The Princess and the Kaiser

by UnknownError


Part Sixty-Two

Rainbow kept looking back at the mass of ruined clouds to the southwest. Her ears were flat against her head. After nearly a decade of neglect, Cloudsdale was nothing but scattered cumulus barely held together. Changelings could stand on clouds, but they lacked the mastery of innate weather magic. As valuable as Cloudsdale was as a floating airstrip, it posed too much of a security risk to have pegasi maintain it.

Rainbow’s home was left to decay, and the years of unregulated weather tore it apart. The weather factory was gone, as were the pools of rainbow. A few clouds still looked like buildings, but most were just smashed together, jumbled messes.
One looked like a rabbit to Flurry Heart, but she kept it to herself. Their small group stopped well before the edge of the Everfree Forest, climbing down from the trucks and proceeding on hoof.

In Gallus and Gilda’s case, they proceeded on paws and claws.

“You have leave to be here this time?” Duty Price asked Gilda in Herzlander. His accent was a rough blend of Trottingham, but it was intelligible.

“Yes,” Gilda snapped back with flushed feathers. “You can speak Equestrian. I lived here for a few years.” Her wing pointed to the mass of clouds. “Up there.”

“Everyone here speaks Equestrian,” Flurry commented.

“Little generous in regards to Price, Princess,” Barrel Roller chuckled. “You never heard him bark into a radio.”

“Wanker,” Price muttered.

“I heard that,” Barrel called back.

“Surprised you did with half an ear,” Price retorted.

Barrel Roller kept his mane short; it made the ear nub obvious. His other ear twitched in irritation along with his clipped tail. “You were always prickly,” he sighed and rolled his orange eyes.

“I’m here on the Princess’ command,” Price responded.

Spike gave Flurry a side-eye and clenched a claw. Thorax walked with Jadis beside him, seemingly unconcerned. He was disguised as a gray, unassuming crystal pony, but still wore his purple uniform all the same.

The Everfree Forest loomed before them. It was a twisted mass of trees and shrubs. Flurry could feel something in the base of her horn, an uneasiness and general wariness that pricked at a pony’s instincts. The Everfree proved a literal thorn in the fang for the Hegemony. Whatever Zecora did, it grew exponentially, only stopping after consuming Ponyville and several surrounding valleys. It was plainly visible from Mount Canterhorn and Canterlot, and no amount of napalm or bombs could drive it back.

Flurry Heart stopped to regard the rusted-out hulk of a Changeling panzer. The black paint was stripped and covered with rust, with several holes punched clean through the body. She pawed at the soil with a boot, then looked over to the forest. Their group was still well out of sniper range.

“Was this dragged out here?” Flurry asked.

“The vines carried it,” Barrel replied. He pointed a hoof at the holes in the armor. They were twice the width of his hoof.

“Vines?” Gallus asked. “The Everfree was never that malicious.”

Gilda picked up a rusted helmet and poked a talon through a wide hole. “Doesn’t look like a bullet, huh?” She tossed the helmet to the other griffon. Gallus caught it with a squawk.

“Nasty way to go,” Price shook his head. His tone wasn’t at all sympathetic.

Flurry stared at the forest from their position on a slope. They were slowly descending into a valley. The treetops had a dusting of snow, and most of the group were wearing coats over their uniforms. Only Spike and Flurry did not.

Spike was wearing a monogramed white shirt with rolled-up sleeves. It was a good fit, and very simple for a ‘Rarity Original.’ The pants were also rather plain camouflage. The holstered pistol still looked pitifully small next to his claws. He had spoken with the unicorn in the Crystal City, but whatever discussions the dragon had with his former crush were kept between them.

Flurry’s uniform was frayed and clearly needed repair. The rush stitching on her left pantleg was loose again, and the flank skirt had loose ends. Her white and black boots were worn down as well. Flurry Heart had forgone the cap entirely, instead wearing the crystal band Thorax brought with him from the Crystal City. The crystal was plain purple and circled her ragged mane. It was hardly a proper crown or tiara, but it didn’t get in the way.

And Flurry liked it. It was simple and efficient.

The group paused on a hill. Barrel Roller, Spike, and Duty Price were all ELF veterans and commanders. Flurry could’ve waited to gather more, but the weather had cleared for several days. It was a window she couldn’t ignore. The sky was still tinged pink in the north; the massive shield over the northern half of Equus played havoc with the rogue weather.

“It doesn’t look as bad as the southeast jungle,” Flurry said idly.

“The Everfree’s not a joke,” Spike responded seriously. “Plenty of nasty things inside it. Cockatrices, Manticores, Hydras…”

“Warped by Discord’s chaos,” Thorax added. “Add Nightmare Moon’s rebellion.”

“The weather takes care of itself and animals don’t listen,” Rainbow muttered.

“That’s most of Equestria now,” Flurry said.

“And most of Griffonia,” Gilda added. “We never bothered with that shit. Ponies were always weird about this place. Like with clothes.”

“Well,” Rainbow huffed, “it was weird before the war.”

“I never understood why the Royal Guard just didn’t shoot them,” Gallus said. “You can burn Timberwolves with a flamethrower, easy.”

“They’re endangered species,” Spike countered. “A lot of rare species and plants called the Everfree their home. We weren’t torching it.”

“It’s why Zecora moved here in the first place,” Rainbow said.

“I don’t see anyone,” Flurry announced, refocusing the discussion.

Jadis raised her rifle and peered through the scope along the tree line. “There’s movement. Probably animals.”

“I radioed ahead that we were coming,” Price stated. “Used our codes.”

Flurry shook the snow off one of her front boots. “How many does Colonel Shimmer have?”

Price stamped out his cigar. “Dunno, Princess. A lot of soldiers retreated to the Everfree during the fall back from Canterlot. It was a hardpoint. The bugs went around. They learned their lesson from dealing with it the first time.”

“You never discussed it?” Thorax asked.

“Begging your pardon,” Price nickered, “but we weren’t in the habit of discussing numbers over secure channels. We used code words.”

Flurry tried to pick out Ponyville from the incline. She could see Twilight’s crystal castle sticking out above the trees, but nothing else. The alicorn didn’t know Ponyville; she didn’t remember the last time she visited it.

She knew of Sunset Shimmer, the former student of Princess Celestia that disappeared for several years, but Flurry had never met her. Not that she remembered. And Flurry Heart had no idea who Fizzlepop Berrytwist was, nor was anypony particularly helpful in briefing her about the mare.

“Should we just walk down and risk it?” Flurry asked the group.

“No,” everyone answered in unison.

“We’re at the edge of the Reich’s front line,” Thorax explained. “There could easily be infiltrators within range.”

Flurry charged her horn and released the detection spell. It pulsed over the hill and spread into the Everfree. Thorax’s disguise burned away and he blinked his solid blue eyes.

“Sorry,” Flurry apologized.

Thorax stood behind Spike and out of immediate sight range of the Everfree.

“You don’t think they’ll recognize you?” Flurry asked.

Thorax waved a holed hoof at his fangs and black chitin with a frown.

“I recognize you,” Flurry snorted.

“And I have no idea how,” Rainbow shook her head. “I confuse him with Arex all the time.”

“She’s a mare,” Flurry responded.

“They look the same in uniform.”

“Movement,” Jadis called out. “White flag northwest.”

Rainbow pulled out a pair of binoculars and scanned the trees. Gilda did the same beside her. Flurry slowly brought a shield down over the group. Rainbow whistled and lowered her binoculars after a minute. “G, give your binoculars to Gallus.”

“Why?” Gilda squawked. She was wearing a brown leather jacket over her flight suit for warmth.

“Just do it.”

Gilda tossed her pair to Gallus fairly unprofessionally.

“Don’t you outrank her?” Flurry asked the blue griffon.

“He grew up with me,” Gilda responded before Gallus could. “I don’t care how often he preens the Kaiser’s feathers.”

“How have you not gotten shot before Manehattan?” Gallus scoffed.

“I’m a damn good pilot,” Gilda shrugged a wing. “Survived Maar’s Daughter.” She pointed a wing at Flurry.

Flurry blinked. “What? You nearly got your head blown off.”

“I was about to duck.”

Flurry opened her mouth to respond, but Gallus squawked out, “Blessed Boreas, Sandbar!?”

Rainbow whinnied in laughter. “You believe it?”

“No,” Gallus chuckled. “He filled out.”

Spike squinted down the hill. “Sandbar was one of the first students at the School of Friendship,” he explained to Flurry.

“Awkward gangly little earth pony,” Gallus said.

“Right,” Rainbow nodded. “I’ll go down with Gallus and Spike. Light a flare if everything’s okay.”

“Could be a changeling,” Price retorted.

“Not with the radius on my spell,” Flurry said. “Wouldn’t get here in time.”

“That spell doesn’t have range.”

“It does when an alicorn casts it.”

The dragon, pegasus, and griffon descended to the edge of the forest.

Jadis watched, laying prone with her rifle. “There’s more movement in the forest. They’re covering Sandbar.”

Flurry looked back to the other side of the hill. She could see her own extended forces and Gallus’ escort watching. They had kept back for the initial contact, so it didn’t appear to be an armed standoff.

“Rainbow’s making fun of his eyepatch,” Gilda commented, watching through her binoculars.

“How do you know?” Jadis asked. “You read lips?”

“No,” Gilda said, “but I know Rainbow and she’s got that mocking smile on.”

Flurry felt Barrel Roller’s stare on the back of her neck. “She needs to be here,” the alicorn said aloud. “So does Duty Price.”

“What?” Price asked. “Am I not the pinnacle of diplomacy?”

“No,” Flurry stated, “but neither am I.”

A green flare lit up along the forest edge. Rainbow held it with her metal wing and waved it around. Flurry reformed the bubble shield. “Let’s go.”

The group descended down to the forest edge. The feeling of wrongness intensified, but Flurry pushed through it. Sandbar had an eyepatch over his right eye. The fur was rugged and patchy along that side of the muzzle, suggesting burn tissue underneath. The pale green earth pony wore old gray cargo pants with a black jacket. Flurry noticed it was a Changeling leather coat, worn and patched.

Despite his rough look, he was smiling genially and speaking with Gallus in an upbeat tone. “We’re doing real well,” he said, finishing some conversation with his old friend. Gallus nodded; the griffon shook his hoof vigorously.

“You got matching coats,” Rainbow laughed.

Gallus looked down at his own black coat and refolded his blue wings against it.

“Serving the Kaiser work out?” Sandbar asked sardonically.

“The nobles screeched at a Griffonstone griffon in the inner circle,” Gallus shrugged. “Short of being Kaiser myself, this is the highest any of us have ever climbed in a long time.”

Sandbar fully left the forest edge and stood in front of Flurry’s shield. The edge crackled softly. He bowed fully with legs extended. “Princess Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire.”

Flurry nodded. No other title. She made a note of it. “Do you have a rank?”

“During the war, Corporal,” Sandbar answered. “I’m an adjutant to General Berrytwist and Colonel Shimmer.”

“Are they in command?”

“Of this group,” Sandbar said vaguely. “Since Starlight is still missing and Trixie is…gone, they are the Duumvirate of the Equestrian Liberation Front.”

“I see,” Flurry said with equal vagueness. “I would like to speak with them.”

“Of course,” Sandbar agreed readily. “I would ask that your greater escort remain away from the Everfree.”

“This group goes with me.” Flurry dropped the shield.

“I hope you’re prepared to walk,” Sandbar warned. “The trees and foliage are too thick to fly in. You can fly above it, but good luck finding a clearing to land safely.”

“We can walk.”

“It’s good to see you again, Sandbar,” Spike said warmly.

“You too,” Sandbar agreed. He whistled, high and loud, and another whistle echoed back. A dozen more soldiers surrounded the group, a mix of unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies in scavenged uniforms. A few had Reich model weapons, with the trigger guards broken off for use by hooves.

Scouts went missing, Flurry thought. Gallus also eyed them with a frown. Gilda walked with Rainbow. She stuffed a claw into her jacket and unclipped the holster for her pistol before continuing.

“It’ll be a long walk,” Sandbar called over his shoulder. “We’ll stop in the castle for a bit before continuing.”

“Twilight’s castle?” Flurry asked.

“No,” Sandbar laughed. “The Castle of the Two Sisters.”

“That’s still standing?” Rainbow snorted. "What? Bug bombs that weak?"

“We were surprised as well,” Sandbar explained. “The Changelings avoided bombing it during the Everfree’s expansion. They didn’t even bother afterwards.”

“Why?” Flurry asked.

“We stole a lot of planes as we advanced,” Rainbow answered. “And we flew a lot of them back when we retreated.”

“Their air wings are a joke,” Gilda squawked. “We’ve been flying circles around them, sometimes literally. Nova Griffonia put up a better fight.”

“They’re massing up for an offensive,” Thorax said quietly. "Fall back, reorganize, then slam forward. It's how Starlight lost."

The group walked forward in silence. There wasn’t really a trail, just a vague path over exposed tree roots and branches. A few vines coiled across the ground, even in the cold air and snow. Everyone gave them room. The thorns were as sharp as a talon.

“Who’s the changeling?” Sandbar asked casually, but Flurry caught the hard look in his eye.

“Thorax,” Flurry responded evenly. “My uncle.”

Sandbar hummed and flicked his tail. “I've heard of you. You fought Chrysalis a long time, huh?”

“Yes,” Thorax answered.

“And he did a lot to help the ELF,” Barrel cut in.

“Lost anyway,” Sandbar shrugged his shoulders.

A golden shield shimmered into existence in front of him. The ELF soldiers stopped with Sandbar. The shield slowly extended into the ground and cut through a root, then crunched a tree aside as it began to warp into a bubble.

“Flurry, don’t,” Thorax whispered.

“Thorax has been fighting Chrysalis long before you,” Flurry stated. She looked at the ELF veterans escorting the group. “All of you,” she added. The ponies stared back blankly, and she couldn’t place their expressions.

“General Berrytwist acknowledges his contributions to the war,” Sandbar nickered, “so does Colonel Shimmer.”

“If you have a problem with him, say it,” Flurry ordered.

Sandbar looked to the side. “I am perfectly fine with Thorax.”

“Do not lie to me again.”

“Oh, you can tell? Raised by a changeling,” Sandbar laughed bitterly. “My entire family is gone. Do you have any idea what they’ve done to us?”

“Every time I look at my mother,” Flurry Heart snapped back. The shield crunched through a long vine with a hiss. The plant ignited with blue flames and uncoiled.

“It, uh, might not be best to draw attention,” Rainbow advised with flat ears.

Flurry dropped the shield. It vanished in a burst of blue sparks. Sandbar slowly turned around and kept trotting ahead with three other soldiers. The group walked in relative silence.

Which apparently, Rainbow couldn’t stand. “So, uh, how are the monsters and stuff?” the pegasus asked. “Caused a lotta problems for the bugs.”

“They keep to themselves,” Sandbar said shortly.

“Uh, how? Zecora?” Rainbow looked between the soldiers more than the forest. Her metal wing was tense.

“Lady Fluttershy of the Forest,” a mare answered. The ELF soldier didn’t turn to address Rainbow Dash. “Most of the monsters are kept far inland and away.”

Rainbow inhaled. “Flutters? How is she?”

“We don’t know,” Sandbar answered flatly.

“Whatta mean, you don’t know?” Rainbow snorted.

“She does not leave the interior of the forest,” another stallion answered.

“Well, tell her I’m here,” Rainbow huffed. She scraped her wing against a tree as she walked past it, flapping in agitation.

“We don’t speak with her,” Sandbar said. “We keep to our operations, and she keeps things away.”

“That sucks!” Rainbow growled. “Where is she?”

“We don’t know,” Sandbar repeated with a flick of his lime green tail.

Flurry reached out with a wing and signaled Rainbow to stop talking. She shook her head mutely at the pegasus’ urgent stare. Too tense. Duty Price wasn’t smoking one of his cigars, but helped Jadis climb over tree roots with her bad hoof. Gilda and Gallus walked together. They looked more nervous about the guards than the forest.

Flurry Heart walked next to Thorax. Barrel Roller followed on the other side, shielding the changeling from the guards. Thorax licked his fangs frequently, a surefire sign that the ELF weren’t exactly happy with his presence.

The group reached a clearing before a ravine. A rope bridge had been strung across, made of salvaged planks and assorted rope. Flurry eyed the additional stakes in the ground, probably from previous bridges that collapsed.

The Castle of the Two Sisters loomed beyond it. The fact that the castle still stood at all was a miracle, and several of the openings and windows had been boarded or sealed up. Pegasi sat in the two remaining towers, scanning the forest. The remaining exposed windows were piled with sandbags and machine gun placements.

Several dozen ponies moved in patrols along the walls or open spaces. Two squads were waiting on the other side of the bridge. They held their weapons casually against their hooves.

“You’re expecting a siege?” Price asked loudly.

“Never hurts to be cautious,” Sandbar answered. “We’ll rest here and move to Ponyville in an hour. We can take longer if you need it. Everfree carved up the path pretty badly.” He glanced back at the two griffons. “We have rations, even some with meat.”

“What,” Gilda squawked, “you’re hunting the animals in here?”

“From the Reich scouts,” Sandbar answered with a low chuckle. A few of the soldiers laughed with him.

Gallus sighed and rubbed a claw across his head. “What happened to you?”

“Let’s see,” Sandbar clicked his tongue, “I lost my parents, my sister, got shot in the face, and I’ve had to hide in a jungle for several years while you played with the Kaiser.”

“You think working for Grover is easy?” Gallus spat. “We fought them when the knights invaded. We only lived due to our connections with Equestria.”

“We just put the bridge up a month ago,” Sandbar said and changed the subject. He trotted across the boards without hesitation. Flurry watched the ropes sway above the chasm.

“Nope,” Gilda quipped and flapped her wings. Barrel Roller followed her example, then Gallus. Rainbow walked to the edge and looked down. She rolled her magenta eyes, then crossed on hoof. Spike stared at the wooden boards, flexed the talons on his feet, then flew over the chasm.

Flurry turned back to Duty Price and Jadis. “I can teleport you.”

“Pass.” Jadis swallowed at the offer. “My stomach can’t take it.”

“I’m way better at it.”

“Still pass,” Price added. The blue earth pony placed a hoof on the boards, then helped Jadis limp across together.

“You mind walking with me?” Flurry asked Thorax. The changeling nodded and they followed the other pair slowly. The alicorn’s ears prickled at the creak of the wooden boards.

“Guards are tense,” Thorax reported from the side of his muzzle as they walked across the bridge. It was mid-day, and cloudy. Flurry looked down through the gaps in the boards; mist blocked the bottom of the chasm. “More for you than me, actually,” the changeling whispered.

Flurry wrapped a wing around him as they walked; it blocked his muzzle from sight briefly. “Don’t eat anything they offer you,” she said softly.

“Wasn’t planning on it,” Thorax whispered dryly. “Sounds like we’re meeting in Ponyville. I don’t know Shimmer or Berrytwist well.” Flurry and Thorax crossed over.

“Your little ‘ling need a hug?” one of the squad leaders chuckled. “Too scared to fly?”

“We’ll rest for an hour, then keep moving,” Flurry decided with a severe stare. She bit her lower lip and scanned over the soldiers, studying their expressions as she gave the order. Most looked to Sandbar for confirmation before moving away.

As the group followed Sandbar, Price slowed his trot to match the Princess in the middle of the group. “Manehattan was pretty liberal under Lilac,” he explained in a low voice. “I ended up with defectors and the task force, but a lot of these soldiers are from the west, under the harsh bug occupation.”

“No love for ‘lings,” Flurry summarized.

“No,” Price agreed, “not after this long. Every cell had different rules on prisoners. Or surrenders.”

“Starlight and Trixie accepted surrenders.”

“They’re dead,” Price responded bluntly. “New Duumvirate. I hear they still accept ‘lings, but that issue must not have come up for a long while.”

“How much do they actually control?”

“Whoever is in this forest,” Price replied. “Between Ponyville and the castle…” he shrugged a hoof.

Rainbow said the castle ran deep, Flurry thought. The group stopped in one of several courtyards. It had been cleaned up, slightly, and the interior hallways were lit with gas lamps. The alicorn heard a few generators humming in the distance as well.

Many ponies moved in patrols, or walked with carts and supplies behind them. They stopped momentarily to stare at the alicorn, then moved on. It wasn’t quite the dead-eyed stare from the Manehattanites, but the looks screamed disinterest.

Flurry Heart wasn’t really used to anonymity. They’ve surely heard me on the radio. She opened her mouth to say something, then reconsidered.

“There’s a few spare dining halls,” Sandbar offered. His tone was slightly hostile. “We’ll move out in an hour. You want some rations?”

“We brought some.” Flurry shook her saddlebags from side to side. “Thanks for offering.”

“Of course, Princess,” Sandbar said. He didn’t say her title happily. “This way.”

The group followed him into an empty interior room with one doorway. Two old wooden tables and no chairs were in the middle of the room. The walls were stacked with crates.

“Who’s in command at the castle?” Flurry asked. “Can I meet them?”

“Limestone Pie,” Sandbar responded. “She’s in Ponyville, waiting for you. We’ll come get you in an hour.” Sandbar trotted away. He left the door open. Jadis poked her head through and looked up and down the hallway, then closed the door.

Flurry raised a hoof before anyone said anything, then lit her horn. She angled her head around the room and cast several spells. After a few bursts of magic that made everyone’s fur stand up, she lowered her hoof. “Room’s clear.”

Barrel Roller trotted over to one and opened the lid. “Old rifles,” he announced. “No magazines.”

“No guards outside,” Jadis reported.

“Quite the welcome,” Flurry commented.

Barrel’s orange eyes softened and his ear twitched. “I’m sorry, Princess,” he offered. “Communication’s been…difficult.”

"This isn't going well," Spike groaned.

"My fault?" Flurry guessed.

"No," Spike said. Flurry scuffed a hoof in surprise. "The ELF was always based around Equestria, not the Crystal Empire," the dragon explained. "It's in the name."

Flurry looked around at the armbands. Thorax, Spike, Jadis, and Barrel Roller wore the purple band with the white Imperial Snowflake. "Is that seriously a sticking point?"

"For some," Spike admitted. "I'm going to take a look around. Be back in a few minutes."

"You think they found all the hidden passages?" Rainbow called out.

"I remember where they are," Spike answered. "None in this room, at least."

Price pushed a low crate over to one of the tables and sat down. He flopped his hat onto the table and kicked up dust. “They probably heard about the shootouts,” he coughed and waved a hoof.

“You mean between the ELF cells on the coast,” Gallus assumed.

“Am I supposed to be surprised you buzzards know about that?” Price grunted.

“You shouldn’t be.”

“I’m not,” Price sighed.

“Have there been a lot of casualties?” Flurry asked.

“Not as many as there could’ve been, but it’s a bad look for the hardcore ELF veterans,” Barrel Roller answered.

“I thought you were hardcore ELF veterans,” Gilda said, confused.

“We’re following her,” Rainbow pointed a hoof at Flurry. “Probably invalidates us. I’ll have to tear up my membership card.”

“The ELF was all about unity,” Price began in a low voice. “Some ponies here probably view the shootouts as a betrayal.”

“If they’re attacking the Reich’s supply lines,” Flurry said evenly, “it is a betrayal.” She checked several boxes and levitated them over to the tables. “We’re not even halfway across Equestria yet. We need help.”

“We chose the birds over our own,” Price countered.

“I am not fighting a shadow war against my own subjects,” Flurry declared. She looked to Gallus. He had hunched onto a box of pistols and was eating a sandwich. “What can the Reich offer?”

“Pardons,” Gallus mumbled, “considering it sounds like they killed all our scouts. I’m backing whatever agreement you reach with them.”

“Is that Grover’s orders?” Flurry asked with some surprise.

“The order is to acquire a route through the Everfree,” Gallus answered. “Doesn’t matter how.” He tapped a claw on the table. “I have a paper that gives me authority to sign in his name, if it comes to it.”

“I’m not giving the Everfree autonomy,” Flurry denied. She tossed her head back. “It’s right next to Canterlot. It’s not a city or a state; it’s a forest with an army hiding in it.”

Price slapped his hat back on. “I’m going to look around for some familiar marks. Looks less suspicious anyway. Barrel, you want to come along?”

“I’m down,” Barrel shrugged a wing.

Rainbow stood up, then hesitated and looked at Gilda. “I’ll stay.”

“I go where you go, Princess,” Jadis said.

“We’ll be back before Sandbar,” Price said at the door. “If we’re not, there’s an issue.”

“Right,” Thorax nodded.

Barrel shut the door behind him and Flurry looked up to the faded blue flag hanging high on the wall. The banner of the Equestrian Liberation Front was a white moon inside a red sun with two swords beside it.

Not a snowflake.

Thorax followed her look. “They fought for Twilight Sparkle.”

“Celestia and Luna never came,” Flurry replied.

“I’m not crazy about a room with one door, Princess,” Jadis said. “We can get pinned in here.”

“We’re above ground,” Flurry said absently, “and it’s old stone. I can blow holes all the way through this place.”

“I’d prefer if you teleported us out,” Thorax suggested. “Less chance of the castle collapsing around us.”

“Rainbow,” Flurry stated and drew the mare's attention. “There’s Zecora, Limestone, Shimmer, and Berrytwist.”

“I’ve met all of them,” Rainbow smirked. “Limestone and Sunset Shimmer are either gonna love you or hate you. Lime’s the younger sister to Pinkie.”

Gilda rolled her eyes.

“She swears more than you, G,” Rainbow addressed her. “Anyway, hit or miss with them. Just be yourself."

"That's the worst possible advice," Flurry said dryly, "and it's the second time you've told me that."

"Hey, it worked for Duty Price. Zecora’s a straight-shooter if you ignore the rhyming.”

“And Berrytwist?”

“Badass,” Rainbow laughed. “She’ll like you.”

“Maar’s Daughter might remind her of her old boss,” Gallus said idly.

“Eh,” Rainbow waved a hoof in dismissal.

“What?” Flurry shook her head.

“Storm King,” Rainbow clarified.

Flurry frowned. “What.”

Thorax shifted his wings. “Did we forget to tell you that?”

“General Berrytwist worked for the Storm King?” Flurry connected. “Wait, Tempest Shadow?”

“Her actual name is Fizzlepop Berrytwist,” Thorax sighed. He stared at Flurry flatly. “She prefers that name.”

Flurry’s muzzle trembled for a moment. “Really?” she squeaked between her teeth. She stole a look at Rainbow and Gilda at the table. They seemed to already know.

Rainbow waggled a brow and smiled toothily. “I had the same reaction. Surprised nopony told you.”

“They definitely should have,” Flurry forced out. Her voice broke into a giggle. “Fizzlepop? Like the soda?”

“She’d rather be laughed at than have ponies scatter in fear,” Thorax groaned. His voice echoed. “You’re definitely sixteen.”

“Almost seventeen,” Jadis protested.

Flurry burst out laughing.

“Sunset Shimmer and Fizzlepop are some of the best commanders left,” Thorax rebuked.

“Yeah,” Rainbow chuckled, “the ELF is now led by two ponies that tried to take over Equestria.”

“What?” Flurry asked through her laughter.

“Sunset tried something,” Rainbow waved her metal wing. “I never got all the details from Twilight, but she came in late to the war with Chrysalis. Was overseas or something, finding herself.”

“Didn’t Starlight and Trixie also try to take over Equestria?” Jadis asked.

“Trixie just took over Ponyville,” Rainbow answered.

Gallus finished his sandwich. “You know,” he started, “when I told Grover about Equestria, none of his staff believed the stories. He believed all of them.”

“Really?” Flurry giggled.

“About how you choose your leaders based on takeover attempts,” Gilda squawked in laughter. Rainbow laughed with her.

"We don't," Jadis snapped.

"Technically, Cadance and Shining did take over the Crystal Empire and usurp Sombra," Thorax clarified.

Jadis pursed her lips and her tail lashed in irritation, but she didn't verbally reply.

“Grover always brought up how you met,” Gallus laughed himself. “How you tried to kill Chrysalis surrounded by soldiers.”

“I was ten,” Flurry protested half-heartedly. “It’s not like I was thinking about the consequences.”

“What would you have done differently?” Gilda asked teasingly.

Flurry considered it. “I would’ve blown the inhibitor ring off and taken out the building,” she answered honestly. “Would’ve taken a moment to do, but the blast would’ve killed her.”

The room quieted and stared at her. “That would’ve killed you as well,” Thorax commented.

“Worth it to kill Chrysalis then and there,” Flurry shrugged her wings. “I didn’t know it was her, though. I thought it was just a changeling.”

“You would’ve killed Grover as well,” Gallus pointed out, “and the Archon. The Reich would’ve collapsed into another civil war.”

Flurry hesitated. “I didn’t know him at the time,” she deflected. “You think Grover would choose my life over the existence of the Griffonian Reich?”

“He accepted your offer,” Gallus said vaguely. He stared at Gilda for a moment, then returned to his sandwich.

“I threatened to blow up his house,” Flurry dismissed. “With Chrysalis dead, the Hegemony would’ve collapsed. Trimmel or whoever wouldn’t have been able to hold it together.”

“They acted like she hadn’t even left,” Thorax reminded her. He guided the alicorn to one of the tables and retrieved some sandwiches from their saddlebags. “Vaspier runs the best spy agency in the world. They could keep it up for a while.”

“Starlight would’ve won,” Flurry responded. "Even if the Hegemony pretended she was alive, the lie would've fallen apart long before Canterlot."

“Maybe,” Thorax admitted. “You’d be dead.”

“And?”

“That’s bad, Princess.” Jadis shuffled over and sat down on a box.

“Millions of ponies would still be alive,” Flurry huffed. She crossed her forelegs on the table. “The Equestrian Liberation Front would’ve won. Chrysalis would be dead.” She blinked slowly. “Twilight might be alive,” she said in a softer voice.

“Twilight is alive,” Rainbow said angrily.

I don’t want to have this argument. “You do it, wouldn’t you?” Flurry asked Rainbow. “If you could kill Chrysalis, right now, even if it meant your death, would you do it?”

“Uh, yeah, of course,” Rainbow snorted. “But I’m not a Princess,” she tacked on quickly.

“So?” Flurry nickered. “I can order ponies to die, but I can’t do it myself?”

“No,” Thorax responded immediately. “You can’t.” He leaned over the table and stared right into her muzzle. “If you die, everything we’ve worked for collapses. You are too important.”

Flurry broke eye contact first. She levitated the stale sandwich over and took a bite. “Should’ve said that before I messed with the Heart, then.”

“I did,” Thorax answered. “Frequently.”

“I knew it would kill me,” Flurry Heart muttered. She held the sandwich in her hooves, having removed her front boots. Her fur was white in a figure-eight swirl on her left foreleg. “Mom understood.”

Thorax and Jadis shared a look. “What happened with the Heart?” the changeling asked quietly.

Flurry took another bite of her sandwich and refused to answer.