//------------------------------// // A Clean-Up Kidnapping // Story: A Griffon's Gang // by PonyPixel //------------------------------// Another normal day at the School of Friendship. Everything was just as usual. Students hang out or read books for assignments, or something else. But for one griffon, Gallus, it is still as normal as usual. He was on a couch at the school’s lobby, just relaxing by himself with his back pressing against the seat cushions, his head on the sofa’s arm, and his whole body slouching as he stays there. He was only minding his business. When he turned his head, he saw Smolder approaching him. “Hey, Gally,” the dragoness greeted. “Oh, hey there, Smolder.” “What are you doing?" “Just chilling,” he responded. “I have nothing in mind. You got anything planned?” “Eh, just a nice date with Ocellus, that’s all. I was wondering about how you and Silverstream are doing.” Gallus blushed. “I know, that was only for the play.” “Uh-huh, sure,” Smolder said sarcastically. “You know Silver was all for it.” “I know that, but…” The griffon groaned as he knew his friend was right. “Okay, so it's happening. What should I do?” “How about a private pool party? Silverstream’s crazy to find out what happens when other creatures are affected by the pearl shards. She thinks Ravi would turn into a dolphin." “Yeah… What about Terry and other minotaurs?” Smolder simply shrugged as she didn't really know what would happen. “I don’t know. It’d be kind of cool seeing what it would be like to breathe underwater.” “It’s weird. I’ve been affected by her pearl shard before. I mean, Spike told me he turned into a pufferfish, while you… a shark!” “Yeah, a tiger shark to be precise.” “Hello there,” Sandbar said. Gallus and Smolder turned to see him walking towards them. “Hi,” they greeted. “What’s up?” Sandbar asked. “Oh, we’re just talking about what’ll happen if some creatures were affected by the hippogriff’s pearl shard,” Gallus answered. “Interesting. You remembered what happened to Yona, right?” “Oh, I remembered that,” Smolder grinned, “she became a walrus. I was with you, and her,… and Pearl, Kelpie, and Tanzanite after we got our runaway wings. Man, also, that chocolate milk was delicious!” “Exactly,” Sandbar chuckled. “Anyways, I came here to tell you guys something positive. I bet you, Gallus, would love to hear this.” “Really!” he exclaimed with interest. “Go ahead, tell us,” Smolder said. “They're finally putting Griffonstone back together.” “They are?” both griffon and dragoness said in shock. “Yeah, there’s a sign-up sheet and everything. Come on and take a look.” Smolder wanted to see where this was going and followed her friend down the hall. Gallus wasn't too far behind, though he wanted to stay in the lounge. Walking down the corridor, Sandbar showed them both the sign-up sheet asking for volunteers. Not too many students had signed up though. “What's with the lack of students?” Smolder questioned. “Seemingly because nobody wants to fix it up,” Gallus muttered. Sandbar overheard this and looked a little concerned. Garry and Genna were flying by when they saw the sign-up sheet. “How long was this here?” Garry asked. “A little earlier today,” Sandbar informed. “Say, are you guys interested in doing this?” Both griffons just looked at each other before flying away, not even looking at the sheet. “There's your answer,” Gallus commented. He seemed to be just as caring as Garry and Geena and just walked away. Both Sandbar and Smolder knew how he felt about Griffonstone, but it didn't make sense why nor did Garry and Geena want to make Griffonstone a better place. Gallus made it to the school’s entrance and laid down right beside the moat. He looked down at his reflection in the water until somebody covered his eyes. “Guess…… who,” said a familiar voice in a singing tone. “Silverstream, I’m not in a good mood right now.” The happy hippogriff removed her wings from the griffon’s eyes and sat beside him. “What's wrong?” she asked as she sat down beside him. “Is something bothering you?” Gallus sighed. “It’s that sign-up sheet I saw, saying that Griffonstone is going to be rebuilt. Students are allowed to sign up right now.” “Oh. That’s good. Isn’t it?” “Sure, the buildings getting the proper rebuild they needed for so long is great, but it’s the residents who are the problem. You’ve heard what they’re like. They don’t care what happens unless it does something good for them.” “But having a roof over your head is a good thing.” “Yeah, but how long is that roof going to last when they tax you a bit for every breath you take, huh?” Gallus looked back down at his reflection in the water as Silverstream kept trying to comfort him. “Griffonstone isn't for everybody. You could always move somewhere else. My parents won’t mind if you stay with us for a while.” “Hmm, that's nice of you, Silvy. I still think that I want to move to Canterlot though.” “That's kind of pricey.” “I know. Still, it’d be a good place to be.” Silverstream wrapped her wing around her boyfriend before nuzzling against him. Gallus smiled as he felt her cheeks rubbing against his cheeks. “Thanks, Silver. I really appreciate this.” Gallus repaid his girlfriend’s affection by kissing her cheek, making Silverstream blush. Despite how the griffons were feeling about the plan to restore their home, a couple of students did sign up. They were willing to help give their friends a good and proper home. With enough of them signing up to help, the school had gotten the supplies they would need for Griffonstone's makeover. It soon became a popular topic and a couple of the students even tried convincing some of the griffons to tag along with them. Emerald was one of those students who was trying this on Gus. “Come on, Gus,” Emerald said, “what would we convince you to try and fix up your home?” “Make the griffons care and then we can work something out,” Gus responded. “Try and think about griffons like Peter. They’d want to have a new home.” “A home is one thing, but if your parents are better off behind bars, then you’d be better being an orphan.” “I heard that!” Gallus cried. He had some of the worst past experiences in Griffonstone and did not want to talk about it. The students and teachers were wanting to help out, but they also understood the major issues with the griffons’ home. As the blue griffon went to get a drink, his friends sat at the table talking about the issue. “You know what I'm thinking?” Ocellus asked. “Yeah. Why do most griffons’ names start with G?" Silverstream asked. “Yes, but also the fact that the key problem is the parents of Griffonstone. The students started caring once they came here and they actually learned about creatures that care about them.” “I still remember how they tried to hide in our treehouse during Hearth’s Warming,” Sandbar noted. “I know. We've never met their parents, and I don't know how we can change the others’ minds about fixing Griffonstone.” Gallus soon came back hearing the end of his friends’ conversation. “I'm glad you guys are trying, but it was a struggle to get them to stop the Mean Three,” he explained. “You know, the three that nearly destroyed Equestria.” Smolder was pretty amazed by what she heard. “That bad?” she questioned. “Sure is. If I struggled to convince them to save the world, how are we going to make them better parents?” “Maybe we need to trick them to think they want to be better?” Sandbar suggested. His plan did sound a little shaky, and even he didn't seem to believe it would work. “Guys, there are some things you just have to accept as pointless. The parents of the griffons are one of those things.” This sounded pretty harsh, but they understood what Gallus was feeling. They knew they would break records if they kept suggesting ideas. Instead, Silverstream decided to change the subject. “So, random question, if you’re a pony, what would you guys have for a cutie mark?” the hippogriff asked. "Yona don’t know what cutie mark would be,” Yona admitted. “You’re asking me,” Sandbar said, “I’m a pony, and I have 3 turtles as my cutie mark. But… if I were in an alternate universe and have a different cutie mark, maybe it could have something to do with snow.” “How about a snowflake embedded in the cracked ground?” Gallus suggested. Yona didn't like the sound of that at first, but the more she thought about it, that design did sound like her. “I'd just go with a ladybug,” Ocellus admitted. “They’re adorable little bugs. Smolder, you?” The dragoness pondered a little bit until she had a guess. “Anything to do with fire,” she said. “Like a teacup?” Silverstream asked. “…Yeah. A teacup. Of course, it’s because I like wearing dresses and attending tea parties.” Ocellus placed her hoof on Smolder's shoulder. “Smolder, we all know that you like dresses and tea parties,” the changeling spoke. “There's nothing to be embarrassed about.” “I honestly thought you'd be more embarrassed playing Well Dressed,” Gallus chuckled remembering the play that wasn't too long ago. Smolder blushed again as the friends were happy Gallus was feeling better now. A couple of days later, the students that had signed up were ready to start the restoration of Griffonstone. They made up the clean-up team and were just waiting for the train at the train station. Out of all of the students that signed up, only four of them were griffons; Gale, Gus, Grace, and Gregoria. “I still don't know how they roped us into this,” Gus groaned. “You try arguing with a yak,” Gale noted. They both looked over to the girls to hear their reasons for coming. “I'm going with Dotta and Peridot,” Grace said. “And Emma's coming along too.” “So's Gleaming Pearl,” Gregoria added. “She seemed happy to help.” They heard some loud hoof steps and turned to look at Applejack. “Listen up, y’all,” the farm pony called, “The train will be here in any minute. Now, we’re happy that you’ve chosen to help fix Griffonstone because the future is in our hooves… or should I say claws. I’m sure the future generation of griffons will be very thankful for your actions. If it wasn’t for you, they wouldn’t be the happiest creatures on earth.” This made the students feel confident, then they heard the engine’s whistle. The train stopped at the platform and everyone got on board. “Isn’t it wonderful, Gregoria?” Gleaming Pearl squealed, as she and Gregoria got onto the train. “I can almost see the beauty of the new Griffonstone.” “Yeah, I could see that.” “What’d you think this job might have for us?” Rusty asked. “If they have demolition,” Trud stated with excitement, “then Trud in!” “I can see that,” Gale snickered a little bit, and got onto the train together with Rusty and Trud. “Hey, Emma,” Peridot said while getting on a train. “Could you imagine how dirty and chaotic that place is when we start doing the work? I’d imagine like a lot of old houses with loose and cheap material, and trash littered all over the streets.” “That’s what I’m thinking,” Emerald smiled, “but we can handle that. It’s for the sake of the greater good. What could possibly go wrong?” “You’re right, sis.” The twins chuckled and went onto the train. The train whistle blew one last time before leaving. Nearby, Gallus and Sandbar watched as the train puff away to Griffonstone. “You sure we couldn’t help them out?” the colt asked. “It’s fine,” Gallus responded. “Also, I think I heard the other tribes were sending over some of their subjects to help since most of the students don't want to do it.” “There looked to be plenty on the platform.” The boys started walking away from the train station to find something else to do. “You know, Sandbar, I've been wondering what we'd be like if we were born as different species.” “How so?” "I mean, if like… if I were born as a yak, Yona and I would get to know each other much faster.” “Would you guys still go to school?” “Maybe… Maybe it depends.” “I’m sure Silverstream would be completely different if she was born as a griffon.” “What if Smolder was a changeling?” “Oh! That I would love to see. Has Silver been rubbing off on you?" The colt just shrugged as his friend grinned. Speaking of Silverstream, she is at her dorm, busying drawing what she and her friend would all look like if they were ponies. She had made herself and Gallus as pegasi and Smolder and Ocellus into unicorns. Yona was an earth pony and had been drawn sitting right next to Sandbar. As she drew their alterations, Smolder was looking at the dresses in her closet. She picked out the one she got for Hearth's Warming. “What do you think Griffonstone is going to look like after it's rebuilt?” the dragoness asked. “Hmm, I don't know that much about it,” Silverstream admitted. “Maybe it'll be like the home in Hippogriffia. Hippogriffs live inside of trees, like hollow ones.” “Aren't those cramped?” “They're bigger on the inside. Besides, you dragons simply sleep in caves.” “Hey, it's simple yet effective. Not to mention roomy.” Silverstream had another question. “Do they enjoy sitting on rough terrains?” “It's a matter of opinion. I know some dragons who love to sleep on pillows while I hear some of them get back pains unless they have a hard flat surface.” A knock on the door got their attention, so Smolder placed her dress on her bunk and answered it to find Ocellus waiting outside. “Smolder, do you think you could help me?” the changeling asked. “What is it?” “Yona had a bit of an accident and now there's a mess in the lounge.” Smolder sighed as she and Silverstream followed Ocellus down the hall to the lounge. Yona was already there cleaning up some spilled juice. “Oh, man,” Smolder groaned. “Yona, what did you do?” “Yak getting juice before tripping over rug,” Yona explained. She pointed to the corner of the rug that was unfolded. Just then, Gallus and Sandbar walked in, seeing the mess. “What happened here?” Sandbar asked. “Accident,” Smolder replied. “I see,” Gallus said. “We’ll help you clean up. C’mon, let’s go.” They left to gather rags, mops, and tissue paper to clean up the mess Yona made. As they worked, Yona had one question for Sandbar and Gallus. “Did boys see train to Griffonstone leave?” she asked. “Sure did,” Gallus confirmed. “Hope they get it over with.” “Gallus, you sound like Griffonstone has no good reason to be rebuilt,” Sandbar noted. “A building’s wall can be built out of something that can survive an attack from a centaur, but they'll fall in seconds if the foundation is unstable.” Sandbar sighed as he knew his friend wasn't going to change his opinion. Deciding to drop it, they finished up with the juice spill. Time went on, and Silverstream decided to show Gallus the drawing she had made of them as ponies. He was in the school’s lobby reading a book. When she found him, she sat down beside him. She then tapped his shoulder to get his attention and showed the drawing she made. “What do you think?” the hippogriff asked. Gallus looked impressed. “That’s nice,” he commented. “I like that you’ve made each couple the same race of ponies,” “I’d like to be a unicorn. Except I still love my wings.” Then Silverstream gasped. “What if I was an alicorn?” “Then I think you'd have a blast.” Silverstream giggled a little bit before placing her drawing down. “How do you think Smolder and Ocellus would be like as unicorns?” “I think they’ll show some cool magic. Smolder would definitely keep some of her firepowers.” “Definitely. You know, I was about to start drawing what we all look like as different species. Sandbar the yak, Smolder the changeling, and even a hippogriff version of you.” Gallus rolled his eyes. He was interested in being a hippogriff, but aside from the part pony thing, he didn't mind much of a difference between griffons and hippogriffs. Just as Silverstream was about to start drawing her beak gave off a glow, much to her amusement. “Hey, Silver, you see this?” Gallus asked. Looking behind her, Silverstream saw her boyfriend’s beak glowing just like her’s. “Ooh, we’re both going on a mission!” Silverstream squealed She pranced out of the lobby and saw Yona run past her with Sandbar riding on the yak's back. Surprised, the hippogriff flew up to catch up with her hoofed friends. She could see Sandbar's cutie mark and Yona's horn were glowing just like her beak. “No way,” she exclaimed. “You guys are getting called too?” Sandbar took a look at his friend's beak. “Yeah! It seems like it,” he affirmed. Gallus managed to catch up with the group as they got outside and saw images of their heads and Sandbar's cutie floating into the air only to fly away from the castle. “Where are they going?” Gallus questioned. Orange and blue silhouettes flew past the friends as Smolder and Ocellus caught up to them with their spines and wings glowing respectively. “You too?” Smolder questioned. “Yeah. Why all of us?” Silverstream questioned. “If that's the case, it's gotta be serious,” Ocellus noted. “That doesn't explain why we're not going to the castle,” Gallus noted, pointing in the direction their silhouette had flown. “Follow them!” Still unsure what the reason was, the student raced in that direction and found themselves running through the Everfree Forest. Eventually, they made it to their treehouse. “The treehouse?” Sandbar said in a confused tone. “Why at the treehouse?” “You’re telling me,” Gallus said. “Let’s go in.” When they walked inside, they could see their silhouettes and Sandbar's cutie mark spinning around in a circle. “…Okay, now what?” Smolder questioned. The answer would come when the floor beneath them lit up. It was a little bit blinding at first until the brightness died down. Now that they could actually see, the young six gasped at what they saw. Beneath their feet was a giant holographic map. It showed the locations of Equestria, and possibly beyond considering some of the locations looked unfamiliar to the students. Silverstream was of course excited about what she was seeing. “No way! We have our own map!?” she cheered. She began flying over the various locations while her friends were a little confused. "Why would we have a map in the treehouse?" Ocellus asked. "There didn't seem to be anything wrong with the one in the castle." “Maybe this one works differently,” Sandbar guessed. He looked around the map until he saw Cloudsdale. “Oh look, there’s Cloudsdale.” He walked over to it and when he placed his hoof on the said city in the sky there was a flash. Within seconds, clouds, buildings, and ponies appeared around the students, though they were translucent. Yona saw one of them walk towards her and phased through her like a ghost. The yak jumped into Smolder's arms out of fright. “What happened?” Yona shrieked. As Smolder set her down, the friends looked around getting a sneak peek of the city in the sky. “Is this something in the past?” Silverstream asked. “I don’t think so,” Smolder said, and then pointed to somecreature she knew. “Hey, look, there’s Peter,” Smolder pointed. The young griffon was flying around with his older brother and pet cockatoo, they weren't wearing any winter clothing and the weather had to be warm because Ricky the cockatoo wouldn't even be out of the house. “This is all happening right now, at the exact time?” Gallus questioned. “It looks like it.” The preview of Cloudsdale dissipated and the map on the floor had returned. “Okay… That's interesting,” Ocellus commented. “I wonder where we’ll go for our mission?” Looking back at the map, they saw their silhouettes and Sandbar’s cutie mark floating over Griffonstone, much to the frustration of Gallus. “Really? I'm going to help out in Griffonstone whether I like it or not, am I?" he asked. “Seems like it,” Sandbar commented. “Come on, we can take a shortcut at the school and we'll be there in no time.” The students all rushed back to the school to get to the tunnels. When they jumped through the hidden tunnels from the library, Gallus was still hesitant to help on this mission. “Who would we even help here?” he complained. “All of our friends are there doing their relief program.” “I guess it has something to do with the griffons who volunteered,” Ocellus guessed. “Volunteered is a strong word.” “It could have something to do with one of the griffons that live at Griffonstone that we don't know of,” Silverstream guessed. “Maybe a romantic problem.” “Yona wishes friends use new preview mode,” Yona admitted. “Oh yeah, we should've done that in the first place,” Ocellus said with a sigh. “That could’ve helped give us more prep time.” The team stopped when they could see the slab above them waiting to be removed. “Let us do this,” Smolder declared. “Yona, give me a hoof.” She and Yona pushed it aside and both looked at their surroundings which shocked them with a frightened yelp. “What happened?” Gallus asked. “Uhh, you might want to see this for yourself,” Smolder said with an unnerved tone. Helping their friends out of the tunnels, they were horrified by the sight of Griffonstone. It was in a worse mess than it was when they went to clean it up. More buildings had collapsed and it looked like there was a fire. “Oh no!” Ocellus exclaimed in horror. “What happened here?” The six of them looked around and couldn't see any creatures around other than themselves. They walked around to see if anybody was around. “This is like Tartarus,” Sandbar commented, “but a 100 times worse.” “Or how Hippogriffia became a ghost town,” Silverstream added. “Hello?” Gallus called. “Hello? Is anybody here?” There’s no reply, none but the sounds from the flames. “That’s just great, there’s no…” Suddenly, a lasso wrapped around them. “Fantastic… a booby trap.” They then were pulled into one of the few intact buildings. Worried about what was going on, they saw Applejack who was with some of the students. “Professor Applejack?” Sandbar questioned. He was about to ask about what happened until the farm pony interrupted him. “Hold up. Before you continue, why and how are you here?” Applejack questioned. “You weren’t one of the members who signed up for this.” “We know, professor,” Ocellus said, “we’re here because we got a call from the map.” “I see…” “Not the one in the castle.” “What? You mean there's another map similar to ours?” “Yeah, from our treehouse,” Silverstream informed. “It’s more… extensive than the other.” Applejack was fairly confused as Emerald helped untie the students. “Better if you let me see it for myself.” “Deal.” Emerald finished untying the lasso and letting the Student Six release themselves. “You should count yourselves lucky you didn't choose to come here,” Emerald informed. “We would if we knew what happened just right outside,” Gallus said. Emerald looked back at the other students, including her sister who looked afraid. “We didn't get a good view of what was going on, but we only heard it.” “Then who saw it?” “All we remember is Grandpa Gruff forcing us in here,” Peridot informed. “Let me talk to him.” Gallus walked back outside to find the old griffon despite the students and Applejack warning him not to go outside. Gallus flew around for a little bit until he saw the old grump cautiously walking around. He picked up the pace as he saw Gallus approaching him. “Gallus?” Grandpa Gruff said, felt surprised to see him. “What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here.” “Believe me, Gramps, I don't want to be here, but I do want to know is what happened here,” Gallus said. Grandpa Gruff started walking away except Gallus wasn't going to let him go away that easily. He flew in front of the old griffon every time he tried to walk away. “Please, Gramps! My friends and I want answers.” The rest of the young six approached them and Gruff had a feeling that he had no choice but to talk. “Alright, fine. Just listen carefully because I’m only going to tell this to you once.” Applejack led the students up the path leading to the kingdom that had lost its glory. The griffons were still against all of this, yet they were already here. They could see Gilda, Greta, and Gabby waiting for them. “Glad you finally made it,” Gilda said. “Sorry Gilda,” Applejack apologized. “Some of these kids weren’t willing to come here.” “That’s okay. At least they’re here now. Thank you so much for coming here to help us restore the home that lost its glory. So, without further ado, let’s clean this place up.” The three griffons led the students to where they needed to go. They started work with the buildings that were beyond repair and falling behind, which were a lot more than the students were expecting. Emerald picked up a door that had fallen off its hinges. She looked over to Gus and Sunshine, who was looking at the building trying to figure out if it was a house or a store. “Hey, Gus, how could you guys live like this?” Sunshine questioned. “I have no idea. It’s a miracle we’re alive,” Gus admitted. “I’d say,” Emerald agreed. He ripped apart some wood from the building to find it was rotting. “You think we could get a yak over here?” “Professor Applejack went to get a cart,” Sunshine informed. He flew over to the broken building and helped rip off a piece to start making a pile. As they did this, Greta was showing one of the intact buildings to Gregoria, Grace, and Gleaming Pearl. “You know, it’s kind of weird to see a griffon with hooves instead of paws,” Greta said to Pearl. “I had a similar feeling once I saw a griffon like you,” Pearl admitted. “So, what do we do here?” “Simple, I just need help taking some old stuff out of this shack. Put them in a pile over there if they’re salvable.” “And if they’re like broken furniture, we chuck them in another pile?” Gregoria questioned. “Exactly. Let’s get started.” They went inside the old shack and cleared out what they found. As for Gabby, she had shown Gale, Trud, and Tanzanite to one of the buildings that needed to come down. As per Gabby’s instructions, Trud rammed into the wall at full force, running right through both of the building’s walls. Without proper support, the building crashed to the ground. “That probably could’ve gone better,” Tanzanite commented. “Hey, he knocked the building down,” Gale stated. “It is as weak as rubble.” “That’s true, but... I don’t think we thought it through,” Gabby commented. Looking at the remains of the building, they likely had more work to do, much to Gale’s annoyance. Gilda had shown one of the salvageable buildings to Rusty, Terry, and Peridot just as Applejack had turned with a cart and her toolbox. “So, what do we have to do here?” Rusty asked. “Well, there’s a hole in the roof of this place,” Gilda stated. “That doesn’t sound too difficult,” Applejack commented. “Let’s start loading up this cart and...” They were interrupted by a loud explosion. The sound caused panic as nobody knew where it came from. “What in tarnation!?” Applejack quickly unhitched her cart and she ran off to help the students calm down. Gabby was just as confused and scared as the students when Grandpa Gruff slowly walked over to her. “What’s with that noise?” he questioned. “I wish I knew,” Gabby admitted. Gregoria, Grace, and Pearl didn’t know what to do other than hiding in Gilda’s bakery. Gabby was about to go in after them until Grandpa Gruff saw a giant airship flying towards Griffonstone. “Gabriela, come with me!” “But the students...” “There’s no time! They’ll have to hope they don’t look in their hiding spot.” Gabby wouldn’t have time to question as the old griffon pulled her aside and hid in one of the houses that were hard to see given how it was sandwiched between two other buildings. From the airship, a silhouette figure flew down to the kingdom. As they landed, it was clear they were griffons, one that did not look friendly. One had gray feathers and black fur that matched his talons and beak, which was covered with a red scarf. Another had light gold fur and feather with white markings around his eyes and his beak matched his talons with a gray color. He looked at a belt around his waist with some small sheath on it. Lastly, there was one with white feathers and fur with some yellow patches. His beak and talons were yellow and he wore some goggles, but the most eye-catching thing about him was his red wings, which looked like they were made of metal. The gray and black griffon looked around to see the town looking abandoned. “Sir,” the male griffon with metal wings called, pointing to the chimney of Gilda’s bakery, which looked to have some smoke coming out of it. “That building hasn’t burnt down, plus it looks new.” “Good observation, Glynn,” the gray and black griffon commented. He turned to the golden griffon with the belt. “Gram, care to join me?” The golden griffon smiled as he pulled out a white dagger from the sheath on his belt. When they got to the door, without warning, they bashed it down. They looked around to see who was hiding inside. The two walked into the bakery closet and found the girls hiding inside of it. They forced Gregoria, Grace, and Pearl out of the bakery as the airship was coming in for a landing. Gus, who’s at his hiding spot together with Sunshine and Emerald, could see the girls getting taken away and then noticed a broken bottle on the ground. He knew that he can’t just stay and watch them getting kidnapped. Without thinking, he charged out to smash it against one of the griffons, taking Gregoria, Grace, and Pearl away back to their hiding spot, not in the bakery this time. All of a sudden, Gus saw a familiar bipedal figure pounce at him before getting jabbed in precise parts of his body before falling limp onto the ground. The figure landed on the ground and looked at the leading griffon. That familiar figure is a kobold, that same guy who attacked the dragons at the Ponyville Cafe. “Very well, Onyx,” he said. The kobold smirked as he looked down at the paralyzed griffon. The kobold known as Onyx looked over to Gus’s hiding spot. When he looked over, he saw familiar faces, the same victims whom he attacked before. Sunshine and Emerald were frightened to see him, having flashbacks of that incident. Something isn’t right. “Hey, boss,” Onyx called, “he wasn’t alone. He has company with him.” The black griffon walked over to the hiding spot until Emerald made her move. She jumped out and tried to give him a surprise attack. In a flash, the griffon ripped open a powder bomb which made the dragoness cough and made her nostrils sting. “Not again!” Emerald groaned. “Ignore her. She’s too small to be of any use to us. Take that griffon there.” “Uhh… it’s called a Hippogriff,” Onyx corrected. “Whatever, just get him.” The kobold forced Sunshine out to the airship. The black griffon stopped outside of their hiding spot and requested the dagger that Gram had. Holding the dagger in his claw and grabbed Emerald up by her horn, called out to the other students. “Alright, pussies!” he yelled. “If any other griffons or hippogriffs are hiding here, come out now. If not, this little dragon here will be cut inside out.” Peridot was horrified at what she heard, so was Applejack and the rest of the students. Wanting to keep Emerald alive, Gilda, Greta, and Gabby came out with the rest of the griffon and hippogriff students, pleasing the griffon holding the dragoness hostage. “Hold it!” Gilda shouted furiously. “We’re out! Now, put her down!” “Very well,” he then slammed her out hard, almost tumbled to the ground, then ran to the hiding spot where her sister is hiding. Peridot hugged her, knowing that she’s already safe. “You better watch your back,” Gilda growled. Greta looked like she was wanting to hurt them. “Hmm, maybe I’ll let you two stay behind,” the griffon leader noted. “You’re just going to be a mess we’ll have to clean up.” Gabby and the students were then harshly taken onto the airship. “You should let me stay in charge of the griffons,” Onyx recommended. “I’ve learned that the one with a short fuse can be dangerous.” “Whatever you say,” the leader scoffed. “You know more about those… hippo… hippopotamus… whatever you called them. Just make sure we can sell their necklaces. I’m sure our buyers would love them.” They went back inside the airship as the door closes behind them. The airship started taking off and while Gilda was tempted to chase after them, but then, a ball of fire barreled towards her. While she managed to avoid it, the fireball crashed to the ground destroying a couple of (thankfully) empty buildings. There were only some minor injuries from the students that poked their heads out of their hiding spot. Gilda quickly landed and a couple of shurikens embedded themselves in the ground beside the griffon telling her not to follow the airship. “They kidnapped the griffs?” Sandbar gasped, after hearing that story. “Exactly. Now, if you don’t want to end up like them, get out of here,” Gruff ordered. The young six were a little conflicted. Gallus, on the other hand, was curious about one detail from what they heard. “Gramps, do you know those griffons?” he asked. Gruff looked towards the blue griffon, not liking what he heard. “You know something we don’t. Who were those griffons?” The students all looked at the elderly griffon with a fez. “What… You don’t think I would hide from a gang?” “You gave accurate details about how they looked, including the ones with metal wings. Tell us. Who are they?” Gruff had a feeling Gallus wasn’t going to get off his back until he answered the question. “Alright. They call themselves the Gold Gang. They’re a gang of griffons who abandoned Griffonstone after the Idol of Boreas was lost. All I know is that they gather up a bunch of the young griffs and train them into thieves.” “Our friends aren’t like that,” Silverstream stated. “Neither is Gabby.” “Then they’re not going to last long.” This didn’t sound good considering how the gang made themselves known. “Just… where did they go?” Ocellus asked. “I hid after saw the fireball coming down. Everyone else just kept hiding until we know it’s safe.” Gallus decided to see if Griffonstone’s ambassador. Gilda was in her bakery with Greta, grumbling about what happened. “I could’ve done something right,” she muttered, slamming her clenched claw on the counter. “Gilda, we have no idea what they could do,” Greta reassured. “I mean… they had a ninja, a pretty good one. Not to mention that fireball.” They heard a knock on the door that was no longer hanging on the hinges. The girls looked to see Gallus walking in. “You two okay?” he asked. “Physically,” Gilda sighed. “We just… let those guys take them.” “Hey, there probably would’ve been more griffons on that ship than there could fit in Griffonstone. Besides, didn’t you almost get shot down?” “Yeah, by these stars.” Gilda placed the shurikens that almost hit her onto the counter so Gallus could get a good look at them. The shuriken didn’t look like they were made of metal and were oddly colored white. The rest of the young six walked into the bakery with Grandpa Gruff just behind them. “You got the shurikens?” Ocellus questioned. “Sure looks like it,” Gallus responded. He showed them off to his friends, still confused about what they were made out of. They were all being careful as they didn’t want to cut themselves on the points. Smolder thought she’d be fine given her thick scales when she grabbed the shuriken… “Ow!” Smolder cried. She dropped the shuriken so she could hold her claw. Ocellus could see the confused and painful expression on the dragon’s face. “Smolder, what’s wrong?” she asked. She walked closer to see a small cut on the palm of Smolder’s claw. “How is this possible?” Grandpa Gruff walked closer to the shuriken on the floor and picked it up. “It’s what these things are made of,” he said, “Dragon bones.” The room went quiet as they couldn’t believe what they heard, including Smolder, with her jaw dropped. “Dragon bones?” Sandbar questioned. “Indeed. I’ve seen them use weapons made of this material before. Like daggers and swords. Your dragon friends should be happy that they’re small and young, can’t make too much out of teenage bones.” Smolder felt sick thinking about this, and Yona almost fainted. “Now I know they mean business,” Gilda shuddered. “Yona think friends go home,” Yona spoke. “Then you’re probably the wisest of your friends,” Gruff noted. “But we’re not leaving our friends in their control,” Gallus stated. Gruff scoffed at the idea. “And how do you suppose you’re going to follow them? Two of you can’t fly.” “We’ll carry Sandbar and Yona, duh.” “Yona would prefer a balloon,” the yak spoke. “Well, we have to get our friends back somehow. Gilda, did you see where they went?” “They were heading south,” Gilda explained. “And also, you’re not going after them.” “Seriously?” “You heard what Gruff said, they have weapons that can kill dragons. You’re not going to stand a chance and I’m not going to take the blame from the other kingdoms if get hurt.” “You’re already in hot water when the hippogriffs got kidnapped. You might as well get some guts and get them back.” Some conflict between Gallus and Gilda was starting to develop and Sandbar was quick to try and stop it. “STOP!” he yelled. “Let’s just calm down for a while,” he suggested. “Sandbar’s right,” Ocellus agreed. “We should alert the guards of the other kingdoms about this.” “Hmm, you’re right, blue bug,” Gilda commented, and then turned to Greta. “Greta, you keep an eye on the kids, I’m going to the Dragon Lands to warn Ember about what happened. We’ll alert the other kingdoms and start a rescue team.” Greta nodded in confirmation as the ambassador of Griffonstone took off to the Dragon Lands. Gallus wasn’t planning on staying still though. “Hmm, we're going to need some supplies,” he muttered. “Gallus, are you nuts?” Sandbar cried. “They're right about those griffons. Better if we stay.” “And the map called us for this important mission. If you want our friends to suffer who knows what with weapons strong enough to kill dragons, go ahead and sit on your flanks. I'm going back to Ponyville to gather supplies and do the right thing.” With that, Gallus forced his way out of the bakery and back to the tunnels. His friends thought about what he said. These griffons were a force to be reckoned with and they weren't going to be nice to the kidnapped griffons. “Gallus is right,” Smolder admitted. “I'm going to help him pack.” She walked off to the tunnels hoping to catch up with her friend. Silverstream didn't say anything and simply followed the dragon. “Have you kids lost your minds?” Grandpa Gruff questioned. “Do you even listen to what they teach?” “We know the risks that we’re about to take,” Sandbar spoke. “But we have to help our friends. And I know that I can’t let them suffer like that!” Despite knowing the risks, Sandbar walked out of the bakery. Yona wasn't letting her boyfriend go along and quickly ran out to lift him onto his back before getting to the tunnels. This left Ocellus as the last student in the bakery. Gruff just groaned as he knew what would happen. “Come on, ladybug, you know you're going to do it. Go and try to keep up.” The changeling just nodded before getting up and leaving the bakery. The old griffon looked towards Greta, who didn't like what happened. “Aren’t you going to stop them or what?” she questioned. “You're the one who has a back that doesn't need constant support. You're telling me you couldn't catch the big one?” Greta was about to object, but she facepalmed instead knowing the Gruff was right. The Young Six worked fast to gather the supplies they needed. Since the ambush had happened in Griffonstone, no pony in Ponyville was aware of why they were getting the stuff they needed. Gallus and Ocellus were just passing the town square when they saw a hot air balloon coming in for a landing. The blue griffon looked at it while thinking, something Ocellus noticed. “What are you thinking?” she asked. “You're going to be the only one who can carry Yona single hoofed,” Gallus explained. “However, if we had a balloon like that, she and Sandbar could ride in it. Not to mention, it could help carry out supplies and us if we need a rest.” Ocellus thought about Gallus's plan, balancing the pros and cons that came with it. They would have an easier time traveling, but balloons weren't exactly known for fast traveling. Between flying until their wings had blisters and a slow journey, the slow speed would probably be a better option. “I guess we can have a balloon for the journey.” “Perfect. I'll try and strike a deal with that pony. You try and find some rope.” “Why a rope?” “Because, if we pull the basket, like a cart, we should be able to move it swiftly.” Ocellus thought this would probably be a good idea and went to get the rope as Gallus tried to talk to the pony in charge of the balloon. Meanwhile, Smolder and Silverstream had gotten some tents and cooking supplies that could be used over a campfire. “We should be able to save on the matches since I'm a walking firefighter,” Smolder proclaimed. “Right,” Silverstream agreed. “If we didn't have to rescue our friends, this probably would be a fun camping adventure.” The two friends agreed as Smolder checked a list that they had prepared. “We're almost finished. If Sandbar and Yona have gotten the food and water, we should meet them back at the school." The dragon and hippogriff set off back to the school feeling that time was at the essence for the griffs. When they got there, they could see Sandbar and Yona waiting for them with plenty of canned food and bottles of water. “Friends ready to go?” Yona asked. “We've got what we needed in case that we have to sleep outside,” Smolder informed. “Where are Gallus and Ocellus?” Silverstream asked. “They should be here,” Sandbar noted. Just then, they noticed a shadow hovering over them. Looking up, they could see Gallus and Ocellus flying with the hot air balloon right behind them. They landed just in front of their friends. “All aboard,” the griffon called. “You rented a balloon?” “Yep. We can't fly all the way to the rescue. Not to mention carrying all this stuff is going to be a strain if we push ourselves.” Ocellus started placing their supplies into the basket to which the rest of the students did as well. “You sure we'll be able to find them?” Silverstream asked. “We’ll see. The spirit chose us for this mission. Besides, we can't just wait until another team goes to save our friends.” Gallus looked up at the sun to judge what time of day it was. “Let's go while we still have some light.” The students agreed and Sandbar and Yona go into the basket. Gallus then showed the rope which he tied around his waist. After a quick explanation, Silverstream did the same thing. Soon as everything was set, the team set off in the direction they had been told about the airship. They were a little slow to start but eventually picked up some decent speed and flew into the horizon. The mission begins!