True Black

by Leonofsweden

Chapter 16 Getting to Know Raven

14 of April.

Raven woke up abruptly, only to find a sniffling and struggling pony in her embrace. He was thrashing about with tears running down his cheeks.

“No… no… mom… don’t hurt mammy… NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!” The little pony´s scream almost made Raven's heart stop. He bolted up, looking frantically around himself. When his eyes locked with hers, and he realized they were still in a tight embrace, Zig Zag screamed again, making both of them bolt away in opposite directions. Zig Zag stood pressed up against the back wall of the small cave, with a look of panic and bewilderment in equal measure, while Raven looked fearfully at him from the front of the cave, wings spread wide in a defensive posture. Then something peculiar the little pony had screamed struck her.

Why was he crying for his mother? Shouldn't he be crying for his father or brothers? Raven thought curiously. The little pony seemed to have calmed down after the initial shock of seeing her. Raven carefully folded her wings, and then took a small step towards the pony.

“Are you okay?” she asked. The little colt hung his head, and took a ragged breath.

“Yeah… It was just another nightmare,” Zig Zag answered and looked around himself.

“Where are we? And who are you?” Zig Zag wondered as he looked up at Raven again. Raven had her first real good look at the little pony since his cape was no longer covering his back, his body was as blue as a clear sky, except for a little patch on his back and flank that was black just like his hooves. His mane was swept back, dark blue and quite messy, half his right ear had been cut off she also noted approvingly, since it meant he was most likely some kind of a fighter. But the thing that made Raven feel a little lightheaded and almost made her catch her breath, were his eyes. They were stunningly green, like two emeralds looking back at her; all gryphons have yellow eyes, so to see such a spectacular color looking back at her was staggering. Although the sadness in them made it hard to keep eye contact for long. Raven coughed a bit and glanced off to the side.

“I'm… ehhh… Raven… I fished you out of the river yesterday, and then I brought you here so you wouldn't… freeze to death,” she informed him. Zig Zag was also looking at her quite curiously. He had seen gryphons before, but never one with Raven’s coloration. Her plumage was dark grey with black tips, while her body was covered by a dark, golden-brown coat, just like her ears which were long and curved. Raven's fur looked quite shaggy and warm. Her talons and beak were both black, which Zig Zag had never seen before on any gryphon visiting North Bay. And the completely black feathers around her eyes made the gold in them pop out quite vividly when he made eye contact with her.

“By the way, who are you?” Raven then asked, looking anywhere except at the little pony.

“Ohhh! Sorry… I'm Zig Zag!” he answered, blushing and rubbing his back hooves together in embarrassment for not having introduced himself. Raven on her end was once again stunned by the colt. She had known him for less than a day, and still he had already thanked and apologized to her. A male gryphon would never in his life offer such pleasantries to a female gryphon. Raven looked curiously at Zig Zag, wondering if he had maybe hit his head a little too hard in the river. But all his cuts and bruises were on his body; his head had survived surprisingly well, considering what he's been through.

“Well if you're feeling all right, then we should probably start heading back to the rest of my wing,” Raven said and turned around to walk out of the small cave.

“You don't live here?” Zig Zag asked innocently, while he trotted over to reclaim his possessions, which lay heaped on the floor of the cave.

“No I don't live here! Why would you even think that?” Raven said with a bit of annoyance in her voice. Zig Zag heard it and looked back at her.

“Sorry… I just don't know a lot about gryphons. I have only seen a couple of you from afar in North Bay,” he said apologetically. Raven looked curiously back at Zig Zag.

“North Bay? Isn't that the first pony city on the other side of the border? What are you doing all the way up here in Feliniss? Did you steal some apples?” she said playfully, looking back at him with a grin.

“No…” Was all Zig Zag answered while he fastened his cloak around himself again. Not hearing the strain in Zig Zag's voice, Raven continued.

“So what did you do? Break a window?” Then Raven recalled Zig Zag murmuring something about his mother before he fully woke up.

“Or maybe your mom didn't want you and ran off,” she said, not knowing how cruel her joke was. The reaction was instantaneous. Zig Zag shot across the cavern in the blink of an eye. He smashed into the side of her with all the strength he could muster. Raven, not being ready for such a reaction, was caught off guard. They both tumbled out of the cave entrance coming to a halt with Zig Zag on top of Raven, staring down at her with tears running down his face.

“Don't you ever talk about my mother! You hear me!!!” Zig Zag roared straight down at Raven. His green eyes looking down at her were no longer the beautiful pools of emerald she had seen earlier. They were now deadly pools of venom staring coldly down at her with malicious intent. Raven lay frozen where she was. She was bigger than Zig Zag, and she shouldn't have any trouble throwing him off herself. But throughout her short life, Raven had always been taught, quite painfully at times, to always obey a male. Then it occurred to her that Zig Zag was a pony, and the rules most likely didn't apply to him, still… a lifetime of oppression made it quite hard for her to put up any form of resistance. Zig Zag had now calmed down just as fast as his tempers had flared. He was looking down at her, tears still dripping from his muzzle onto her chest. He collapsed and just lay there crying. Raven didn't know how to react; this was so far outside of her experience, so she just continued laying there. Finally Zig Zag gathered himself, and slid off Raven's chest. He took a couple of careful steps away and sat down.

“Sorry… Just don't say that again,” Zig Zag said with his head hanging.

“Right…” Raven answered hoarsely. She came up on all fours again, and looked over at the still-sniveling colt.

“What… What happened to you?” Raven asked, now with concern in her voice. Zig Zag looked back at her.

“You don't want to know…” he said sadly.

“Yes I do!” Raven stated fiercely. She then took a step back in fear when she realized that she had just disobeyed his order of not asking about his mother again. She stood with eyes closed, bracing herself for the inevitable strikes that were surely coming. When nothing happened, she carefully opened one of her eyes. Zig Zag was just sitting there, looking out over the low country that was spreading out before them.

“I don't think you will like my story…” he said. Raven snorted.

“You're a male, a little, colorful pony from the warm South, what could you possibly have to complain about?” Raven said, quite convinced that no pony's life could be as hard as a gryphon´s, especially hers. With a sad smile, Zig Zag began telling his story, in a flat and distant voice, as if it had happened to somepony else. How his best friend had been murdered. About how he had killed the would-be rapist of his mother, how the city guards then stormed in and dragged them off to the dungeons to be hanged the next day because of it, and how he had to watch his mother die at the end of a rope.

“That's when Lobo came and saved me…” Zig Zag said, still looking out at the scenery, having not moved a muscle during the entire story. Raven had also been sitting completely still, barely able to breathe, while she listened to the story Zig Zag was telling.

“Lobo? Who is that?” Raven asked in a very squeaky voice she hardly recognized as her own.

“He's…” Zig Zag stopped. What was Lobo to him? He had called him dad when they were confronted by the ponies chasing after them yesterday. And the more Zig Zag thought about it, the more he wanted it to be true. He wanted Lobo to be his dad, so Zig Zag made his mind up right then and there.

“He's my dad,” he said firmly.

“You have a dad? Why weren't you living with him?” Raven asked curiously. Everything Zig Zag had said so far, about living with his mother, and being friends with a girl. It was so far outside their norm of gryphon society, she had a hard time believing it could be true.

“Well we actually met the first time there… When he saved me from being hanged like my mother,” Zig Zag told Raven. For the first time, Raven thought that things were starting to fall into place. Zig Zag´s dad must have been living in another city. She looked at him, and thought he was probably nearing the age where he would start training to become a warrior or learn what ever trade their family had. His father probably came to claim him, only to find out he was about to be killed. So he had saved his son and now they were trying to escape.

“So where is your dad now?” Raven wondered.

“He's fighting the bad ponies on the other side of the river so they won't follow us anymore. He sent me ahead so I wouldn't get caught,” Zig Zag said, looking towards the horizon. Raven could see the concerned look on his face.

“Were they the ones who caught you at the river?” Raven asked, thinking his dad must have used him as a decoy so that he could get away himself if their pursuers had caught Zig Zag at the river. Zig Zag nodded.

“That was some of them… I only had time to count twelve. They caught us while we were sleeping, and the pegasi in the sky where flying around all the time, so it was hard to count them properly,” Zig Zag said. Raven felt an ice lump form in her stomach. His dad hadn't used him as a decoy; he had sacrificed himself to make sure he could escape. Although she didn't have the heart to tell Zig Zag that right now. Then she realized something and looked curiously at him.

“You can count? How old are you?” she asked. Zig Zag looked surprised by the question, he had just told her some of the most horrific things in his life, and then she asked him about his age?

“I'm thirteen. And my mom taught me to read and count. Otherwise I wouldn't be much help around her store,” he said. Now Raven was gawking at him.

Thirteen! How can he be thirteen! I'm thirteen, there's no way we're the same age, he's a lot smaller than me. Wait a minute… how can his mother own a store! And she taught him how to read? Why had she been allowed to learn how to read? She must have been the most important mare in North Bay to receive such treatment… But that doesn't make sense, they had just killed her. Even if she was just a girl, it doesn't make any sense to allow her to learn something like that, and then waste it by killing her… Raven thought frantically, not being able to make anything fit into her preconceived norms of society. Zig Zag had watched Raven's facial expression go from surprised to confusion and then finally pure disbelief.

“Well, how old are you?” Zig Zag asked in return. It took a few seconds for Raven to realize Zig Zag had asked a question.

“I'm thirteen as well… at least that's what the others tell me…” she answered.

“Can you read?” he then wondered.

“Of course I can't read! I'm a girl!” she yelled at him like he was an idiot. Zig Zag just looked surprised.

“What has that got to do with anything? Cherry Blossom was a girl and a year younger than me, and she could read. She and her mum were running an Inn, at least before they were killed,” Zig Zag said, sagging a bit as he thought about Cherry Blossom.

“Can all ponies read?” Raven asked, feeling this was the only logical conclusion to why girls were allowed to learn how to read. Zig Zag shook his head.

“No… Most ponies don't know how to read; mostly it is noble families, and some merchants, who can read. My mum was a merchant; she taught me as soon as I was able to learn,” Zig Zag answered. Raven once again looked confused, then she shook her head, she wasn't going to solve this here and now she realized. She took a deep breath and then looked up towards the snow-covered mountains.

“Well if we want to make it home, we'd better get going. I don't feel like spending another night outside. You never know who or what might find you,” she stated and flexed her powerful wings. Zig Zag was almost spellbound by them. Having grown up with a pegasus mother, that feeling of being shielded beneath a wing, or just having it stroke up against him, had always given him a sense of security nothing else could. Zig Zag gave himself a little shake, to clear his head of the funny feelings. Raven jumped up and hovered in the air with big, powerful strokes. And Zig Zag was once again spellbound by the site.

“Do you… think you can carry me all the way?” he suddenly asked. Raven stopped flapping and landed next to him. She could see that he was looking at her with admiration shining in those emerald eyes of his, and responded by puffing out her chest a bit more. Raven didn't know why, but she really enjoyed the way he looked at her right now.

“Sure I can! No problem whatsoever!” she boasted. Zig Zag sprang up on all four hooves enthusiastically.

“Really… you mean it! That’s awesome!” Zig Zag almost squealed in delight. Without any warning, he jumped up on Raven's back, and held onto her like he had done with his mother so many times before. But for some reason it felt very different, not just because Raven's upper body and head were covered in feathers. No… mostly it was because he once again got that funny, tingling feeling throughout his body. Raven also had to catch her breath when she felt the little pony press firmly against her back. She was once more thankful for the fact that gryphon´s couldn't blush, as she looked back and laughed a bit uncertainly, because of the surprising warmth rushing through her body.

“Hehe… are… are you ready?” she wondered, and felt Zig Zag embrace her even more firmly. A shiver went through her again, she really liked the way he was holding onto her like that, firm but tender. Zig Zag gave a little nod to indicate he was ready. Raven spread her wings, flapped them a couple of times to test the balance with Zig Zag on her back, and then leapt into the air. With a few powerful strokes, they were off towards the relative safety of her temporary home.

Lobo pulled himself out of the water, coughing loudly. After finding where Zig Zag´s scent trail ended, he had kept running downstream, to find a place he could cross the fast-flowing river. After a while Lobo turned around a bend in the river, to finally see it calm down and widen in front of him. Without any hesitation he plunged into the water, starting to make his way across. Half way across, he was quickly made aware of one problem, metal collars did not work well as a flotation device. Lobo had to work frantically to keep himself afloat. And in the end, he had been dragged down to the bottom, but thankfully it had been quite shallow on the northern bank of the river, and having more or less made it all the way across when he went under, Lobo had been able to keep going along the bottom. With a last desperate effort, he crawled out of the river, retching water from his lungs, only to collapse on the rocky shore, gasping for breath. No longer having the benefit of the blessed moon shining down on him, it took a while for him to catch his breath again.

I'll have to watch out for water in the future, I'm definitely not particularly buoyant. Lobo thought while he struggled up on all fours, and then gave himself a violent shake to get rid of the water in his pelt. Looking behind him, Lobo could see four pegasi hovering over the river. But they were not following him any further.

They really do take those lines on the maps seriously. Lobo concluded, wondering just how a red line on a piece of paper could have such a profound effect out here in the middle of nowhere. He snorted and started back up the river, hoping to find some kind of scent trail he could use to track Zig Zag.

You better be alive when I find you, Zig Zag, or I swear I'm going to kill you! Lobo thought angrily, although his anger was aimed at himself and not the pup. He once again picked up his pace, having no time to waste.

Raven and Zig Zag had only been in the air for about forty minutes before Raven had to land again. She was breathing heavily, and even though Raven was standing on solid ground, she felt the world was moving at an alarming rate.

“I—gasp—just need to—gasp—catch my breath…” Raven said feeling she had to apologize for taking a break. Zig Zag had jumped off her back and was eyeing her worriedly. He hadn't really thought about it until now, but Raven looked very thin for a gryphon.

“It's okay. We can walk for a while,” he said soothingly and leaned in to make sure she was doing all right. That's when Raven's eyes got caught on something dangling from Zig Zag´s neck, poking out from beneath his ragged mess of a cloak. It was a small, silver pendant, depicting a flower of some kind, the gleam in the silver made Raven follow the swinging back and forth, almost reverently. One of her claws had almost grasped it before she caught herself. Zig Zag watched the claw now hovering in front of his chest suspiciously. Raven’s namesake wasn’t just from her black feathers after all; she really liked shiny things. Smiling a very strained smile, Raven pointed towards the pendant instead.

“Why do you have a thing like that? It looks a little too cute and dainty for a boy…” Raven said in a hopeless attempt at liberating him from his adorable trinket, a most insulting object to a gryphon male. Zig Zag only put a hoof on the pendant, and pressed it against his chest, his mind drifting off to a happier time in his life. It felt like a different life altogether, even if it all had only been a few weeks ago.

“It belonged to Cherry Blossom… She was my mare friend in North Bay,” Zig Zag said, his eyes now looking straight down at his hooves.

“Mare friend… does that mean she belonged to you?” Raven asked a little curiously, at the same time as she felt somewhat annoyed, though she didn't know why.

“Belonged to me? What do you mean by that…” Zig Zag asked looking a bit disturbed by what Raven had said.

“Yeah… Did you claim her? Did she belong to you?” Raven tried to clarify by talking a bit slower. Maybe the pony was just timid, thinking she would be offended for not being his first mate… Raven's eyes shot wide open and she gasped, as she looked at the little blue pony.

MATE!!! Where did that come from?! Raven thought, shocked at herself. Zig Zag´s face had in the meanwhile scrounged up in a very angry expression.

“NO SHE DID NOT!!! Cherry Blossom didn't belong to anypony but herself! How can you even say something like that? You’re a girl yourself!” he said angrily, now that he had some inclination to just what it entailed for a mare to be owned or sold by someone else. Raven on the other hand, couldn't comprehend that Zig Zag, who obviously had feelings for this mare, wasn't making sure no other male could claim her whenever he felt like doing so. The two of them just had such a different upbringing; they were talking straight past each other. That was when Raven made the giant leap of questioning her own point of view.

“Wait… What would happen to a mare that hasn't got a male claiming her?” she wondered. Zig Zag just looked at Raven with a raised eyebrow.

“Nothing… She would just go about her business herself, like my mom,” Zig Zag informed Raven. Raven could feel her head spin, and then she continued with her bold questions with the one that would have earned her a severe beating among her own species. At least if a male heard it.

“What… what would… a mare do if she didn't like her male?” Raven asked carefully, taking a small step back, if it turned out it was all just a setup.

“She would throw his lazy flank out, that’s what! A stallion that can't treat his mare right isn't a stallion at all! That's what my mom always told me,” Zig Zag said adamantly. Raven's head was quite frankly being overloaded, just the thought of being able to tell a male no, it was staggering! She just couldn't comprehend the possibilities or the freedom it entailed.

“Wooow…” Raven uttered, staring blankly out into space. Then she fell unconscious in front of a now panicking Zig Zag. Both the physical and mental stress on Raven over the last day had been quite high, and she hadn't even had a decent meal in over a month. So it wasn't a surprise to her that she had finally reached her limit.

“Raven! Raven! Are you okay, Raven!” Zig Zag yelled while he jumped around her, not knowing what to do. Once again Zig Zag reflected on how thin the gryphon female seemed to be.

She needs food!!! Zig Zag thought frantically, and galloped off to find something... anything!!!

Jaggar came out of the cave they had claimed as home… at least for the moment. He and his two younger brothers, Lynx and Ocel had been their own wing all of their lives. It had been a good and carefree life, always taking what they wanted and then moving on. Yes, it had been good, at least until a month ago when their luck finally ran out, because they made a grave mistake in Rapture. Setting there ravenous sights on a very high-end looking mansion, situated high up on a lonely mountainside near the border to Feliniss.

They had broken in, and started looting the place, though it had turned out not to be on guarded. Had it not been for Raven spotting the patrolling wing approaching, they would all have been caught inside the mansion. Instead they had enough of a head-start to make a narrow getaway. But not before noticing that the gryphons following them all belonged to Rapture´s military. When they could finally catch their breath, and started examining what they had stolen, the horrible mistake they had done finally dawned on them. Most of the exquisitely made merchandise had a royal seal on it; they had robbed the King of Rapture himself. The secluded mansion being one of the Kings favorite holiday getaways, just for him and his friends to let loose on a weekend when they felt like it, which actually wasn't that often. Usually only his closest family and friends were allowed to come there with him, and a select few of his harem would always accompany him there as well. And as you might imagine, the hunt for the three bandits had been relentless ever since. For over a month the bandits had been forced to move from hideouts to hideout in order to keep alive. They also had to abandon all their ill-gotten loot, armaments and weapons, to increase the speed at which they traveled. All they have left, was a few measly coins, and an assortment of daggers, which was secured around their lower bodies within easy reach of their claws. And then finally, after many close calls, they made it into Feliniss.

Although they were in a bad way now, both he and his two brothers were starving, and that useless girl of theirs had only come up with one excuse after another as to why she was unable to bring in food for the three hungry Warriors. Well they had made things clear for her a couple of days ago. If she didn't bring back anything that they could eat, she was not to come back at all. Jaggar looked out over the valley below them; his sharp eyes couldn't pick out anything that might be the girl returning. He gave a harrumph of annoyance, both of his brothers turning towards him.

“I guess we need to find another one,” Jaggar said angrily. Both his brothers gave annoyed squawks in reply.

“I can't believe it! First we are chased by Rapture´s military for a month! And now we have to find a new girl as well! This is ridiculous!” Lynx complained loudly.

“Well… she did last longer than any of the others…” Ocel said thoughtfully.

“That doesn't excuse her for going and croaking when we needed her most! You have always been too soft on this one! I was half expecting you to give her a piece of your food any day now…” Lynx said with a wicked smile. Ocel just looked calmly back at him, which annoyed Lynx to no end. Satisfied that his calm attitude had been more effective than anything he could possibly have said, Ocel turned towards Jaggar.

“So what's the plan?” Ocel asked his big brother. Jaggar huffed and continued to look down into the valley. Finally he had come to a decision.

“We should head out now… we'll move down into the low lands, hopefully finding something to eat along the way. If not, we'll just have to steal something in the first village we find,” he told them, and spread his wings in a clear sign to get ready. His two brothers immediately moved up to his left and right, shooting up into the sky as one.

It had been a slow morning. His whiskers twitched from side to side while he watched the promising meadow spreading out in front of him. Even with the frost during the night, the sturdy grass here looked surprisingly enticing. His ears twitched as they tried to pick up any sound, making sure nothing was around. Carefully he hopped out onto the meadow; once again making sure nothing was nearby before starting to eat happily. Suddenly a noise from the other side of the meadow made the rabbit freeze. He glanced over towards its source, only to see a small pony standing there, eyeing him warily.

The rabbit looked curiously at the fellow herbivore, and even though he noticed it was a little bit tense, it didn't cause the rabbit too much of a worry. So it started to grace again. When he looked up the next time, the pony was much closer to him. He stopped mid chew, took a small jump away from the pony, while continuing to look at him cautiously. The little blue pony had frozen as well, looking at the rabbit with his head tilted to one side; The pony suddenly looked like it had an idea.

He looked back, in the direction he came from, then bent down and started grazing a bit more at ease. Seeing this, the rabbit relaxed, and looked around again to make sure they were still alone. Most likely the little pony had escaped from something, so he would have to be on his guard from whatever was chasing the pony. But now with the two of them there, there would be a total of four eyes looking out for any approaching carnivore, or even worse, gryphons—a predator he was all to familiar with. A shadow fell over the rabbit, and when he looked back towards the pony, he was only met by darkness descending on him.

Zig Zag cringed a little bit as he stomped his hoof down on the rabbits head. One of the back legs was jerking spastically, so he pressed down harder and gave his hoof a firm twist, ending the rabbit’s life with a crunching sound. Zig Zag lifted his hoof again to see the rabbit’s lifeless eyes looking up at him.

“Sorry, Mr. Rabbit… but Raven needs to eat…” he said apologetically, then bent down and picked up the lifeless body. He tossed it over his back, and started heading back towards Raven.

Raven came to, only to realize she was lying alone on the ground. The realization that she had been left behind by Zig Zag frustrated her to no end, and it felt like a weight was settling over her chest.

Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Thinking a male would actually care enough to help you! Raven thought angrily, while a single tear ran down her beak. She managed to stumble back on all fours again, gritting her teeth at the cold reality that Zig Zag had just left her once she was no longer useful.

Why? I thought you were different… but guys are all the same! Doesn't matter where they come from! Or which species they are, they’re all… Just then she heard the unmistakable sound of hooves hitting stone. Raven turned around, only to see Zig Zag trotting happily towards her.

“Hi Raven! Are you feeling better now?” Zig Zag asked while he came closer. Raven was, however, too stunned to reply. He was back, he hadn't left her… And then she felt her jaw drop when she saw what was lying across his back.

It's that damn rabbit!!! I never even got close to catching the thing! First sign of trouble, and it was back down in its hole so fast that I could barely see it… And he caught it, when I couldn't? Raven thought, perplexed, now looking at Zig Zag with a lot more respect than before. So far she had only thought he was the nicest male she'd ever come across, but now it seemed he could pull his weight as well. It was too bad she hadn't been able to catch it before, seeing as the rabbit belonged entirely to him. Raven was eyeing the rabbit hungrily, and then her stomach growled fiercely. Zig Zag heard it and lightened up.

“Here! I got something for you while you were sleeping!” Zig Zag said happily, he laying the rabbit down in front of Raven. She was looking down at it wide-eyed, once again extremely happy she couldn't blush through her feathers. Did he have any idea what this gesture meant between gryphons? If a male gryphon gave food to a female gryphon, especially raw meat. It meant he wanted her to produce a strong clutch of eggs for him, with many strong warrior sons for him to claim when they were old enough. Zig Zag had felt extremely proud when he presented the rabbit to Raven, but when she just stood there looking at it without moving a muscle, he felt he might have done something wrong.

“You… You don't like it? I could get you something else if you want…” Zig Zag said with sorrow in his voice, thinking he had somehow displeased Raven. She looked up at Zig Zag and saw his disappointed look as he started to turn away.

“No!!! I love it!!!” Raven shouted out desperately when she realized she had left him hanging. Zig Zag stopped and turned back to her.

“Really? You mean it?” he asked carefully, not daring to look her in the eyes.

“Oh yes! It's just that… you know what… never mind. Thank you Zig Zag,” Raven said tenderly, lifting the rabbit up with one of her claws. She didn't have anything to skin it with, and being ravenously hungry, Raven didn't feel like wasting any of it anyhow. So she bit of the head in one mighty gulp, and swallowed it down happily. Zig Zag smiled at her when she began to eat.

“I'm actually a little hungry myself, and I saw a patch of good grazing, a bit further down the valley. You can come down and get me when you feel a bit better. Or just wait here and I'll come back,” Zig Zag said to Raven. She looked up from her meal, and smiled at him.

“I'll wait for you here then,” Raven told him. Zig Zag nodded and set off so that he could fill up his own belly as well. Raven watched him leave and felt that funny, tingling feeling once again rush through her body, and she was also feeling strangely lightheaded while her heart pounded. Putting the symptoms down to being hungry; she descended on the rabbit with ravenous intent.

Chief Decurion Avarice was staring down at his list quite happily. There was now a red line running across every name on it, and outside all the soldiers were running around panicking, looking for spirit wolves in the shadows and mist when the accidents started too increase at an alarming rate, every time with a deadly outcome. The rumors that spirit wolves had been seen running through the camp at night had flared up immediately. Most of the soldiers were now convinced that Lobo's family was to blame for all the accidents that were happening and that they were seeking revenge for stealing Lobo away from them.

Avarice had done nothing to quell such beliefs, since they played perfectly into what he had hoped to achieve. When the last name had been crossed off his list yesterday, he had immediately ordered that the camp was to be abandoned. The soldiers had been all too happy to comply. Avarice looked down at the map in front of him. According to Lightning Strike´s and Black Star's last report, they were nearing the border of Feliniss. Hopefully the two of them will have caught the wolf by now, but just to make certain, Avarice planned to lead the rest of the troops up towards Ice Flow River to cut him off. The Wolf would most likely not try to cross the frigid, glazier-fed river and would therefore be caught in a pincer move between Avarice and Lightning Strike´s forces. Satisfied with the laid-out tactics, he folded the maps into their storage chest.

He walked out of the command tent, and was satisfied to see, that it was the last tent needing to be taken down. He moved aside to let the soldiers proceed with his order. Not even five minutes later, the whole company was ready to leave.

“Move out! We’ll be going straight north from here! And stay safe, everypony! We don't know what we will run into out there!” Avarice proclaimed in his most supportive voice he could muster. As one, the whole company began moving forward. Avarice smiled to himself.

This is working out better than I could possibly have hoped for… By the way things are falling into place for me, Black Star will be ready to make me immortal even before I reach them at the border. Avarice thought happily, and moved up to the front of the marching column.

The three bandits were just gliding along, not wanting to waste any energy by flapping. They were all tired and in a bad mood. Lynx happened to glance down, only to see a very familiar shape, lying stretched out on the ground below.

“Well look at that! It's Raven! I wonder if she's alive?!” he shouted to both his brothers. It didn't take long before all of them had their eyes on her.

“Let's check it out! If she's strong enough to follow, she can come, otherwise just forget about her!” Jaggar shouted, and shot Ocel a meaningful glance while the started to descend on the worryingly still form of Raven. When they touched down, they made a startling discovery: rabbit bones that were picked clean. Fury lit up the eyes of the three bandits as they closed in on the sleeping female. Raven was jerked straight up by Jaggar and then smashed back into the ground, her wings pinned now that she was on her back. She tried to scream, but her airways were cut off by the bandit leader’s iron grip around her throat. She looked up, fear clearly written across her face, completely frozen where she lay while Jaggar brought his beak down inches from her head. Raven tried to turn her face away from Jaggar´s beak as he repeatedly snapped it shut just above her eyes.

“What do you think you're doing?! You've been stuffing your worthless face here, girl! While us tree are starving in the cave!” Jaggar roared down at her, his grip around her throat tightening. Raven's eyes were beginning to bulge, and she frantically grasped at the powerful claws that were slowly but surely killing her. The three bandits were so preoccupied with Raven that they didn't hear the fast-approaching Zig Zag behind them. He jumped up and used Jaggar´s hindquarters as a springboard to propel himself forward over the gryphon. Jaggar, sensing something tapping his rump, looked up only to be met by two back hooves solidly connecting with the side of his head. Despite Zig Zag being no bigger than the head he collided with, he still managed to stun Jaggar who wasn't expecting the blow at all. Jaggar lost his grip on Raven as he stumbled forward, but managed to catch himself before he fell. Zig Zag landed nimbly beside Raven, glaring up at Jaggar.

“Get off of her, you big bully!!!” he screamed at the giant gryphon. Jaggar looked down at the little, blue pony in disbelief. Zig Zag also looked around himself, realizing he really hadn't thought this through... again. The three enormous gryphon now had the two of them surrounded.

It was easy to see they were all brothers. They all had the same build, and the same golden-brown, scruffier-looking coat covering their lower half, although the bigger one was a few shades lighter brown. Their razor-sharp front talons and vicious looking beaks were all yellow, with their eyes all being a darker shade of gold. Their only distinguishing factor from each other was their plumage, which for the oldest one was white with red highlights at the end of the feathers, and red feathers around his eyes. The middle gryphon was also white but with yellow highlights at the end of the feathers; he also sported yellow feathers around his eyes. And the smallest—small being a relative term right now—had white plumage with orange highlights, and orange around his eyes. All three also had belts around their midsection, with several dagger hilts sticking out.

“A pony!? Where did he come from?!” Lynx wondered out loud. Zig Zag turned his head and looked at the middle gryphon warily.

“It doesn't matter. We can probably sell him back to those softies for quite a profit,” Ocel said enthusiastically. Zig Zag immediately turned towards the smallest gryphon, with a very worried look.

“No… Look at him; he's dressed like a beggar... Actually I have seen beggars with better cloaks then that. He’s worthless, they would probably throw him right back in our faces if we try selling him to someone,” Jaggar stated.

“Then what should we do with him?” Lynx asked. Just then all three of the gryphons’ stomachs growled. They looked at each other, then down at the pony. They all smiled as a silent agreement was made between them.

“I think I have an idea…” Jaggar said with a vicious grin across his face. Zig Zag was staring up at the three gryphons, wide-eyed, having had no trouble understanding what that idea might be. Raven, who had gathered herself again, reached out and pulled Zig Zag towards her.

“No! Please don't! I will…” Raven's pleas were cut off.

“You keep your beak shut, girl! If you do what I tell you, I might even let you live through this!” Jaggar roared down at her. Raven held on to Zig Zag, who was frantically looking around himself, not knowing what to do.

“Now get out of my sight! And while you're gone, make sure to gather enough firewood for a nice little barbecue,” Jaggar said while eyeing Zig Zag hungrily. Zig Zag paled considerably, his suspicions confirmed. He pressed himself back against Raven, who was now embracing him fiercely. Raven raised her head towards Jaggar, with hate burning in her eyes.

“NO!!!” she squawked fiercely, and shot straight up, still holding Zig Zag tightly in her embrace. The three male gryphons just stared after Raven with jaws wide open. Had Raven just outright refused to do what a male told her to do?

“Get them!!!” Lynx shouted, and the three of them took off simultaneously.

“I want them both alive! I'm gonna make that girl slowly cook the pony herself! Then I'm going to rip her freaking wings off, and leave her here to rot!!!” Jaggar roared, while they chased after the fleeing juveniles.

Thanks to Meeester for the Pre-read/Edit