“So, what do you think?” I asked Gruff after having finished explaining my plan to him.
“So, you're just gonna walk down the wall and grab the Idol of Boreas? Then you’ll give it to some griff to make ‘em king or queen?” Gruff asked.
I nodded. “Pretty much, yeah. If they’re willing to sign an agreement with me to give me military aid against Chrysalis and her hive.”
“You know this’ll probably make the civil war start back up. Some folks are gonna say the idiot didn’t get the Idol themself and thus they don’t have a right to the throne. Others will say they have the Idol so that makes ‘em the king or queen. Then all Tartarus’ll break loose.”
“I’m aware of that possibility and I’m very confident I can end the civil war within a month, depending on what happens. So, what about you? You willing to accept the job?”
“Me?! I’m too old!” Gruff all but shouted before breaking out into a cough. “Sure the bits would be nice but being king would kill me! If some other griffon didn’t kill me first that is. I like my job as a historian and ambassador to Equestria. All I gotta do is a whole lotta nothing except go to Canterlot sometimes and tell some young whippersnappers history sometimes. Find some younger griffon to be yer darn puppet!”
I rolled my eyes. “I'm not looking for a puppet, I’m looking for an ally I know for certain I can trust. That trust hinges on them owing me for installing them as the ruler, but as long as they help me I don’t care what they do from there. But fine. I was thinking the money, fame, and power would get you to agree but oh well. Do you know any younger Griffons who’d be willing to sign that kind of agreement and won’t try and screw me over later? I’m willing to pay you for valid suggestions.”
“Hm… Nope. Can’t think of a single one!” Gruff shook his head. “Unless helping you benefits them somehow there’s no griff who’d agree to it in the first place. Who in their right mind would ever put themselves into that kinda debt?!”
“Come on. You’ve gotta know someone.” I drew fifty bits and set them on a table.
He eyed the bits happily and rubbed his talons together. Then he paused and frowned. “Hrmph… Well… I suppose there is Gallus.”
“Gallus?” I asked.
Gruff hesitated then shook his head. “Bah forget it!”
I added a few more bits to the stack. “Who’s Gallus and why did you recommend them?”
Gruff sighed. “Gallus is… Ah, to Tartarus with it. I’ll just go get him and show ya.” Gruff got up and started walking over to a set of stairs. “Gallus!” He shouted up the stairs.
“What?!” A young voice shouted back.
“We got a visitor!” Gruff shouted.
“Great! So what?!”
“Get your butt down here! I wanna introduce ya!”
“Ugh… Fiiine!” The voice groaned.
Not long after, a very young Griffon with blue feathers came down the stairs. He paused as he saw me and I felt a spike of fear and uncertainty from him. “Uh… Grandpa Gruff…? We’re not about to be kidnapped… right?”
“No, you aren’t.” I told Gallus before looking back at Gruff. “This is your grandson?”
“No!” Gruff snapped grumpily. “I’m not any griff’s grandpa, they just call me that. Gallus here doesn’t have any family. But I’ve taken him in so he isn’t living out on the streets. He’s the only griffon I can really think of who might work for what yer planning. But as you can see he’s too young! How old are you again? Eleven?”
Gallus sighed in annoyance. “I’m twelve.”
“Right, twelve.” Gruff nodded.
I took a deep breath and slowly released it. “Twelve… The best you can come up with is a twelve year old…”
“Don’t blame me. I told ya to forget it as soon as I said it.”
Gallus looked at Gruff then back to me. “Sooo… What’s going on? What am I too young for?”
“Can you keep a secret for like a day or two?” I asked him.
“Uh… Sure?” He said uncertainly.
“I’m going to take your word for it. I’m already here so it’s too late to matter anyway.” I stated. The worst that could happen if he spread it around would be a bunch of Griffons waiting to ambush me to take the Idol the moment I climbed back up. I was pretty sure I could handle that. Especially since I’d know they were there in advance when I sensed their emotions. I came here expecting a fight to begin with.
“I’m going to go down into the Abysmal Abyss and grab the Idol of Boreas. Then I’m going to give it to someone to make them king or queen of Griffonstone. They’ll owe me a debt for retrieving the Idol for them and making them the king but the only payment I’ll ask for is military aid and Griffonstone becoming an official ally of my hive. I need as many allies who I can trust to not screw me over or betray me as I can get. And right now other than the Crystal Empire, Griffonstone is my best bet. Gruff recommended you.”
Gallus took a half step back in surprise. “Me? King? Huh? Are you sure you got the right griffon?”
“No. I’m not. Gruff, mind telling me why you thought it would be a good idea to make a twelve year old the king of Griffonstone?” I asked.
“Ya wanted someone who’d agree to those terms and wouldn’t stab ya in the back. Well he’s the best choice you got!” Gruff grumbled.
“My terms aren’t that bad, damn it!” I growled.
"You're right! They're too good to be true, is what they are! No griff in their right mind will believe there aren't hidden strings attached that you don't want them knowing about until it's too late! So how the heck did you think folks would take it!? There ain't a griffon alive naïve enough to agree to this!" Gruff half shouted at me.
I raised a hoof to my face and groaned in frustration. This was going to be way harder than I’d expected.
“Uh… What about Gabby?” Gallus suggested.
I lowered my hoof and looked at him. “Who?”
“Gabby. Her full name is Gabriella or something, I think, but she tells everygriff to call her Gabby. She’s the mail courier. She’d probably agree.” Gallus told me.
“Oh right… Forgot about her.” Gruff said, scratching the side of his face. “She’s a weird one… Has a personality more like a darn pony than a griffon! Way too soft for the military or leading the kingdom in a war. She’d be a terrible queen and a horrible commander. But she’s probably the best option you got other than Gallus. She’s the only griff old enough to be queen who might agree.”
I sighed and raised a hoof to my face in exasperation. “Wonderful… So my only two options are this Gabby, who you seem to have sooo much confidence in,” The sarcasm was heavy in my voice. “And a literal twelve year old… Those are really my only two options?”
“Yup.” Gruff nodded.
“Hey, I never said I’d agree! I might be young but I’m not stupid!” Gallus objected.
“And I wouldn’t have any hidden strings attached like Gruff seems to think I would. All I’d want is help against Chrysalis and for Griffonstone to become my ally. I’d even sign a damn contract saying so if I needed to.” I told Gallus.
That seemed to make him stop and think.
“But you’re too young. If I did make an agreement with you, we’d need to find a regent to rule in your place until you were old enough to be king. Oh I don’t know… Gruff maybe?” I stated.
“Not a chance!” Gruff declared.
“I mean… If that’s really all you’d want…” Gallus muttered.
I put a few more bits on the table. “Tell me where to find Gabby, and what to look for. Once I talk to her, I’ll make a decision. Maybe finding a regent will be easier than finding a king since the main agreement will be with Gallus, not them…” I was exhausted already and I was trying to find any possible way to make my initial plan work.
Gallus told me where I could find Gabby and generally what she looked like. Having a place to look and a description, I turned and left.
Twilight and Rainbow Dash exited the train and trekked up the mountain to Griffonstone. “I’m so excited! Bygone Griffons of Greatness was written a long time ago and ended with the coronation of the fourteenth king of the griffons, King Guto. I wonder who’s in charge now. Oh! I heard there’s a statue of King Grover outside the Griffonstone Library! Photo op! And we’re totally going to have to sample some famous griffon scones. They're supposed to be the best! I’m telling you Rainbow, Griffonstone is going to be…”
Twilight trailed off as they walked through the arch signifying their arrival to Griffonstone and saw the city.
Her eyes widened in shock and horror seeing what she had expected to be the greatest kingdom in the world was a dilapidated mess. Buildings had holes in their roofs or walls, garbage littered the streets, there were even a few houses that had crumbled entirely, likely meaning there were plenty of Griffons who were actually homeless. No one was smiling or seemed happy.
“A total dump?” Rainbow finished for Twilight who was staring at the wrecked city slack jawed in horror.
“Wha… Bu… How… No… This can’t be right!” Twilight took out her book again and began flipping through it, occasionally looking back up at the city as if something might have changed as she was reading.
“Uh, Twi…? You okay?” Rainbow asked, looking at Twilight in concern.
“Something’s wrong! This can’t be right! Griffonstone is supposed to be the most amazing kingdom in the world not… not this!” Twilight exclaimed as she scanned the pages searching for an answer. For a reason for why the once great Griffonstone could have possibly degraded to the state it was in now. Something she may have missed before. But there was nothing. The answer she was looking for simply wasn’t there.
Eventually Twilight slammed the book shut and ran into the city. Rainbow followed after her.
Slowing down Twilight approached a Griffon. “Excuse me, sir, this is Griffonstone right? The capital of the Griffon Kingdom?”
The Griffon just walked on by her without paying any attention.
Frustrated, Twilight approached another Griffon. “Ma’am, is this Griffonstone? Please, my friend and I might be a little lost and…”
The griffon just flew off ignoring Twilight entirely, much to her dismay.
“See? These griffons are exactly what I thought they’d be.” Rainbow Dash stated.
“I don’t understand… This is Griffonstone, it has to be! But… if it is, then why is it so…?” A griffon landed on a branch their house was sitting on and the branch immediately broke under their weight causing the house to fall and crash into the ground. The Griffon spread their wings and caught themselves before they could fall, so they were alright. Twilight still winced at the sight. “Run down?”
“I dunno. Maybe the current king sucks or something?” Rainbow suggested.
“We don’t have a king, losers” A familiar voice declared.
Both Twilight and Rainbow Dash looked and saw Gilda standing not far from where they were.
“Hello, Gilda.” Rainbow spat.
“Dash.” Gilda growled back.
Twilight looked between the two uncertainly.
“What are you doing here?” Rainbow demanded.
“Uh, I'm a griffon? What's your excuse, dweebs?” Gilda snarked.
Twilight stepped in between the two of them. “Ehem… We’re looking for somepony. Weaver, the new changeling Queen. She’s supposed to be visiting Griffonstone. Maybe you’ve seen her around somewhere?”
“Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t. What’s it to you?” Gilda said with hostility clear in her voice.
“Well, we’re her friends. Look, I know you and Rainbow may have had some issues in the past but this is important. So if you’ve seen her, could you please tell us?” Twilight pleaded.
“Ugh… Fine, whatever. I saw her go into Grampa Gruff’s house earlier.” Gilda pointed at a particular house. “She left not too long ago and went that direction.” Gilda pointed elsewhere.
“Thank you, we really appreciate it! Come on, Rainbow.” Twilight said before running off in the direction Gilda had pointed.
Rainbow glared at Gilda for a moment, and the griffon returned the glare. Then Rainbow snorted and followed after Twilight.
It was still relatively early in the morning so I found Gabby before she started making her rounds delivering the mail.
“So you’re a changeling?! That’s so cool! I’ve never seen a changeling before! And a Queen! That’s amazing! Is it true changelings eat love?! Are you hungry? Wait, you aren’t going to eat me are you?” Gabby asked excitedly.
“Yes, no, and no. I’m not like Queen Chrysalis or her hive. So don’t attribute what you’ve heard about them to me.” I stated.
“Whew! Thank goodness! I was a little worried there for a second! Haha! Oh, but you were looking for me. Why? Do you need my help with something?” Gabby asked.
“Maybe. Someone recommended you as a candidate for… let’s call it a project I’m working on.” I told her.
“A project? What sort of project? Whatever it is, I’m willing to help out however I can! Oh, who else are candidates? Do I know them? Maybe me and the other candidates can all work together with you on this project!”
“It’s confidential for the moment. I need to know if you’re what I’m looking for in a candidate first before I tell you. So would you mind answering some questions? Keep in mind, all of this is purely hypothetical but I need to get an accurate gauge on your personality and general psychology, but I need you to answer seriously.” I told her.
“Sure! Ask away! I’ll answer as best I can.”
I nodded. “Alright, first, are you a pacifist?”
“Well, yeah, I’d like to think so. I really don’t like the idea of fighting anygriff.” Gabby said with a smile.
“Let's say you held a position of political power and there was a hostile foreign nation threatening a nation allied with Griffonstone, would you be willing to go to war to protect the allied nation?” I asked her.
Gabby raised a talon to her chin. “Go to war? No, I’d probably try to get the leaders together to talk it out. War’s just awful. I wouldn’t want anygriff getting hurt.”
“What if talking it out wasn’t possible? What if war was inevitable and your allies were all going to die if you didn’t help them? Let’s assume the enemy kingdom was the aggressor and the only thing they wanted was the complete extermination of your allies.” I asked seriously.
Gabby’s smile fell and I felt her discomfort grow. “I… I’d try to help my allies, of course… But I’d try to find a way to settle things without violence. And why would anygriff want to do that at all? I… I don’t like this question.”
I nodded. “Okay, then let’s move on. You see a random person on the streets being attacked by a mugger. What do you do? There aren’t any guards around and by the time any might show up it’ll already be too late. A situation I’m sure isn’t all too uncommon here in Griffonstone considering its current state.”
“I’d try to help the griffon being attacked. I mean… What else could I do?”
“What if the mugger or muggers had weapons and seemed like they were going to kill the griffon they’re mugging?” I asked. This was just to throw her off and anyone listening to make it seem like my questions really were made up hypotheticals rather than serious situations. I was hoping it would make it harder to guess what I was actually planning.
“I… I’d probably hide…” Gabby said, sounding somewhat ashamed of herself. “Then when they left I’d try to get the griffon they attacked to a hospital.”
“Yeah, I imagine a lot of people would do the same. I can feel you’re a bit upset. You don’t need to be. These are just hypotheticals so I can evaluate how you’d react under different kinds of stresses and pressures.”
Gabby nodded. “Right. Okay… Sorry I’m just not used to having to answer questions like these…”
“It’s alright, just try to relax a bit.” I said in a calm tone. I gave her a moment to relax before continuing. “So let’s say there’s a giant monster attacking. It’s completely indestructible and is destroying everything. Entire city blocks are being destroyed and people are dying or getting hurt in droves. The casualties are astronomical because the monster simply can’t be stopped, so there’s an evacuation in progress. What do you do?”
“I’d try to stay behind and help everygriff I could get to safety. I couldn’t just leave knowing anygriff was still in danger.” Gabby stated. She was actually surprisingly confident in her answer this time.
“Alright. If you became queen of the Griffon Kingdom what would you do? Not just the first thing but in general.”
Gabby smiled widely. “Oh that’s easy! The kingdom isn’t doing well right now and everygriff is so grumpy… So I’d do everything I could to improve the kingdom and make life better for everygriff! Hopefully I could cheer everygriff up and make them stop being so darn mean and grumpy all the time.”
“How would you go about it?” I asked.
“Uh… I’m not sure exactly…” She said uncertainly.
I continued asking her some questions for a bit, but my opinion was pretty much already solidified. She was a terrible choice.
She was too naïve and idealistic. She was waaay too trusting, taking my word at face value when I was a member of a species known for kidnapping, replacing, and feeding on people. She would be more of a liability than an asset when it came to the war with Chrysalis. She would have actually tried to be a benefit to the Griffon Kingdom which was good, but considering her naivete I wasn’t confident she could actually accomplish anything even if I gave her the Idol of Boreas. Plus I doubted I could get her to agree when I would tell her it would likely result in a civil war.
She was pretty much a non-option.
“Weaver!” A familiar voice called out behind me.
I paused as my blood ran cold. I looked behind me and saw Twilight and Rainbow Dash approaching me and Gabby.
“Wha… What are you two doing here?!” I demanded, unable to restrain the anger in my tone.
“Ooh! Are these your friends?!” Gabby asked excitedly as she flew past me towards Twilight and Rainbow. “Hi, I'm Gabriella, but you can call me Gabby since we're friends now! Pleased to meet ya!”
“Hi, Gabby. I’m Twilight Sparkle and this is Rainbow Dash. It’s nice to meet you!”
I rushed over to them. I had to head this off and take control of the conversation now before this became a disaster. “Heeey, Twilight and Rainbow!” I said in an overly friendly tone with a forced smile. “Funny bumping into you here. I know you two said you were going on vacation but I didn’t think you’d be heading to Griffonstone of all places.”
“Huh? What are you—?” Rainbow started but I didn’t give her a chance to say anything.
“Gabby, these are some acquaintances of mine! I met them in Equestria. Twilight, Rainbow, this is Gabby, another acquaintance I just met. Say, sorry to cut this short Gabby but I think I know enough for now. If I decide on you, I’ll let you know. Now if you’ll excuse me I have to have a word with these two in private.” I said, maintaining my forced smile.
“But—” Twilight started.
“In… private…” I whispered with a bit more force, cutting her off.
“Oh, okay! It was nice meeting you Weaver! It’s nice to meet you too, Twilight and Rainbow. I guess I’ll be going then. I got plenty of mail to deliver today. But we should totally hang out sometime!” Gabby said with a smile before flying off, waving at us.
“Skitter, what the hay was that?!” Rainbow demanded.
“We’ll talk in private. Follow me.” I said, letting some of my anger and frustration slip into my tone. I turned and started walking off, leading them out of the city so we could talk without anyone overhearing us.