//------------------------------// // Bitter Medicine // Story: Cycle: With Wings as Eagles // by SSky //------------------------------// Marcus hadn’t said a word since. He had kicked Livana up and swiftly trotted to the forest’s outskirts, looking back into Everfree. They had made their way back around to the camp, slowly, silently, surely. Every time Livana had asked what they were doing, Marcus paid no attention. She had by now given up as they stood behind the castle of the royal pony sisters. On the other side of the corner they crouched at stood Cinna and Galon, the griffon chef. “I’m sorry, again. We can’t find that traitor. But we need to know how that poison joke got in the sandwiches,” Cinna inquired. From around the corner, the two spies saw Galon shake his head and lift one arm up as if to say, “I don’t know.” “Cat got his tongue?” Marcus quipped, prompting a bit of inaudible chuckling from Livana. Cinna fumed. “I don’t believe it! There had to have been one suspect outside Marcus. He couldn’t have done it alone, and especially not without touching the flowers himself.” “He seems fine.” Livana screamed, the words barely reaching Marcus’ ears. Marcus shook his head. “Imbecile. And the supreme commander trusts you over me?” “I just got here! You expect me to be perfect?” Livana shouted, suddenly wishing Marcus would shut up again. Marcus voice took a fiery tone. “I AM perfect, yet nopony trusts me and for no reason. You should be even more perfect if you have their trust.” Livana could she his horn flare every so often, as if he was trying to hold back from killing Livana with his magic bow then and there. Marcus’ normal ice returned as he pointed a hoof gently at Cinna. “His legs. Look at them.” The nightkeeper took a close look at the commander’s legs. She noticed they were shaking. “Cinna prides himself in being strong,” Marcus elaborated, “but now he can hardly support himself. Poison joke is nice like that. Made you shut up.” “But I can still talk.” Marcus gritted his teeth. “Sadly, your annoying voice is still within the range of any good soldier’s hearing, ergo only mine and the supreme commander’s. The flowers played a prank on me without touching them. Now, are you going to stop interjecting random thoughts like a three-year-old or are you going to listen?” Livana obeyed, though not because he told her to. She heard more of the conversation: “I don’t trust the girl no matter what you say.” Cinna interjected. “Who is she talking about?” Marcus smacked Livana with his hoof. “Three clues: she’s annoying, stupid, and the only pony with me when I broke out.” Livana’s eyes grew quite a bit. She was a suspect. Cinna continued, “She could have been raised by DRAGONS for all I care! And I don’t really think it matters whether she likes you or not! She’s highly suspect!” Cinna stormed off, tripping and shaking, determined that she wouldn’t get more information out of Galon. The tiercel waited till Cinna was out of sight before walking towards the two hiding. Marcus quickly sprinted behind the other corner and dragged Livana along. The grass beneath them dampened the hoofsteps enough that the griffon didn’t hear them as he turned the corner. He looked behind him, and by came another griffon. The second cawed at Galon a few times, mixed with a bunch of roars. “I can understand him,” Livana told Marcus. Marcus’ face brightened. “Oh, my! You can? Well that's great, awesome, brilliant. Just tell me one thing...” Marcus with his big freakish grin leaned into Livana’s face. “WHAT THE HELL ARE THEY SAYING, IDIOT?” Marcus couldn’t have possibly whispered any quieter yet still manage to make Livana reel like he was yelling. “Ahh... well... the second griffon said something about cure and joke. Old Griffon isn’t spoken often so the only words I know really well are curses from my father.” “I like that griffon already. Hard to believe he didn’t use more than that if he lived with you.” He leaned in to see the griffons slowly walk away from the camp. He signaled for Livana to follow and they slowly ducked into the gardens around the camp, making their way through the exotic flowers, slowly stalking the two griffons. Hours passed. They had made it to a small abandoned building just inside the walls of Everfree, and had been waiting for a long time. Marcus eyed the two griffons through a crack, and he had been staring there for a long time, never blinking. Livana was bored out of her mind. Marcus had ordered her to keep an ear out for the two speaking, but that was so long ago, the nightkeeper could barely remember it. She had expected her first guard stunt to be exciting, fighting and running and capturing bad guys, but not sitting at the wall of a crumbling building watching one griffon take a bath for what had to have been hours. The boredom was eating away at her, and she plucked a blade of grass with her magic. She remembered the black blade she had made while fighting Marcus. The gash down the markspony’s side looked like it hurt him a lot, but Marcus never showed it. She wondered if she could do it again. “Void magic” Marcus had called it. She concentrated into making it. Just a little to cut the blade of grass. A little sliver. But nothing came. Livana tried harder, but there wasn’t anything new. The grass remained uncleaved, and the magic blade unseen. But Livana didn’t quit, and pushed herself harder. She strained over and over, becoming more frustrated and more determined each try. Suddenly, she had enough with the elusive black magic and the blade of grass. She angrily started to throw it away, but saw the black blade come down and slice the grass, but not only that, it completely vaporized it. “Don’t do that,” Marcus ordered, not even looking away from the crack. Livana had had enough of him. “Why? It isn’t hurting anypony.” “Yes it is, it’s hurting yo- actually, keep doing it.” Livana became a bit nervous. “What do you mean ‘it’s hurting me’?” “It’s healing you, what do you think I mean, stupid? Void magic eats away at your soul whether you use it...” He turned away from the peephole and with a disgusted look on his face stared at his side. “or receive it. Just being touched probably took away five, maybe ten years of my life, thank you very much.” “I’m so sorry.” Livana apologized. She almost didn’t mean it. “Sorry doesn’t cut it, whisper.” Marcus spat, turning back to the crack. He had taken to calling Livana “Whisper,” that is when he wasn’t using an insult or curse, which was rare. “Keep your ears peeled.” He ordered. “The griffon is getting out.” Sure enough, the griffons bothe began squawking and roaring up a storm. Livana pressed her ear tight and racked her mind to figure out the meaning. “They’re talking about a plot.” Marcus and Livana both stepped back, and faced each other. behind Livana, pressing his ear against the wall was Luz. The corporal had his eyes closed and was listening intently. Marcus cursed, “How did you find us?” Luz opened one eye. “Marcus, you may outmatch me in almost every way but I equal you in logic at least. I knew you would hide in the forest outside Everfree, and after seeing the supreme commander take off there we decided to track you.” From behind a wall stepped Jane. “You left quite an easy trail to follow.” Livana shouted at them, “We’re trying to help! Marcus didn’t do it!” The two raised their eyebrows, but Marcus relayed the faint whisperings to the other two. “Oh yes, we know.” Jane confirmed. “Luz saw your presentation yesterday and decided to check out the flowers. Sure enough, he found they weren’t petunias either.” Livana was impressed, but Marcus was rather angry that he was tracked. Luz closed his eyes. “They have a book they got the cure from, but they are already working out a plan for the afternoon.” Marcus’ frown softened. “Finally somepony who isn’t useless.” Luz shook his head. “That’s it. I really don’t know much of the Griffon language either. I can only pick up a few words that are the same in Avian.” Marcus growled. “I spoke too soon. You’re just going to alert everypony that we are here.” Jane started to go. “I’ve done enough. I can leave. I have my own things to do during the panic, but I’m just glad I could help.” Luz looked over at Jane. “But... we need help.” Marcus shook his head. “No, I and the girl are the only ones needed. You’re just distracting us. She feels good for helping the camp, now let her go, and I suggest you go too.” “Guys.” Livana said, her ear on the wall again. “They’re talking about an assassination.” Marcus swiveled about, and Luz looked at Livana, leaning in close to have a chance of possibly hearing anything she said. Livana searched her mind for any words she could connect. After a while, she started being able to understand. They were discussing the assassination. Of who? She tried and tried to understand until the word finally came: “The assassination of mishpacha—family—but it’s used as a name.” “Hestia,” Luz realized, “it’s a rough translation, but it’s the only one that makes sense. They’re going to assassinate Hestia.” Marcus grinned. “Well, that’s a pretty smart move.” He turned to Luz. “You’re going to have to stay here to help get the cure ready for the others, I’ll go-” “Wait!” Luz and Livana both interjected. Marcus impatiently tapped his foot, waiting for one to explain. Luz finally offered up a reason. “Livana is... err... friends with the princess, and the supreme commander trusts her. She could alert them. Besides...” Luz fished around for some excuse, “Your brains will help me here.” The compliments seemed to have stoked Marcus’ ego, but he snapped down. “Whisper here couldn’t get there in time.” Livana stepped up. “Yes, I can. I can go the fastest way.” Luz eyed the nightkeeper. “You were only shown it once.” Livana felt smart for a second after a morning of verbal abuse. “Yes, but there's something else that shows it.” Marcus smiled for once at the nightkeeper. “The worn dirt from all the ponies going that route. Whisper, I think that’s the only intelligent thing you have ever said.” Close enough to a compliment for Livana. But Marcus peered into the room. “They’re getting ready. We’ll go in and look for the book and start preparing the cure, but you have to gallop NOW.” She didn’t need another incentive. She took off like a madpony, racing into the everfree outskirts, she had to get there quickly,and she could only hope it would be in time. “My mother came home and found the feathers everywhere, and just kept on walking like she didn’t notice a thing!” Philomena—as a bird—and Shahar shared a good laugh. After seeing her argue with Selene, Philomena had opened up. Like she needed to see some headstrong dominance in the princess before she could really connect. “Oh, Shahar, I remember Solla being like that. Some days, she’d come back after some big mishap in the palace and ignore it altogether! I think she said something like: ‘If it’s over, there’s no real need to wonder what happened.’ Oh I didn’t completely agree, but it was rather funny seeing her just ignore what may have been a hurricane rampaging through her bedroom, and just tidy up.” The two giggled again. After they settled down, Shahar pressed to know more about Solla. “Oh, she was... almost perfect. She was a fantastic warrior and leader—and very interested in mythology—while her sister was very tolerant and very smart. They both had a role to fill in the kingdom and their rule was perhaps the second best in pony history.” “What was the first?” “I would say it was the reign of Anima and Ocellus, the first beings.” Shahar recalled them from an old Griffon tale. “Yes, they were created by Aquila to give life to the earth.” Philomena wavered, “They came from something, and Nocturna told me that Anima knew whether there was or wasn’t a higher being, but was very coy in not telling anyone for certain. It downright drove everything mad. But their reign ended when Ocellus disappeared. He had vision of the future, and Animae was lost without him. Their children—the changelings—began fighting over what species was to blame for the disappearance and... well the rest is history.” “The demon rose from the chaos.” Shahar recalled, “Discord. He confused the nature of every race.” “Made ponies very racial. Though, he didn’t hurt us birds much. We remain perfect as ever.” Shahar gave an evil grin. “Oh really? From what I recall the curse he gave to birds was to make them a very proud and independent race, fighting for your freedom no matter the... other costs.” Philomena chuckled, “Like I said, no harm there.” “Says who?” a soft voice asked. Again, Hestia had appeared from nowhere at the front door. “Full freedom is dangerous in the wrong hands, as I recall the majority of wars were started by those of your kind ‘Acting with freedom.’” Shahar raised her eyebrow in a satisfied way, and Philomena cawed. “Well, Hestia. I’ll at least grant you that you haven’t changed your mind on that, even though you two are wrong. The wars were deserved.” “Historical politics is a different lesson, Philomena.” Hestia chuckled. “I’m here to tell you two the hearing session is about to start.” Shahar eagerly jumped out the door. Talking with Philomena had given her new vigor, and she raced down the steps. For a brief second she stopped to admire the worksponyship on the tower of air. First thing she would do as queen: Find out what the heck made that work. Philomena flew up beside her and landed as she raced along. “Excited, are we? Just yesterday you were apprehensive.” “Because now I have a goal! Be the best queen of Equestria, and I have a close model!” Philomena laughed, proud in her pupil. Now that she had her excitement, she could perhaps begin getting through to her. They bounded down the stairs, leaving Hestia far far behind them both. The unicorn queen slowly made her way down, taking all the time she thought she would have. The princess and the roc slid down a corner and started toward the throne room, laughing and smiling. They entered a door in the side of the room and saw the room spread out. One thing caught Shahar’s eye though: There weren’t any guards. The only one there was Metis, arranging each and every rug and tapestry meticulously. The alicorn noted the unintentional pun there. “Hello, Princess, Commander Philomena. The guards are still ill.” Philomena gave a slight frown, not a particularly easy task with a beak. And just like that, the draconequus slipped out the door. “He has a few things to attend to, so we’ll be alone with Hestia today.” Just as she said that, there was a ruckus outside. There were shouts from men and- “Li’?” Shahar exclaimed. She scrambled to the large door and peeked outside, seeing the large line of ponies and near the front, two ponies in armor dragging Livana to the front. Philomena pulled the princess back. “My sister’s being dragged here.” “I’ll handle this.” Philomena muttered, transforming into a mare. She still had on her armor from earlier, though it had somehow changed form alongside her.The door opened a bit as ponies yelled about how unfair the girl going first was, as it wasn’t even time yet. Livana and a bulky stallion with... wings for ears? Shahar glanced at them, but couldn’t decide to focus on how tired Livana looked and the wing-ears “Commander, Princess. This rookie-” “I know what she did, Corporus,” Philomena said, sternly “and she was acting in self-defense. She did nothing wrong, and was only abducted by the traitor. Leave her here and I will brief her on regulations, but but she is not guilty.” Shahar stepped back. She hadn’t seen Philomena act like this. She didn’t even know she was a commander until a few minutes ago even. The guard seemed similarly stunned at being snapped at, but bowed and went back out into the boos and jeers of the crowd. Philomena looked at Shahar. “Erm... there was a bit of an odd poison of sorts. That was what was with the wing ears and... well your ‘friend’ is speaking very softly.” Shahar hugged Livana and looked straight at her. “How are you?” Livana mouthed some words that Shahar didn’t hear. “What?” She asked, leaning closer. “Thersrssusus.” “What?” Philomena facehooved. “Let me near her.” She stepped up to Livana and put her ear to the nightkeeper’s mouth. “She’s fine... ish. Marcus has the cure.” “Marcus?” Shahar asked. “The traitor I mentioned, but he isn’t. Anyways... oh... WHAT?!” Philomena tuned to Shahar. “Two griffons are coming in for the hearing, and they plan to assassinate Hestia.” Shahar searched the floor for her jaw. “Dear Aquila, WHAT?” Philomena frowned. “Well, we’ll be ready for em. We can’t just arrest them due to... procedures that should have been done away with ages ago. We have to wait until they make their move.” “You’re acting like this is nothing! They’re going to KILL her!” “Not if we can stop it. We have to act natural. The second they move, I spring into action and nab them. Piece of cake.” Philomena was sweating though. “No.” Shahar deducted. Livana seemed to sense it too. “You can’t fight two griffons, can you?” Philomena stammered, “Y-yes I can. It’s not... like they are pretty much acquainted with my species’ attacks and could tear me apart in an instant.” She tried to put on her straight face. “I have a healthy respect for them in battle. You know... my sister THE Roc and all.” Hestia finally walked into the room and saw the three jabbering. “I feel rather left-out.” she joked. “I see that the new recruit has come to tell us something. I heard about the poison joke incident at camp.” Philomena breathed and signaled for the two to be quiet. Livana gave the roc a look, but she wasn’t paying attention. She turned to address the queen. “She was brought for a minor incident, but it was in self-defense and she wasn’t aware of protocol. She was just abducted for a bit by a bigger issue.” It wasn’t a lie, but wasn’t the whole truth, and Hestia didn’t seem to see much further. “Very well. Why doesn’t he stay here, we don’t have any other guards in this room after all.” Metis slipped back in and eyed the two hidden sisters. He slipped outside the door and started announcing things. Shahar and Philomena both took positions, and Philomena told Livana where to stand. She silently slipped her a short sword as well. “Not designed for unicorns,” she whispered. “But in a pinch, it’ll do.” And the three silently watched as the first pony came in. He had a dispute with his neighbor over a orange tree and the mess it was causing. And so they came. Every so often, Philomena would crane her bird neck out to check how far down the line the griffons were. It was rare to see them in the hearing, so it was easy to find the two that must have been them. It was a waiting game, and the sisters could barely take it. Livana seemed to be silently panting, anxiously awaiting the end of this nightmare. Shahar was nervous that she would be stuck in the middle while the scene unfolded. And so, the griffons finally came into view as the next in line, and Livana confirmed that it was them. The last pony had a minor issue, as there were a few crops in her field mysteriously dead, and Hestia deducted that she had accidentally not watered them. The earth pony walked away, a bit embarrassed. The two griffons stepped up, and Shahar remembered to act natural. But it was hard. They were the first griffons Shahar had seen in days, and she wanted to hug them. If it weren’t for... you know... assassinating Hestia. Galon cleared his throat. “My name, your majesty, is Galon. My friend is Aman. And we serve in your court.” Hestia smiled warmly. “Well, it is wonderful to have such good servants as you two. But—tell me—what do you need?” Aman smiled. “We need something that you can very simply provide.” Livana wanted to jump right there, but cautiously reached for the blade Philomena gave her. Galon opened his mouth. “We need a new queen.” Aman and Galon leaped at Hestia, but Philomena intercepted Aman, while Shahar placed her horn directly in Galon’s path, but the griffon steered clear and to the side of Hestia, shere Livana waited to match steel to talon. The queen was shocked, and Philomena turned to her, “Run!” Hestia tried to get Shahar to come too, but the princess was determined to stay and aid the others. The ponies in the line for the hearing were scattered, and the unaware poisoned guards were occupied. Philomena tossed Shahar a blade that she gripped firmly in her telekinetic hold and charged Galon to aid her sister. Livana almost had had enough of this day. the running, the hiding, and now for the second fight of the day. She was beaten, and the griffon was barely being kept at bay with her steel. But she made a mistake and swung at the griffon, who caught the blade in the armored talons and tossed it away. Livana thought of the black blade. She thought of how this griffon was giving them all bad names by attacking the queen. She thought of how Marcus dragged her all the way across Everfree, insulting her every step of the way. And she lashed out with those thoughts. The black blade appeared and slashed at Galon, who didn’t get away in time. He was caught by the magic and shrieked so loud probably the whole palace could hear it. In one swoop, he knocked Livana halfway across the room. And from Shahar’s perspective, he put out the green and red energy pulsing from her sister’s eyes. She was concerned for Livana, but also very angry. She got to Galon and started slashing at him like mad. The griffon was in pain and slowed, but not enough that he couldn’t dodge or block the swipes with his talons. He roared and went for Shahar, and she reacted defensively. A yellow bubble surrounded the princess and Galon smashed into that, reeling from the hot surface. Shahar tried again, thinking of her sister and how she had to protect her. She shot a yellow light from her horn, and this time it kept going to Galon. He was hit and knocked back, yelling. Philomena was matched. Though she was making very slow progress, it wasn’t enough to help the struggling Shahar. But she didn’t need to. The doors were slammed wide open, and in the doorway was Luz and a cloaked figure. Luz stepped up. “Need help, Commander?” “No, but give it anyway!” The two ponies rushed in. The cloaked pony reached into their cloak with their mouth and pulled out a bottle with a mysterious substance. He tossed it at Aman, and the griffon started screaming as the liquid began to bubble his skin. It was enough of an opportunity for Philomena, and one decisive slice created one less enemy. Shahar was glad to see the two strangers, and the pegasus in guard’s armor quickly flew over to her aid, brandishing two retractable blades. Shahar shot another bolt at Galon, and Luz handled the rest. The throne room had bloodstains, but all the ponies were alive. At this point, several servants—Metis included—popped in. Two doctors (Redcross from the first day being one, Shahar noted) helped Livana to her feet, though they had problems talking to her. She caught sight of Luz, Shahar and Philomena. And they all laughed in relief. Livana sat in a medical tent, being treated for minor wounds Galon had given her. She had had the curing bath, and was very happy to be able to talk again. She and Luz had been chatting like crazy. Julius and Jane had also stopped by. Jane had said she was sorry for the injury, but complemented her bravery. Julius... had a few choice words. He was emphasising that what she did was stupid and reckless, but it worked and she was brave. But he wanted to make sure she got training before pulling a stunt like that again. But the most surprising visit of all was from Marcus. Luz, Philomena and Shahar vouched for his innocence (the last mostly because of the other two,) and he was let off with minimal warnings about not taking things into his own hooves. He wasn’t there to commend bravery, though. “You got knocked out.” “Yes,” Livana said, already dreading the rest. “Yet you are being hailed as a hero.” “N-no. Not really.” “Don’t lie. Don’t be modest. Modesty is weak. You have to know you deserve something.” It was Livana’s turn to snap. “Like you? Mr. I-am-perfect-and-you-are-an-idiot-for-not-being-a-genius?” Marcus snarled, and showed his side. It was bandaged, but still looked awful. “You do this to me, and you are loved and respected. I get questioned and punished.” He choked, starting to cry. “I used to be the commander. I used to be the supreme commander. I did nothing.” He started screaming even louder than Livana could manage when she could barely be heard. “I did nothing! One false rumor spreads about me, that I mistreated a servant, and I’m out. The phoenix forcibly takes my position, and no one respects me! I got demoted, and now I’m treated like dirt while you get lauded for what I did! You would have been NOTHING. All of you would have FAILED.” He ripped off his white armor and smashed it to the ground, stomping on the metal. He was half screaming and half bawling, as if she had been the tipping point in this already broken stallion. “Tell me, Princess Livana. How is that fair? How is that any less a horrible act than badmouthing a few people for getting praise that THEY. DON’T. DESERVE.” Livana reeled. He had called her princess. Marcus’ impossibly deep frown got even bigger. “What? You expect that to be a secret from me? You’re the second princess. And your royal majesty, your secret leaves with me, don’t worry. If that matters to you more than an injustice, if that matters to you as much as a doomed mare's life over a living and destroyed one, I hope the Black Death comes for you!” Livana choked a few tears. He knew she had no answer. And he was done. He left just as Luz entered for the first time, but Luz quickly left to talk to Marcus. When he returned, he said that Marcus had left. He had gone to Julius and resigned, his days as a guard long since done and staying of his own will. They had talked it through, and Luz had finally gotten her to cheer up. But Livana could tell that, though he did disagree and often dislike Marcus’ attitude, he didn’t want him to leave. “Was what he said true?” Livana asked. Luz bit his lip as he pawed the armor. “He exaggerates, vilifies others, and nopony knows if he really did what he was accused of.” He paused, a few tears of his own welling up. “But yeah. He’s pretty bitter. And... I believe him. He doesn’t show remorse.” The nightkeeper thought, still thinking about how he had mistreated her. “Hestia would have stopped it. I heard she could read lies.” Luz looked up. “No. She can’t use it as proof. It’s possible to fool, many honesty children have been fooled. No matter how much she was convinced... she couldn’t fight the evidence. I was there, there was a lot of evidence. Not the least of which being... a bit of a spitfire attitude that was brought out in court. Everypony viewing was convinced he was guilty due to... well him doing exactly what he was accused of during his trial.” Livana still didn’t feel very sorry. It was one thing to hold a bit of resentment, another thing to blow up at everypony. Luz looked up, a few tears still left on his face. “Well, we... need to try to forget that. You did well, and... I think-” “You’ll be more than ready within the next four days.” Philomena concluded happily. She and Shahar were back in her room alongside Hestia. Shahar had been absolutely mobbed by nobles and servants in Everfree. Her room was pretty much the only private place in the palace. Hestia beamed on the princess. “You are very brave. A little reckless... but you did it with help. You wanted to protect your friend, and you did so going outside your own duty.” Philomena piped up, “She saved you too.” Hestia shook her head. “I’m not going to die before my time, she and her friend were just what the fates used.” She turned back to Shahar, who herself was feeling pretty proud by now. “The next days should be easy, as long as you realize everything is important, and while it is good to be determined, don’t let your own thoughts blind you.” She leaned in close. “I think it comes from staring into the sun too long.” Philomena rolled her eyes, but Shahar chuckled, that sounded like something her father or sister would say. “Thank you, your highness.” Hestia nuzzled the princess’ mane. “How many times do I have to say it, call me Hestia. Now, I want you to have a nice supper tonight, so get ready. And I’ll call for your friend. After what I’ve heard about what she’s been through, she deserves it.”