce some of the swelling! You will still be in a boat load of pain.” Tempest scowled at the thestral mare who she stood a head and half taller than. “Do it or find someone else who will. I can fall over dead after I know what is going on and the princess is safe.” “Captain.” Tempest glanced back at Flash. He was making no effort to hid the hurt in his eyes. It caused her heart to both flutter and ache at the same time. She sighed stepping closer to the orange pegasus and whispered quietly in his ear, “Thank you for everything you have done for me, Flash. I really mean that, but the job comes first. If you can’t handle that then you and I are not going to work. Do you understand?” Flash nodded. Tempest forced a smile through the pain in her face and jaw. I probably look like a train wreck. At least he’s smart enough not to say anything. She turned back to the satyr who had been flipped over so that he could be tied up and secured. Her right eye locked on Sour Sweet who had one hoof on the prisoner while the other was on Sugarcoat, checking her for any injuries. The thestral rolled her eyes, but allowed her wife to do so. It took a few minutes and left Stitches with sweat dripping down her muzzle, but the thestral had done everything she could for her captain before having to step out to rest and recharge. Tempest sighed as the magical healing soothed her aches and reduced the swelling enough in her face that she could at least use both eyes again. Flash and a thestral stallion named Windblade helped her get her black body suit back on and then wrapped her ribs with compression tape to keep from further injuring her tender insides. Lastly, Flanker held up the captain’s armor that had been haphazardly tossed into a corner. Tempest scowled at the flashy gold and purple set, but signaled for the stallion to help her secure it in place. Something was better than nothing. “Flag Staff has your black armor,” said Sugarcoat, taking a guess at what Tempest had been thinking while giving the captain’s set the stink eye. “He was here, but left just before I attacked. I wasn’t able to gather much information, but there is something going down with the other guards and nobility. I only caught a bit of it. The princess may be in danger, but if I had followed him to confirm… if you wish to demote me for failing to ensure the safety of the princess I will completely understand.” “The sun is about to break the horizon. That tells me that for the moment Twilight is safe. And you saved me from… just, thank you.” Sugarcoat saluted and nodded her understanding. Tempest scowled at the satyr who was stirring, but still not fully awake. “It’s time we stop guessing and find out what is really going on.” She pointed to the bucket of water and Flash took the hint. He quickly seized it and tossed the remains directly in the satyr’s face. Garkiss gasped and sputtered, his eyes badly bloodshot from the lightning blast to the face. It was possible she may have caused permanent blinding damage. Good. Garkiss coughed and wheeze a bit, before a grin spread across his face. Even his teeth were blackened a bit. “Huh, still alive. You really have gone soft, Stumpy. Damn ponies don’t know how to finish the job, but I expected better of you.” “You don’t know me, you never did and the only reason you are still breathing is because a good soldier reminded me of what is more important. Now, I am tired of guessing who is pulling the strings. You are going to tell me who paid you to come here, who snuck you into the city, and the name of every noble, guard, or house keeper who is plotting against the princess.” Garkiss laughed again, his cloudy eyes turning to Tempest. “Or what?” “Or things get messy.” “Torture? HAHAHAHA!!! You don’t have the stomach for it! You never did even in the Storm Guard. Always made others do the messy stuff. Threaten to feed them to the yetis or prick them with those hedgehog quills from that little bastard who use to follow you around.” Tempest’s horn began to crackle with energy again. “I am not in the mood for…” Tempest looked to her left at the pale yellow hoof that was touching her shoulder. She gave Sour Sweet her most vindictive, drop dead glare that just bounced right off the earth pony who smiled brightly. “Allow me, captain. Gathering information is my department, after all.” Tempest growled, but nodded. Sour Sweet stepped forward and waved her hoof in a wide arc in front of Garkiss’s face. “Yoo hoo, can you see me? Your eyes are more crusty than a graduate after a weekend shore leave pass.” “Going to annoy me to death, little pony?” Sour continued to smile broadly. “Oh, no, that would take much too long and we don’t have time for it. So, I’m just going to ask nicely one more time for you to give up your associates or else, like the captain said, things get messy.” “And it’s no less funny coming from the bubbly one!” Garkiss laughed and hacked. Sour Sweet shrugged. “Well, can’t say we did not try.” She turned to look at Sugarcoat. “Sugar, do the thing.” Sour Sweet stepped aside and let the thestral stand before the restrained satyr. Even through cloudy eyes he could see the light, powder blue mare leveling her half lidded purple eyes at him. It took a moment, but eventually he heard the rustling of her leathery wings and realized the pony before him now was a thestral. “Ahhh. So, I take it you’re the one who is going to conduct the torture? You’re gonna need a lot more that fangs and blades to scare me, meat. I have been in pain for years. Pain is an old friend of mine that reminds me I’m still alive. It's all part of the game of life, you see. After this game is over I’m going to break your cute little neck, then I’m going to break the bubbly one’s neck and eat you both for the fun of it. I bet bat pony taste like chicken.” “I guess I should thank you first. You paint such a vivid image of your intentions you have wiped away any lingering doubt about what must be done. I don't take threats against my wife, who I love dearly, lightly. Going back to what you said earlier though, I believe you clearly misunderstand what pain actually is. Or have never experienced it enough to beg for it to stop. Tell me, are you familiar with thestral venom?” Garkiss stopped laughing and narrowed his eyes at Sugarcoat, the thestral remaining perfectly neutral, giving nothing away in physical gesture or inflection. “I’ve been all over the world, little pony, I’ve never heard of such a thing.” “You may be well traveled, but you have to remember, until Princess Luna returned after her thousand year imprisonment no thestrals have existed in all that time. Only our mistress is capable of the ritual that gives us our abilities. Many of which we keep hidden even from our fellow guards. One such secret is our ability to secrete a highly potent venom. “It is unique in that it is both a paralytic neurotoxin and a necrotic acid. Once I bite you the numbness will spread through your veins until half your body in incapable of moving. While that is happening the venom will also be eating away at your tissue, first causing the area to swell as your insides begin to turn into a bloated goo. Once the toxin reaches your heart, usually after a few minutes, it will rapidly spread to all areas of the body. Your blood vessels turn black and melt, your organs fill with toxin and puss until they explode, and your brain is squeezed like a vise against your skull. If you are lucky you will already be unconscious from the sheer pain and pressure on the body, but you will not be dead. Not yet. "Despite the acid eating away at your bloated body the heart is made of thickly laced muscle and takes a long time to dissolve. It will still be pounding away while your body melts from the inside out. After a good two hours you will be swollen like a balloon and all it will take is a single, well placed blade point to pop you, spilling all your gore upon the floor. Only then, may you know death. I’ve never seen the final results myself. However, Lieutenant Flanker, who is behind me, is one of the oldest thestrals in our mistress’ service. As I understand he has bitten a prisoner who refused to give in and it eventually progressed to the final stages beyond what any antidote could cure.” “You’re… you’re lying! Ponies are too soft to have created such a thing!” Garkiss struggled to scoot away, his limbs trembling as the thestral stepped closer. Tempest could not keep from smirking at the satyr’s distress. She recalled the many times a recruit begged him to stop torturing them only for Garkiss to laugh and either make it worse, or cut them and throw them to the Timberwolves. Literally on more than one occasion. But never mercy. He did not believe in a merciful death. He certainly did not deserve one. Flash leaned closer to Flanker. “That’s… not really a thing, is it?” Flanker just shrugged. “It is not unheard of for our mistress to grant unique powers.” Flash turned next to Sour Sweet, who was grinning with sadistic glee. “Is… is she serious? Because I honestly cannot tell.” “Oh, she’s totally making this up,” Sour finally whipsered as Garkiss began to shriek as Sugarcoat pushed him over and flashed her fangs. “We came up with this as a ‘good guard/bad guard’ technique years ago and practiced it for fun. She is absolutely selling it like a boss. Isn’t she great?!” Sour Sweet narrowed her eyes at Flash, poking him with a hoof. “She’s mine, you can’t have her, boy toy.” “Uhhhh… right.” Sugarcoat held Garkiss down while brushing his fur about, trying to play at finding a good spot on his neck to bite. She made sure he could still see her. She flashed her fangs, making sure she had extra saliva to drip for dramatic effect. “I’m going to bite you now.” “STOP!!!!” Garkiss squealed. “That bitch ain’t paying me enough to die like this!” Tempest took that as her cue to step in. Signaling Sugarcoat to step back. “Biting is still on the table after all you have pulled, but I’m willing to be the bigger pony here. Now talk. Tell me everything. Who hired you, what is their plan, how many guards and mercs are we up against? All of it!” “Me and my boys were hired by Lady Purity Brilliance. She first contracted us not long after I started my band in the wake of collapse following the Storm King’s death. Most of the top noble families all have rival and competing interest, but your pony society finds such skirmishes uncouth, so they pay merc bands to do the dirty work so their hooves stay clean. Especially in port towns and in other countries. I don’t think she was aware of our shared past, at least not at first. She called us inland about a week ago after some frame up attempt to bring you down failed.” “Who else is in on it? Even if she is the mastermind there is no way she could have this much control alone.” “As I understand it from what the guards blab about most of the bribes come from Lady Brilliance and Duke Brand. Their next most closest allies are all upper echelons of the nobility. I have no idea if all the nobles are in on it. I doubt it though. Otherwise they would have attempted to overthrow the princess sooner.” Tempest growled, her horn crackling again. “She is planning a coup against Princess Twilight? Why would they go along with that? Even if they drove Twilight from Canterlot she would just return with the friendship council or at the head of an allied force. Possibly even pulling Celestia and Luna out of retirement to return Twilight to the throne. It’s doomed to fail from at least six different angles.” “She said that Twilight Sparkle is the usurper, an illegitimate ruler. It all got kind of wordy after that. Something about noble consent and an accord by the three tribes.” “The Equestrian foundation accords!” shouted Sour Sweet. The other ponies all turned to her. “Okay, so, I’m summarizing so forgive me. When Equestria was founded it still had three tribes that only sort of got along. The three ruling bodies knew that it was only a matter of time before war and eternal windigo winter would return if the new country failed. However, not long after that first Hearth’s warming the Two Sisters emerged from… well it’s fuzzy from where, but what is well documented was that the three tribes willingly consented to place Celestia and Luna on the new thrones as the first alicorn diarchs once they reached adulthood. “Their new power was granted to them by the consent of the council that was the ruling body at the time. The elite of the three tribes. It’s been a long time since I have seen a copy of that accord, but if I remember correctly, there is a section that states that a new ruler requires the consent of the council to rule. It’s not well known, but then they may not have realized that alicorns are immortal when they wrote it.” “I wasn’t at Twilight’s coronation,” said Tempest with just a twinge of regret. “Do any of you remember if the council gave their consent to the new regime?” “Whether they did or did not is academic,” said Sugarcoat plainly. “If Brilliance has convinced enough of the nobles and council that the princess was wrongly crowned and force the issue legally they could theoretically depose her and any attempt to return her to the throne, without their approval could be seen as tyrannical. It could cause a war if enough ponies sided with the nobility.” “They could spin it any way they wanted! They have their hooves in all the infrastructure guilds, the newspapers, and obviously the guard and other law enforcement.” Tempest arched an eyebrow at Flash’s statement. “But If Celestia or Luna returned they would just drum up new support, contact other nations, heck, they could just take back their crowns themselves if need be.” “They abdicated, I’m not sure on the fine print, but I’m pretty sure there is no take backsies from that,” said Sour Sweet. “You’re all thinking like politicians and not like conquerors. The easiest way to make sure no one ever comes back after you kicked them out is to kill them.” Tempest gasped, jade eyes going wide. Her surprise put a smile back of Garkiss’s face. “Hate her all you like, but Lady Brilliance has been planning this for months. She’s made sure to have all her most loyal followers in place, armed and ready for any opposition. The only thing that was really stopping her, the only one she could not control, was you. I probably should have killed you quicker, but it’s too late for you to stop what’s coming now.” Tempest stepped up and slugged the satyr with a ferocious right hook that sent a tooth flying from his bloody gums. “Soldiers! On me!” The thestrals who had been partially listening while they secured their prisoners all surrounded their captain upon her order. Tempest did a quick count. They had less than twenty bodies at their disposal. The mulberry mare shook her head of its exhaustion, fighting down her fatigue and aching, lingering pain. She could do this. She had defeated three alicorns and taken the entire city prisoner with only a few more than twenty troops in the first wave. “First and foremost, where would Twilight be right now?” “The sun just broke the horizon so she is probably still in her hotel suite,” commented Flash, looking towards the brightening eastern sky. “According to correspondence, the princess has a meeting this morning right after breakfast with the nobility in the ballroom of the Grand Royale hotel. That hotel is owned by Duke Gilded Brand and no doubt by now is stuffed to brim with their dirty guards and mercs.” “That’s bad an all, but Twilight is an alicorn,” commented Sugarcoat, “while not all powerful she is no light weight either. She could easily raise a barrier that could hold off a dozen mages or just teleport away. They would have to get an inhibitor ring or two on her to shut down her magic.” Tempest shook her head. “They would know that, which means they have a plan for dealing with her magic. I know from past experience that it’s not impossible to break through an alicorn’s barriers. We need to rush the hotel, try to intercept the princess before she reaches the Grand Royale.” “That’s a really short window,” commented Flanker. “The Gilded Horn and Grand Royale are less than a block from one another and we are on the very wrong side of town and ill equipped for a major confrontation.” “You giving up on me, lieutenant?” Tempest growled. “No, ma’am. Just pointing out that perhaps throwing ourselves head first into the foray on the barest of chance to stop the princess from reaching the hotel is not the best strategy. As of right now, our enemies think that all my thestrals are dead and that you are dead. Leaving only perhaps a few guards that would not side against the princess along with Sour Sweet and her agents. I know it’s a calculated risk, but if we can get back to our barracks, gear up, we have a much better chance of success.” “Why not the armory?” commented Tempest. Flanker shook his head. “Would be the first place I would expect an enemy to go so I would have it heavily guarded. But our enemy is our brothers and sisters. We don’t want to kill them without knowing who is friend of foe. Better and easier to retrieve our non lethal weapons to disable those who believe they are just doing their jobs and following orders. We kill those that try to harm us.” “A two pronged attack,” commented Flash. “We lead a fast charge for the hotel through the front door while two teams of thestrals take out the perimeter around the hotel and slowly squeeze in and support us if we get surrounded.” “Oh, you will get surrounded. Expect two to one odds at best.” “I’ll leave my agents here to secure and watch the prisoners while I help on the ground floor charge.” Sugarcoat, for the first time Tempest had seen flinched, her eyes filled with worry. “That’s reckless and dangerous. You’re out of practice with this sort of thing.” “Good thing I have all these other fit and strong soldiers right beside me then, right? Find me some armor that fits and I’m good to go. That fellow over there looks to be about my size.” Sugarcoat looked as if she were going to further protest when Tempest walked over, punched the guard out who had already been tied up, and began unfastening his armor. “We don’t have time for couple's therapy drama. Flanker, assign your teams, we make for the thestral barracks in five. If we lose the element of surprise this will be over before it even begins and I refuse to have Twilight’s blood on my hooves. Make sure every soldier is ready to lay down their life to protect the princess.” Flanker and several of the thestrals, including Sugarcoat, snapped to attention and saluted in unison. “On that front, captain, we are always ready.”