//------------------------------//
// 1 – Through the Streets of Griffonstone 
// Story: Call of the Mountain 
// by Krickis 
//------------------------------//


Chapter One


Through the Streets of Griffonstone

⠀



⠀
Griffonstone had seen better days. That wasn’t very noteworthy in and of itself; the once glorious kingdom had fallen far since the days of King Guto. Everyone knew those old tales so well that they were sick of them, even if they kept them in treasured places deep in their hearts. A secret hope that glory may someday be restored to the proud griffons.
No, it wasn’t notable that Griffonstone had seen better days. But it was notable that Rainbow Dash could remember some of them. Not the days of King Guto, of course, but the days of her childhood. Griffonstone hadn’t been much even then – she’d tried to run away from it when she was only twelve for a reason – but it had been more than this.
Which was why Rainbow was going to do something about it. Things could be better. She’d seen for herself what life could be like with friendship and kindness. It may have only been for three days, but in those three days that Rainbow had spent with Fluttershy, she learned there was another way – a better way.
Rainbow just needed to show them how. Which, to be fair, was a lot easier said than done with griffons. She was well aware that the few griffons who paid her any attention mostly did it to laugh at her. Either that, or the free food Rainbow provided.
But at least she didn’t have to try and do it alone. “Pretty big crowd out there,” Pinkie Pie said. She was referring to six griffons, only two of which seemed particularly interested in anything other than their free meal. Those two both beamed and waved at Rainbow enthusiastically, which might have been a consolation if they weren’t her parents.
Rainbow ignored them to survey the rest of their audience, meager as it was. She didn’t like what she saw. “Great, Grandpa Gruff is out there…”
Pinkie turned to her in surprise. “Gruff is a great grandpa now!? That’s so exciting!”
“What? No, he’s…” Rainbow sighed. “I’m saying it’s ‘great’ that Grandpa Gruff is here.”
“Wow, really? And all this time I thought you didn’t like him.”
“Pinkie, I was being…” Rainbow gave it up as a lost cause. Even if Pinkie wasn’t doing this on purpose, it still wouldn’t be worth the effort to explain.
And if she was, that would hardly be a surprise coming from Pinkie Pie. The word eccentric might as well have been made for her specifically. Even her appearance was strange. Of course, that was partly because she was a full-blooded lynx griffin of the mountains, not one of the local pigeons they had in Griffonstone. It definitely showed, too; she was larger than the more common griffons, although she was about average for a lynx griffin, but even among them her bright pink fur and feathers stood out.
Being a cross between a laughing falcon and a lion, she might have still had a bit of an intimidation factor if not for her curled feathers. Not only did it make her look ridiculous, it led to a significant decrease in her flight proficiency. Pinkie claimed it was worth it for her ‘increased snuggliness’. Rainbow Dash preferred not to comment on the matter.
Not that Rainbow didn’t also add to their flair. Although she’d been born and raised in Griffonstone, her parents had been among the nomadic kestrel tribe, and they’d passed on the tribe’s trademark coloration. She was a brilliant blue, darker along her feathers and lighter along her fur. Her tail had totally awesome rainbow stripes, for which she’d been named.
Between the two of them, they were a sight to see. Although a lot of griffons had blood from one of the other tribes somewhere in their family lineage, it was usually only enough for strongly colored accents, with lots of whites, browns, and greys otherwise. It made Rainbow and Pinkie stand out, which Rainbow liked to think helped at least a little with their endeavors.
Not that griffons cared much about that sort of thing. Truthfully, the two of them were outsiders for a different reason. One that was very closely tied to the seminar they were about to put on.
“Ready to get started?” Pinkie asked.
‘More like ready to get this over with…’ This may have been Rainbow’s idea, but it never quite seemed to work out, and she was getting tired of failing. But for now, it was time to try again. “Let’s do it.”
As usual, only two kestrels applauded when Rainbow and Pinkie walked onto the stage. Just Rainbow’s parents, no one else. There was no clapping from the others, no cheers. Hell, there weren’t even any other pairs of eyes pointed in their direction. Just like the last time, and the time before that, and before that.
“Thank you for coming out!” Pinkie announced. “We’re gonna have a lot of fun today, and we’re gonna learn a lot about kindness!”
“Whoo!” Windy Whistles called out, disturbing the crickets in the audience.
“That’s my daughter up there!” Bow Hotpaw said to somegriff. Whoever it was only coughed in response.
“She sure is!” Pinkie announced. Rainbow wished she could disappear. “Right, so let’s start with a common scenario.” She turned to Rainbow, who forced a grin. As always, she swore to herself that she’d never do this bit again. “How many times has this happened to you? You’ve got yourself two scrumptious fish, but then your neighbor…”
Rainbow held her stomach and frowned. “Oh, woe is me! I wasn’t able to get any fish today, and I’m so hungry!”
“Oh no!” Pinkie dramatically put one talon on her cheek. “Whatever should we do?” She looked to the audience. Rainbow’s parents both threw their talons into the air, but it didn’t do any good to have them answer every time, so Pinkie and Rainbow had decided to only call on them as a last resort.
Pinkie tried clearing her throat, but none of the others seemed to care. Just before Rainbow caved in and let her parents answer, Pinkie pointed to a young griffon. “You there, what do you do if you have two fish but your hungry neighbor doesn’t have any?”
The young griffon shrugged. “Ask if she has any bits?”
Somehow, Pinkie managed to keep her smile in place. She laughed nervously and turned to Rainbow. “So, uh… got any bits?”
“No,” Rainbow deadpanned, her interest in doing this properly fading.
“Anyone else?” Pinkie asked. On the surface she almost seemed unphased, but Rainbow could tell by the way she shifted her paws that the nerves were sinking in for her as well. “How about you?”
A middle-aged griffon sized Rainbow up than grinned. “I eat both fish.”
“No!” Rainbow said.
Although the correct answer was painfully obvious, the other griffon still looked confused. “You want me to rub it in too?”
Rainbow was going to reply, but Pinkie cut her off. “Let’s try a different approach. What if you were the one without any fish, and your neighbor had two fish. What would you want them to do then?”
Grandpa Gruff glared. “Are you implying I can’t catch fish!?”
“No, not at all! I just –”
“And where’s our food? We were promised food if we showed up, and all this talk of fish is just making me hungry!”
“But I didn’t even get to my song!” Pinkie frowned. “It’s a really good one about the importance of sharing and caring!”
“No singing in Griffonstone!” someone yelled out.
Rainbow groaned. “Let’s just… give them the food.”
For a second, Pinkie looked like she might protest. But with a look at the angry pigeons in the audience, her protests melted away. She and Rainbow gathered the food and brought it out to a long table that they’d set up for griffons to eat at. Of course, that was supposed to be after the seminar, but at this rate, it didn’t seem like it mattered too much.
“Remember,” Rainbow said as the other griffons swarmed the table, “this meal is a gift of kindness to show our appreciation for listening to us, and… oh, screw it.”
Rainbow turned and walked away. None of them were listening to her anyway. It was the same every time; they’d show up, heckle or ignore Pinkie and Rainbow’s attempts to teach them about kindness, then scarf down the food that was supposed to be a reward for learning something important.
She didn’t get very far before she was flanked by two very eager kestrels. “You were wonderful out there, sweetie!” Windy Whistles said.
“Just for the record, I knew exactly what the answer was,” Bow Hotpaw said with a playful nudge.
“I know, Dad,” Rainbow said. “You know all the answers. You come to every single seminar…”
“And they’re always so enlightening!”
It had been six years since Rainbow had run away from home, and her parents still hadn’t stopped overdoing it. That moment seemed to give them the wake-up call they needed to stop being like the other griffons and start showing a genuine interest in their daughter. Quite the opposite from how it was back then, these days she could do with a little less interest.
But she knew they were trying, and she appreciated that. “Thanks, Dad. It’s always… really great to see you two out there!”
Even though her tone was clearly forced, her parents didn’t seem to notice. They both just clung to her tighter.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, Pinkie decided this was the perfect time to join in. “Group hug!”
Rainbow squawked and pushed away. “I, uh, I think I need some air.”
She worked her way out of the group hug, which was probably only possible because Pinkie came to her rescue. She started amiably chatting with Rainbow’s parents, which gave her cover to escape.
This time, she made it as far as the door before a cocky voice stopped her. “This has got to be a new record.”
Rainbow turned and glared. “Can it, Gilda.”
“What? I’m impressed. You normally flounder twice as long before calling it quits.”
Rainbow huffed. “If you’re gonna hang around near the door, you could always come inside once in a while.”
Gilda laughed. “And be seen watching some dweeby show about kindness and friendship and other pony crap? Not for all the free food in Griffonstone.”
Rainbow just gave her a deadpan look. “We’re the only ones giving out food in this town, Gil. We have all the free food in Griffonstone.”
“Yeah, and you don’t have enough for me to be caught dead here! Besides, I’d hate to be there to interrupt such a touching family moment.”
Rainbow sighed. She knew Gilda could do this all day. “What do you want?”
Gilda stretched out. “Race me and I’ll tell you.”
That got Rainbow to grin again. “Ha! You in the mood to lose, pigeon?”
“More like in the mood to wipe that smug grin off your face once and for all!” Gilda punched her on the shoulder, just a little harder than was really called for. “And that’s eagle, featherbrain.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Rainbow waved her off. “Anyway, if you’re that desperate to get a nice long look at my backside, I guess I can let you chase my tail around. Just give me a minute.”
Gilda scoffed. “Of course. Better make sure you’ve got mommy and daddy’s permission.”
“Okay, first off, I don’t need anyone’s permission,” Rainbow said defensively. Gilda snickered. “Secondly, shut your ugly face before I shut it for you.”
“And here I thought you were all about that ‘kindness’ crap.”
“You’re the exception.” Without waiting for any more of Gilda’s teasing, Rainbow went back inside to look for Pinkie and her parents.
As soon as she stepped in, her parents were back by her side. She could’ve just left them, but she did want to tell Pinkie where she was going.
Unsurprisingly, the food table was ravaged, and the griffons were on their way out. Pinkie was still trying, though. “Just remember that kindness fills you with all sorts of warm fuzzy feelings! It’s the best reward all by itself!”
“They’re gone, Pinkie.”
Pinkie sighed, so Rainbow patted her on the back. It backfired on her when Pinkie nuzzled against her, so Rainbow had to pretend not to like it and hope that Gilda didn’t see.
“At least we have each other,” Pinkie said.
“Yeah…” Rainbow scratched her neck awkwardly.
“Aww…” Windy Whistles ruffled Bow’s crest feathers. “They remind me of when we were their age.”
Rainbow blushed, knowing Gilda was sure to be laughing up a storm at that. “Er, anyway, Pinkie… Gilda wants to race, so maybe we could hang out later?”
“Oh…” Pinkie deflated for a moment before perking back up. “Alright, well, you’re still coming to dinner, right?”
“Of course!” Rainbow said while backing away. “Wouldn’t miss it.”
Rainbow’s retreat didn’t matter because Pinkie caught her in a hug anyway. And as usual, she wouldn’t let go until Rainbow hugged her back.
“Okay, okay,” Rainbow said after quickly returning the hug. Pinkie was still keeping hold of her, so she had to wriggle her way free and bolt towards the door. “I’ll catch you later, Pinkie!”
“Good luck!” Pinkie called, Rainbow’s parents echoing the sentiment. Not that Rainbow would need any of that to beat Gilda, but she appreciated being cheered on, so Rainbow shot the three of them a confident grin on her way out.
Her grin only lasted a moment, however, as her hopes of not being seen were dashed when she got to the door and found Gilda was already there. “Aww, wasn’t that just so sweet?”
“Shut it, Gilda. Unless you want me to make you eat those words as well as my dust.”
“Big talk from the dork who has to be home in time for family dinner.”
Rainbow punched her on the shoulder, just as hard as Gilda had done earlier. “We talking or racing?”
“Alright, alright. Let’s race to… that cloud up there.”
“That it?” Rainbow smirked. “Come on, G, give me a challenge.”
“That’s just a checkpoint, dweeb. From there we’ll fly down to the old library. Touch down there, and go through town square. On foot.”
Rainbow grinned. “A mixed race with moving obstacles? Now that’s what I’m talking about!”
“Thought you might like that one. From there, we’ll keep on foot all the way to the city wall. We’ll run across that until we reach the base of Grover’s Tower, then whoever flies into it first is the winner.”
“That’s a pretty big course. Sure you’re up for it?”
Gilda grinned. “I’m not gonna be the one who’s all worn out before the halfway point. You just worry about making it through the whole thing.”
Rainbow stretched out and locked eyes onto the cloud that would be their first checkpoint. “You done talking yet?”
“Sure am.” Without announcing the start of the race, Gilda launched herself into the air. Not that it mattered; that would be the only time Gilda would get to be in the lead.
Rainbow righted her positions and kicked off as hard as she could, letting her powerful back legs launch herself into the air. She extended her wings as she rose, waiting until she was nearly at peak jump to start flapping.
There was nothing quite like flying. The wind rushing past her, the buildings disappearing as Rainbow flew too high to see them, the freedom that came with knowing her wings could take her anywhere she wanted to go. It made her feel like all of her problems were left behind on the ground.
But this wasn’t a joy flight, and Gilda had given herself a head start. Despite all the trash talk, Gilda was a damn good flyer. All those years that she and Rainbow had spent training together had paid off for her, after all.
Rainbow pushed a little harder, but she couldn’t beat Gilda to the cloud. Gilda dove straight through it, coming out the other side and looping around. She shot Rainbow a grin on her way past.
Within seconds, Rainbow was at the cloud herself. She splayed all her limbs out, bringing her momentum to a halt as the cloud exploded into nothing more than puffs of moist air.
After that, it was up to gravity. Rainbow let herself enter a freefall, turning her body so she was pointed straight down. She could see all of Griffonstone from where she was, see every dilapidated building and every crumbling tower.
But more importantly, she could see Gilda in front of her. Rainbow rapidly rebuilt speed on her descent, becoming a bullet tearing through the air. And if she was a bullet, then she had only one target.
Still, Gilda eluded her. Rainbow watched her as she banked towards the library. It was time to close the distance.
She spread out her wings and instantly shifted direction. Considering the speed she’d built, she didn’t bother to flap at all, allowing herself instead to glide at faster speeds than she’d be capable of flying.
Nothing was quite like a freefall to build up speed, but she still had to push herself as hard as she could to close the distance. Little by little, she managed to get closer and closer to Gilda.
Until there was no more distance. Gilda was beside her for just a moment, then she wasn’t even that anymore. Rainbow pulled ahead, making a much ruder gesture than a grin as she passed.
After that, she was practically home free. Still, she had to give it her all if she wanted it to stay that way. On the rare occasions Gilda had beaten her, it was always because Rainbow had been too cocky.
Next stop was the library. Rainbow touched down right in the center of it, using its lack of roof to her advantage. It didn’t have much else, either; Rainbow ran straight through, as the dilapidated building had no walls to stop her. Not like anyone was ever there to care that she tore through the historic building.
Rainbow wasn’t just the fastest thing in the air, she was the fastest thing period. She tore across the ground with nearly as much speed as she’d had in flight.
The feeling was different, but just as good. She felt all her muscles working to propel her forward, her lithe form really coming into its all. The force of each step caused her talons to dig into the earth just a bit, so with each push forward, she got to feel it move beneath her. Meanwhile, her hindlegs propelled her with all the speed of a true kestrel.
She launched herself down the street, her hawk eyes keeping everything in perfect focus despite the speed. She saw every griffon as they huddled in the ramshackle houses, saw that the coast was clear because no one ever wanted to be out and about in Griffonstone.
The few griffons who did serve as obstacles weren’t difficult to avoid. Rainbow saw them easily and swerved accordingly to each one. And since Gilda never could keep up with her on the ground, nothing was going to stop her.
At least, until something did. A kit ran into the street while Rainbow had been paying more attention to dodging someone else. With no time to stop and even less time to think, Rainbow tried to jump over him. It would have been an easy feat, but she managed to jump headfirst into a hanging sign. She tumbled to the ground, rolling to a stop.
Fortunately, Rainbow was known for being hard-headed and was used to crash landings. It only took a moment for her to get up, and nothing hurt too badly. Unfortunately, Gilda was closer to her tail than she expected.
“Nice one, dweeb!” Gilda called as she ran past Rainbow and into the lead.
Rainbow scowled as she took off after Gilda again, determined to regain her rightful place in the lead. There wasn’t much time left, but as long as she pushed herself, she would make it. She was faster on her feet, there was no way she could lose.
Wary of another accident, Rainbow didn’t allow herself to reach top speed as she chased Gilda down the market square. She couldn’t pass her, but she did stay close on her tail.
Gilda made it to the city wall just before Rainbow did. She jumped onto the wall in a single leap, Rainbow doing the same just moments later. 
The wall, like all of Griffonstone, was in poor repair. It was often said to be more hole than wall, and that wasn’t much of an exaggeration. As such, it was impossible to actually run across – they more or less had to jump from one solid patch to the next.
And while Rainbow had no problems managing the feat, it wasn’t something she could do much faster than Gilda. With every step, she was just behind the other griffon, and she was forced to realize that she had desperately needed to be in the lead before reaching the wall.
All she could do was follow Gilda as closely as she could while looking for any opportunity to pass her. It wouldn’t be the first time that part of the wall collapsed as someone jumped on it, and being in the lead, Gilda had a higher chance of being the one to cause a section to collapse.
But the wall held fast. All Rainbow got was a second where Gilda lost her footing on a loose stone. But if that was all Rainbow was going to get, then she’d just have to make sure it was all she’d need. She used the spare second to bring herself neck and neck with Gilda, even if she couldn’t yet steal the lead.
“Oh, you’re still here?” Gilda asked between panted breaths.
Rainbow saved her energy by not responding, but she used the jab as motivation to push herself just a little bit harder.
She wasn’t the only one pushing herself, however. Gilda kept the race even all the way to Grover’s Tower. They were still side by side when they pushed off, leaping straight up into the air to fly the sheer vertical incline.
Even if Grover’s Tower had been a grand castle at one point, not much was left of it. It was a relatively short distance compared to the rest of the course, but that was all Rainbow needed.
Gilda couldn’t keep up with Rainbow once they were airborne. She could come close, probably closer than anyone else in Griffonstone. But close didn’t win races, and Rainbow pulled ahead.
It was only by a second or two, but Rainbow touched down in Grover’s tower first. She barely had time to turn and see Gilda fly through the hole in the wall after her, but she wore the same cocky grin she would’ve if she had been waiting for minutes.
“Told you there wasn’t ever any hope for you against me!” Rainbow said.
“Gotta hand it to you, Dash,” Gilda said as she brushed herself off, “you sure are lucky.”
“Lucky!? That was pure skill, G!”
“Oh yeah?” Gilda gave her an unimpressed look. “Your skill made me stumble when we were back on the wall, huh?”
“That was just balancing out the time I crashed into the sign.” Rainbow crossed her forelegs. “Besides, you gave yourself a head start.”
“Yeah yeah.” Gilda finally broke into a grin and punched Rainbow on the shoulder. “You always were a hell of a racer.”
That was a bit unexpected. It was hardly a sentimental declaration, but coming from a griffon, coming from Gilda, words like that meant a lot.
There was only one appropriate response, whether Gilda liked it or not. “Thanks, G.”
As expected, Gilda wasn’t sure how to respond to being thanked and fell back on her usual gruffness. “Yeah, well, don’t get all sappy on me or anything.”
Rainbow just smirked. That was more like the Gilda she knew. “Wouldn’t dream of it, dork.”
Gilda stepped up to the edge of the room, where there was a hole that overlooked Griffonstone. “Anyway, I guess it’s time to answer your question.”
Rainbow cocked her head to the side. “What question?”
Gilda turned back to her with a critical look in her eye. “The reason we raced? You asked what I wanted, and I said I’d tell you if you raced me.”
“Oh.” Rainbow scratched her chin. “I guess I thought the race was what you wanted.”
Gilda chuckled. “Yeah, you would. You’re a hell of a racer, but you’ve never been good at looking at the bigger picture.”
Rainbow held up a fist. “I’ll show you something else I’m good at if you don’t get to the point. If the race wasn’t what you cared about, what’s going on?”
“I’m getting to it!” Gilda snapped. She brushed her crown feathers back and wore a tense expression. “Look. You’re good at a lot of things, Dash. But one thing you’re pretty awful at is this whole teaching kindness crap. Because this?” Gilda gestured towards Rainbow’s aggressive stance. “This is you.”
“So what?” Rainbow asked, dropping her talon back to the ground as if she could pretend she hadn’t threatened to punch Gilda. “Like I said, you’re the exception.”
“You’ve got a lot of exceptions. And you know, if you’d just stop and think about it, that’s not a problem. Pinkie has that sickeningly sweet thing that you don’t, and she still can’t teach Griffonstone eagles to give a damn about being kind and making friends.”
Rainbow arched an eyebrow. “So is this the big thing you wanted? To tell me I’m wasting my time?”
“Yes!” Gilda exclaimed, causing Rainbow to growl. “Look, maybe you’ve noticed, but Griffonstone has kinda gone to hell, and it’s getting worse by the day.”
Rainbow nodded. “Which is exactly why we need to learn to be better!”
“No, it’s exactly why we can’t have one of the only griffons who gives a damn waste her time like this. I know you want to make a change, so make one.”
“I’m trying to –”
“Stop trying to. Step up and do something. Maybe it was worth a shot, but your whole thing has never worked. Help me figure out what we can do to lead Griffonstone to be better.”
Rainbow wasn’t sure she liked what she was hearing. “What do you mean lead Griffonstone?”
Gilda smirked. “See, you can pay attention. Since no one else wants to do it, I’m assuming control of Griffonstone. Plus Grandpa Gruff is the closest thing we have to a leader, so as his granddaughter, why not me?”
“Assuming control?” Rainbow shook her head to try and shake the confusion away. It didn’t work. “So what if you’re Gruff’s granddaughter? That doesn’t mean you can just take control of Griffonstone.”
Gilda nodded and began pacing. “No, but name one griffon more qualified. You know, I’ve actually read all those books we keep losing back at our wreck of a library, so I know how the griffon kings of the past ruled.” Gilda stopped and fixed Rainbow with a confident look. Not cocky, for once. But a look that promised she knew what she was talking about. “I know I can do what they did, Dash.”
Rainbow shook her head in disbelief. “Look, I’m not even getting on whether you can lead or not because it doesn’t matter. No one will follow you! We’re griffons, G. We don’t follow.”
Gilda took a deep breath, and her eyes shot to the ground. “I know, which is why I need you.” She shook her head a little and looked up at Rainbow. “I need you to be with me on this, Dash. I need you to be my right wing, and to help me convince others to follow me by being the first.”
Rainbow took a step away. What Gilda was talking about went a lot further than Rainbow was prepared to go. “You’re asking the wrong griffon.”
“Dash, I…” Gilda shook her head. “Just think about it, okay?” She turned and flew out of the hole in the wall, leaving Rainbow alone with her thoughts.
It was true that Griffonstone had some serious problems, and Rainbow could even see that it went beyond personality flaws like a lack of kindness among its citizens. She could even see that they did probably need an actual leader to organize the massive amount of work the city needed to get things back on track.
But that leader being Gilda? Rainbow wasn’t so sure about that. Even if some of what she said had rung true, Gilda embodied a lot of the problems in Griffonstone.
Rainbow sighed. It didn’t matter anyway; complicated things like leading Griffonstone went way beyond Rainbow’s expertise. She knew some things from a friend she met years ago, and that was it. Let someone else figure out all that complex stuff.
Besides, she did have dinner to get to. Rainbow took a long look through the hole that overlooked her city, then she put thoughts of it behind her as she flew off. She set a course for the Pie family house, which was well outside of Griffonstone, and didn’t think any more about what Gilda had said.