Do we have a deal?
Silent but slack-jawed, Gregor stared at Hexapod. His body was sunken back into his seat, his shoulders were scrunched and this collectively diminished his stature to something pathetic. Upon realizing his uncomely appearance, he closed his beak, sat forward, and rolled his shoulders back. Before he could respond, however, there was a shuffle of feathers and lion's feet in the room as Guston lunged.
In the blink of an eye, Hexapod turned around and brought a hoof up to intercept Guston. The infiltrator's horn lit up as he grabbed Guston's neck and used his telekinesis to hoist the griffon—who would otherwise be stronger—into the air. Guston struggled and gasped for air and his face quickly began to turn red. He tried to dig his claws into Hexapod's leg but couldn't penetrate the exoskeleton.
"Guston!" Gregor shouted, "No! Did your honor leave you when you became wanted by the crown? Pathetic, trying to attack our guest with his back turned!"
Hexapod let Guston go, who fell to the floor as a sputtering mess. In between catching his breath, he managed to squeeze out, "Our guest?"
"Changeling," Gregor addressed Hexapod, "your underlings did not make the best impression. But, I respect your strength and skill."
"Captain Gregor," Hexapod responded, "I won't ask again. Do we have a deal?"
The captain flinched slightly and promptly said, "Yes! Yes, we do." He regretted being scared into agreeing so quickly, however. As if to backpedal somewhat, he asked what he should have asked first, "What are the terms of our agreement?"
"Come with us to our queen, and she'll tell you," Hexapod instructed. "Don't bring too many of your boys. Only carry pistols. Don't try anything funny, for your own good. Come to airlock L2A when you're ready."
Hexapod strolled out of the room, moving in a manner that was so calm that it was insulting. Aside from Guston's ragged breaths and coughs, everyone was silent. A few seconds after he disappeared from sight, Chitin felt the need to break the silence.
"Look," Chitin said, "I'm sorry it came to this."
"We feed on love," Thorax added, "don't worry about if you'll get your cut of loot."
"Insolent beasts!" Gregor shouted. "I don't know what your master sees, but you two are lucky."
The two drones turned around and nervously edged out of the room. Their hoofsteps faded out of earshot, but then started to get louder again. Thorax awkwardly stuck his head back into the room.
"Where's airlock L2A?"
Hexapod turned his cloaked head up. Hoofsteps emanated from around the corner, and Thorax and Chitin appeared around it. They were still a little shaken, but seemed visibly relieved to see Hexapod again.
"Thorax," Hexapod said, "come here."
Incredulous, Thorax tilted his head and approached Hexapod. With a quick swipe, the infiltrator slapped him. Shocked, Thorax barely breathed out a "what" before he started trembling in fear.
"Don't speak for the Queen," Hexapod told him. "I heard what you said."
"B-but it was..." Thorax trailed off, both relieved that it wasn't worse yet frustrated at the abuse.
If Thorax was about to change his mind about shutting up, he didn't get a chance. The griffons came around the corner, and simple, single-shot pistols were holstered on their thighs. Hexapod turned to them and with a flick of his head, gestured to the bottom-side door on the ship.
"Ready?" Hexapod asked.
"Yes, changeling," Gregor responded.
With a brief wind-up, Hexapod kicked the wheel handle to the door open. It was a violent and sudden motion, but it almost seemed casual and effortless. Thorax gave a brief pause, taken aback in admiration. He knew all too well that he might have hunched over and strained and grunted to open the door. The hatch dropped open under its own weight, dangling under the ship from gravity.
"Follow me at a distance. Close the door behind you," Hexapod commanded.
With a brief skip and jump, Hexapod dived out of the ship. He spun for a little to orient himself back to the Queen's camp, spread his wings, and then slowly pulled up into a glide. When he looked back, he was annoyed to see Thorax and Chitin had gently exited the ship, flapping about in the same place before they saw Hexapod. Annoyed, the infiltrator killed his momentum in one deft motion and hovered while waiting for his drones. Several seconds later, the griffons climbed out of the ship, and each of them waited for one of them, presumably Guston, to close the hatch. After he strained against the weight of the door and turned it shut, Hexapod gestured for them to hurry up before he continued down into a dive. The griffons followed, strong and swift.
"Thorax, Chitin," Hexapod said firmly but quietly enough as to not be overheard, "keep an eye on them. Don't let them come close."
"Affirmative!" Thorax yelled, and Chitin facepalmed. Annoyed that Thorax had just drawn attention to their exchange, Hexapod groaned but did not say more.
The beating of the griffons' wings was louder than that of any pegasus, leading Thorax and Chitin to take a look backward more than once. After having been pursued by pegasi for the last days, the griffons sounded uncomfortably close even when they were quite a healthy distance away. Thorax cringed at the thought of taking a lead ball through the back of his head, but he knew that those pistols were not going to hit them at this range, especially mid-air.
Once they'd been gliding for a minute, Chitin got the nerve to ask Hexapod, "Sir! With all due respect, what in Tartarus was that back there?"
"Dude!" Thorax exclaimed right after, and this inadvertent bit of disrespect earned the side-eye from Hexapod. Thorax gave a sheepish grin, but still continued, "That was insane! We were dead meat but you came in and swept the floor with them!"
Hexapod gave an irritated scowl, as if he were going to belittle Thorax. Then, his expression softened, and he turned back forward.
"Don't mention it, kid," he said.
"What?" Chitin asked. He frowned and stuck his neck back in confusion. "That's it?"
"I didn't have to put you two at risk like that. I should have checked the room ahead of time. Three armed griffons in a tight office? That's a death sentence to a drone." Hexapod admitted.
"Wait," Chitin asked, "Why do we matter to you? Couldn't you have done all those negotiations yourself?"
"Sure," Hexapod said, "but believe it or not, boys, you two aren't half bad for apprentices."
"Apprentices?" Throax piped up. "Where did that come from? I thought we were horrible!"
"And," Chitin interjected, "I thought that Chrysalis just wanted you to search with a team?"
"I often have my own ideas," Hexapod stated.
"Huh?" Chitin said, incredulous.
Hexapod did not explain himself any further. The three had not gone far from base camp before Hexapod had started the two on his brutal training regimen. It was well hidden from the air, but a few faint trails of smoke emanated from under the leaves, only noticeable if you knew where to look. Hexapod dropped steeper into a dive to approach the camp, and everyone followed.
The changelings dived through the tree line, scraping leaves and branches against their exoskeletons but paying little mind. Hexapod pulled up sharply before hitting the ground, coming to a stop in one smooth, powerful motion. Thorax and Chitin were a little more awkward, landing into a running trot before they stopped. In response to their sudden arrival, bright blue eyes peered from out of tents, trees, and behind campfires to catch a glimpse of the elusive infiltrator and his entourage.
A few seconds later, the griffons descended into the trees. They took their time, being careful to avoid the branches, and they gently pushed their way through the foliage. After they made it through, they gracefully dropped to the ground. Gregor sniffed and slowly scanned his surroundings, his eyes widening after realizing just how badly outnumbered he was. Hundreds of changelings teemed through the nearby trees, many of them recently recovered.
Chrysalis stuck her head out of her tent, squinting and groggy. Upon seeing the eagle-headed, lion-legged griffons, however, she gasped and stepped out of the tent. Hexapod flew down next to her and dropped the hood of his cloak—a gesture of respect.
"What in Tartarus is this?" she asked incredulously.
"I found you some extra muscle," Hexapod said with a smile. "Easily a hundred griffons."
"B-but," Chrysalis stammered, "How?"
"Boarded their ship, those two with me asked them for aid," Hexapod pointed at Thorax and Chitin. "Things were turning pear-shaped, so I knocked a bit of reason into them. Got them on board, rest is all yours to decide, my highness."
More taken aback at how suddenly the griffons had appeared than with Hexapod's subtle disrespect, Chrysalis shook her head. She took in a deep breath, regaining her composure and trying to get ready. It had been a while, and the swarm was still regrouping and vulnerable, but now it was time to project an image of power once again.
"Griffons!" she addressed them. "Which of you is the leader?"
Gregor winced a little but did his best to hide it as he yelled back, "Me, Captain Gregor! We were approached by your soldier there," he pointed at Hexapod, "and given an offer to fight along your side."
"I have heard that much," Chrysalis said with a tinge of condescension.
"I would like to ask," Gregor said, maintaining a tone of respect, "How would our alliance work? What would be expected of my griffons and what would we receive in return?
"Gold and glory," Chrysalis responded. "Loot is of little meaning to us changelings. I can promise a one-half cut for what comes into our control—for now."
Not understanding exactly what that might have entailed, but eager nonetheless, Gregor affirmed, "Yes, your highness."
Continuing on, Chrysalis said, "As for the role your griffons can play in our campaign, they will not only be additional troops to fight in open combat, but also sentries. As you can see—"
With a flash of green flame—that illuminated the dark cover of the Everfree in its glow—Chrysalis assumed the disguise of a young, slender unicorn mare. Despite having witnessed Thorax and Chitin do the same, Gregor's underlings flinched at the transformation. A moment later, she lifted her disguise and continued:
"...us changelings usually operate with subterfuge and deception. Only when best laid plans go south would we require your assistance in battle. However, we often imprison and impersonate the population of any city we infiltrate, and your griffons may be useful to keep watch over them."
Some of the griffons looked puzzled, but Gregor closed his eyes and solemnly nodded. After a few seconds, Guston blurted out:
"But what ab-"
Gregor snapped around and muffled Guston's beak with his talons. All was silent, save for a few gasps among the changelings and other griffons. With a wordless glare, he intimidated his underling into silence.
"We really can't afford to piss this Queen off right now," he thought. Maybe Guston didn't understand that much, but Gregor had been clear enough.
"You four came just in time, by the way," Chrysalis continued. "I was about to announce that our hive will be embarking onto Los Pegasus. Our camp has been exposed and we're too close to Canterlot, so we'll be moving out to lay low for a bit. Your griffons and your ship, they can follow us at a distance. We will correspond with messengers. I don't want to see any large group of griffons coming to us and I can assure you that you won't see our swarm flood your ship."
"Yes, your highness," Gregor said.
"Return to your ship," Chrysalis commanded. "You will be able to tell where we are as we periodically send up magic flares to keep our groups in contact."
Gregor turned around, and within a quick flick of his head and gesture, signaled for his griffons to follow him. He darted up into the treeline and stopped to gently pry the foliage aside. Some of his underlings were not so smart, and Ronalde flew into and was caught by a few branches. There were a few audible groans from Gregor, but after a few short embarrassing moments, they took off to the sky.
Now that they were gone, the changelings began to speak among themselves openly. A flurry of emotions, ranging from confusion to panic or even elation outpoured from the swarm as they all tried to make sense of what they had just witnessed. Chrysalis turned back around to Hexapod, who was staring blankly at the treeline where the griffons had disappeared. Taking his time, he slowly turned to face his Queen's attention.
"Hexapod," Chrysalis called, already visibly deflated and less self-assured than she was a moment ago. "How would I expect to be able to trust these friends of yours?"
Hexapod gave a concerned grimace, as if to acknowledge Chrysalis' discomfort. This transitioned into a soft smile before he responded, "These griffons are lowlifes. I've infiltrated and observed their ships from the inside in the past. Most of them are wanted at home and quickly become wanted here in Equestria for scamming, robbing, and peddling drugs. They're not in a position to sell us out, and most of his griffons have a lot to gain from working with us."
Chrysalis paused, wide-eyed and not entirely reassured. "And if they try?"
"You know what I'm capable of, your highness," Hexapod said with the same, warm smile.