Gilda growled as she shoved her left foreleg on an opening of the crow-begotten clothing they called a dress uniform. She had spent almost half an hour trying to make her wings fit at the provided openings and now she realized the foreleg sleeves were coming up too short. The damn dark-blue vest was supposed to spruce a griffin up, making them look presentable, but all it did was make her angrier by the minute. Once she finally secured both her forelegs, she had to secure it using belts (colored in a darker shade) that were looped around in strategically placed straps, tightening around her shoulders and even annoying the base of her neck where her flight muscles extended.
The dress uniform didn’t fit. The Quartermaster proved to be useless when Gilda had wanted a replacement. He told her that the dress uniform fit as per Kingdom’s standards. She later learned that it was purposely made to annoy the wearer. It gave the griffin wearing it the battle-ready look – scowled eyes, ruffled feathers, and twitching wings.
She’d have probably felt more embarrassed if she was in Equestria. Ponies were convinced, thanks to the pegasi, that twitching wings was a sign of arousal. While not completely false, they failed to remember that a pair of twitching griffin wings also meant that said griffin was ready to charge.
At least it didn’t fully impede her forelegs. Stretching them out, she donned her armor, polished and gleaming proudly, over the uniform with practiced motion. Checking the belts of her clothing one last time, Gilda stretched her wings, making sure she could actually still fly with the stupid vest, before she walked towards the exit, leaving her bare quarters (consisting of only hay bedding, small closet, and stone desk) behind.
Gilda’s eyes narrowed as the bright sun blinded her momentarily. Once they adjusted, she quickly scanned around. She was currently in the fourth level of Arnau, and the griffins here moved around at a hurried pace, the air smelling of freshly baked bread. She sighed, feeling so sick of the aroma that had permeated the whole city since yesterday. She knew she should have been glad, maybe proud at least, that the Arnau was fully prepared to greet the humans. Instead, she still felt apprehension regarding their presence.
Walking towards the edge of the level’s battlement, she met a few guards patrolling the merlons surrounding the area. She began to shout the clearance code but they immediately complied before she completed it, most likely recognizing her and giving her leeway. A bit unprofessional, but then again, Gilda was grateful that they were trying not to be obstructive. Dashing towards a free crenel, she jumped off and spread her wings, letting the wind catch her as she flew.
Gilda smiled as the wind hit her face. The smell of bread was fully ignored as she flapped her feathery appendages harder, letting her climb higher. She was almost stopped by two patrolling Guards in the sixth level before she shouted the code and they let her be. She stayed at that height, looking at the splendor of their Capital City before she slowly glided towards the Western Entrance.
As she descended, she could see the busy bustle on the third level, which was primarily designed as a receiving area. It had minimal residences and a lot of smoothed stone ground. The large central area of the level was being cleared and tables, barely mid-griffin high, were set down in rows. Some griffins were preparing torches around for light. Apparently, these humans couldn’t see that well in the dark.
She was almost at the first level when she was greeted by the waiting Fortrakt. He was waiting in the middle of a landing point, an upraised stone stage filled with soft soil, smiling. He was early, not surprising as he lived on the second level. He was also dressed in a blue vest, and while it looked snug, his smaller frame made it a far better fit than hers.
“Nice dress uniform!” he shouted with a wide smile. “You finally look like a proper Gryphon Guard!”
Gilda landed on an angle, and didn’t slow down. Her momentum carried her on with a slide. Dirt flew as she twirled around, hoping to cuff him with her wing as she passed, but he ducked out of the way. She got the last laugh though as Fortrakt got caught from all the scattered dust that billowed to his direction. She watched him cough for a moment before she snapped and spread her wings open, and folded them on her sides.
“Really, cub? You’d think with all my armor, I look more of a proper Gryphon than you do,” she replied, smirking. Fortrakt rolled his eyes and coughed one last time before he approached her. The two jumped off the platform and began to walk side-by-side to the gate.
“All it takes is time, something that you are lacking,” he replied. He ducked and chuckled as Gilda tried to cuff him again. “One day, I’m going to get my shoulder plates and braces. And then you’ll realize the fundamental difference between us.”
“Oh, and what is that, cub?”
“I make the armor look good.”
Gilda snorted, which then turned into a slightly loud laugh that got the attention of a few griffins and ponies walking amongst them. “Cub, while you’re trying to woo the females with your spit-shined plates, I’d be behind a stone desk, ordering you to get my drinks.”
“Yup, like any old griffins. Sit behind the table, let the younger ones run the show,” Fortrakt countered with his tongue out. Gilda tried to think of a retort, but she had to admit, she walked into that one. She continued her trek in silence. Fortrakt smiled, reveling slightly in his victory.
Arnau’s first level housed a lot of the farmers. Unlike the upper levels, the residential buildings were widely spaced, built from more wood than stone. It really reflected the high number of Earth Ponies living there, as most of the houses were decorated with plants or had a small garden that was tended. There were some foals and fillies laughing about, sometimes playing with cubs wearing leather claw gloves.
They passed a statue of the Ardanius of the West, a faceless griffin that wore heavy armor. It stood on its hind legs, supported by the large diamond-shaped shield it held at one claw, while the other gripped a large war-hammer. It was used as a model for the Fortus Knights, earth-griffins with strong capable bodies able to carry and lift heavy loads. While it looked mightily impressive, Gilda still favored the Wind Knights.
Thinking of the Wind Knights, Gilda was surprised when she spotted a number of them landing on the rampart on top of the Western Gate. From her distance, she could make out the leathery hide of their armor, designed for maximum maneuverability, and the crossbows hanging on their flanks. Some were even bringing them forward, letting them rest on the raised stone platforms, ready to be aimed down at the western road.
“Did I miss something?” Fortrakt asked, confused. “I thought we were just greeting them?”
A new voice answered him. “Just letting the apes know that we’re taking them seriously.”
Gilda and Fortrakt glanced on the right, spotting a female griffin with a dark coat and very pale feathers. She was dressed like Captain Cipio of the South, leather-like hide with metallic greaves on her throat, shoulder and sides. Unlike the Southern Captain, though, her chain was made of a darker brown shade. Fortrakt immediately saluted, letting his enclosed claw bang on his chest and easily exposed his neck in deference. Gilda followed closely, though a bit more stiffly.
“Good morning Captain Narada,” Fortrakt greeted with a smile.
“Morning, Captain,” Gilda did the same, though with less enthusiasm than her partner.
Narada saluted back, her neck stiff and unmoving. She gave Fortrakt a smile, but gazed at Gilda neutrally.
“I’m glad you came, Behertz,” the Captain declared. “After our meeting three days ago, I had thought you wouldn’t show up.”
“As a Guard and as a soldier, I shall fulfill my duties to the Kingdom,” Gilda replied neutrally.
“That is very professional of you, Behertz.” Narada nodded. “The Kingdom appreciates your services. They won’t be forgotten.” And with that, she took her leave.
Fortrakt looked at the retreating Captain before he turned to Gilda, who said nothing. He looked thoughtful for a moment. “I thought you were joking when you said you were going to talk to the captain about taking a leave of absence.”
“I don’t want to talk about it,” Gilda muttered.
“So, Captain didn’t approve your leave, eh?” Fortrakt asked.
Gilda’s eyes narrowed as her mind went to the conversation.
“What do you mean ‘no’, Captain?” Gilda asked.
“Is there something wrong with your brain, Behertz? ‘No’ is a very simple word.”
“With all due respect –”
“And by that you mean ‘Kiss my rear’, Behertz?” Narada asked, her right eye growing slightly bigger than her left. “It’s too much of a short notice. Even then, with the visit coming up, we had to recall all soldiers that were on leave for that day. It’s Her Majesty’s wishes that they be present on this historic day. You can take your well-deserved leave some other time.”
“I bet you left her office with all your feathers all ruffled like a hatchling,” Fortrakt continued. “You were probably thinking of telling her off.”
Gilda sighed. “I do not want to talk about it,” she repeated.
“Well, I knew what was coming,” Fortrakt continued. “I told you, didn’t I? Three days before a Visit, and you –”
Gilda rolled her eyes and began to block out his incessant talking. Walking stiffly and official-looking towards the gate, she spotted more Guards clamoring around the area, talking amongst themselves. Some were conversing with Fortus Knights, who had their shields and hammers secured at their sides. There were Talons sitting along the wall as well, their spears set lazily on a nearby. She even spotted a Magus Knight meditating, hunched on all fours and staff floating lazily in front of him.
Ancestors, she thought. All the armed forces division was present; Talons, all three Knights, and the Guards. Captain Narada wasn’t kidding. She really was greeting the humans seriously.
Taking position near the entrance of the gate, Gilda greeted a few of her other Guards before turning to Fortrakt. “Isn’t this overdoing it?” she asked. The younger griffin looked at her before looking at their surroundings. He shrugged.
“Well, if they are the apex predators of their world as these Equestrians claim, then they should understand a show of force is a sign of respect,” Fortrakt replied. “Besides, we don’t want to give an impression that we’re pushovers, right?”
A few guards’ feathers fluffed, their eyes straining to Gilda’s and Fortrakt’s direction. One of them said, “Hey, you talking about the apes?”
“Yup!” Fortrakt replied with a smile.
“I heard they were the only sapient creatures of their world,” one of the male Guards interjected. “They probably killed a whole lot of neighboring creatures to be on top.”
“I heard they didn’t kill off anyone and didn’t have any neighboring races,” a female Guard replied.
“Really? That’s stupid! We live with a bunch of ponies and zebras. Are you telling me that they live on their world alone?”
“That’s what the ponies are saying.”
“Then you’re an idiot for believing them!”
The female guard’s feathers ruffled. She quickly jabbed her fist into the male guard’s neck, an insult that got a few ‘Ooohs’ from the crowd. “I think you’ve been cleaning the latrines for far too long,” she muttered with a hard tone.
“And here we go,” Gilda sighed as the discussion suddenly became louder, with more griffins, Guards, Talons, and some Knights, joining in the conversation.
“Yup, there we go.” Fortrakt nodded, his eyes rolling. He watched as the large group began to shout out their points. Some were already butting heads. “See, this is what we need. Show the humans that we’re willing to fight, even against ourselves,” he shouted the last part loudly. He was largely ignored.
The bickering reached to a point that a centurion authorized the setting of a fighting ring. Soldiers began to form a loose circle. In the center, there were griffins pitted against opponents of their choosing, engaging in full-contact sparring. It was pretty much a good way to settle out grudges between soldiers, letting off steam so they could later focus on their jobs and the real enemies. Gilda herself participated in a few of these, winning a few before losing out when a much stronger or better skilled opponent bested her. Today, though, she was happy just to watch.
Bets were made. Even the centurions joined in. For the moment, no one cared about their duties. Most of their attention was on the dominating Fortus Knight named Brutus, who was mowing through his opponents before he was outmaneuvered by a female Wind Knight (Gilda went a bit wild on that) who won two more rounds before falling against a well-armored Talon. For an hour, there were cheers, shouts, jeers and laughter. It didn’t last. Just before the Talon could face his third opponent, a shout rang out: “The convoy is coming!”
The fighters stopped. The ring went silent. A centurion stood up, his eyes towards the rampart above the gate, and shouted “Confirm!”
There was pause before a Wind Knight exposed his head from above, looking down at the gathering. He nodded. “Three more confirmations. The human convoy is visible!”
The centurions were the first to stand. The lead centurion, a female griffin with multicolored feathers (Gilda suspected they were dyed), took note of the others and faced the soldiers. She bellowed, “Gryphons! Stand proud!” Every griffin snapped to attention. They were up on all-fours, necks straight, ready to receive their next orders. Satisfied, the lead centurion continued, “Form up with your squads! Centurions and squad leaders will advise you on your formation. Remember: give the apes a good impression! Are we clear?”
“Yes, sir!” everyone shouted their reply, and then dispersed.
“Someone get the Captain,” the lead centurion shouted, her voice clear even amongst the bustle. Gilda couldn’t hear the rest as she and Fortrakt fought through the crowd. Auxiliary Guards were positioned right at the back. They weren’t front-line soldiers or specialized like the Knights, but they were the last line of defense in case the others were overrun. The Knights began to converge in their own groups. Fortus Knights were gathering in the gate, securing their helmets and shields. Naturally, the Talons joined soon after, with the Gryphon Military Doctrine having both units paired together. Some Wind Knights positioned behind the Talons, though most favored the high ground. She even spotted the Magus Knight take to the sky and settle right with the Wind Knights on top of the Western Gate.
Gilda’s throat gave out a harsh trill when she felt someone brush her wings. She looked around, but with the crowd moving, it was most likely an accidental brush-up. Calming herself down, she began to push through the thick crowd. She lost Fortrakt for a moment before she saw him ahead of her, his claw waving. With a last push, she trudged through the claustrophobic crowd and joined her fellow Guards.
“Took your time, Behertz,” Giraldi, a male griffin with two shoulder and chest plate armor, greeted her. He was the team leader for the Guards, an easy-going griffin a few seasons older than her.
“Why, Giraldi? Am I missing an invasion yet?” Gilda replied with a slight grin. Both bared their throats, Gilda exposing hers a degree more, while they both saluted with a solid bang of their shoulder plates.
“If these apes are hostile and pass our defenses, I’m going to see you eat those words.”
“Won’t happen Giraldi,” Gilda chuckled. “By that time happens, I’ll act as any Guard would; I’ll push you right ahead to face them, and retreat like any proper griffin under your command would.”
Giraldi guffawed. Shaking his head, he shouted a command. The Guards began to form up around Giraldi, and he broke the Guard into different squads. Some joined the Wind Knights above, while others joined the Talons and Fortus Knights. Gilda and Fortrakt were stuck behind the gate, probably a good seven rows from the front line.
From her position, her eagle-eyes swept through the gate. She noticed small dotted figures moving through the skies. She could reasonably guess it was an air coach, maybe a six-seat, pulled and carried by five sky-griffins. That wasn’t the only thing she noticed. A rising column of dust was also present, probably caused by ground coaches pulled either by griffins or earth ponies, and judging by the amount of smoke, they were coming in big numbers.
Five minutes later, Captain Narada arrived, marching down rows of readied soldiers. She stood calmly in the front line, watching the approaching shadows. The Talons and Fortus Knights stood proudly, unwavering, as five more minutes passed and the air coach came finally came to view. It was a boxy wooden structure with lines extending outwards to connect to the harness of the sky-griffins carrying it. As it began to descend, Gilda was surprised that the carriers in front were three Wind Knights (whoever was inside was probably influential). The lead shouted an ‘all-clear’ command, most likely for their fellow Wind Knights spread out at the rampart—Gilda could imagine the soldiers raising their crossbows and getting ready to fire—before they landed smoothly about ten claw-paces from the Captain.
They landed a bit awkwardly, with the Wind Knights carrying the coach showing signs of fatigue. Still, when they saw the Captain, they immediately saluted. The lead Wind Knight greeted the Captain, though the exact words escaped Gilda. She could guess they were formalities, trying to get everything clear and out of the way. Narada nodded, and the lead Wind Knight approached the side of the air coach and rapped his claw on the door. He waited for at least a second before he opened it. The first one to step out was an older griffin, clothed in Equestrian-made clothing that softened his hardened features, though he carried himself with the same proud stance befitting of a Gryphon. Even from far away, Gilda recognized him as the Gryphon Ambassador. Following him was…
How could she describe them? The human that came out afterwards looked too different to even be considered an ape. It was a tall creature that wore clothing, its design far simpler than what she’d see an Equestrian pony wear. Simple white covers below the neck, short-sleeved and exposing two pale lanky limbs (arms, like a dragon or Diamond Dog, she assumed) covered with very fine hair. It also ended with something that resembled a Minotaur hands, complete with spindly digits. Its legs were hidden under blue coverings and there was some sort of covering on its…—paws, hooves?—in the end. Its face had some hair on its chin, two small eyes, a short snout, short tuft of brown hair on top of its head, and two petite ears and lips.
She watched its features move as it talked to the Ambassador, noting that its face expressed emotions as richly as any Equestrian pony did. Five more humans came out of the coach and they all had different skin tones and hair color. There were even two humans (one with long yellow hair and one with short brown hair) that had bulky expansions on their chest. Gilda wondered how they fought with those in the way.
The Ambassador guided the humans towards the Captain. They talked, and one of the humans offered its arms, hands open towards Narada. The Captain took a moment, before the Ambassador gave a nod, and she shook the human’s hand.
The ground vibrated and the unmistakable clip-clop sound of horseshoes announced the arrival of the rest of the convoy. Earth ponies dragged large ground coaches, long wooden boxy wheeled structures, not unlike the pony wagons, with seating capacities of twenty griffins. When they came to a stop, the doors popped open, and the humans pushed themselves out and quickly went to a loose line formation. Gilda did a quick count. So far, one coach had almost thirty humans (quite a tight fit, she thought), and with seven or eight coaches visible, taking to account of humans bringing their own supplies, she guessed they numbered at least –
“What’s your count?” Fortrakt whispered beside her, breaking her train of thought.
Gilda paused, trying to remember the number that was about to pop in her head. “I’m thinking two hundred strong. You?”
“Headcount went at around one hundred eighty. Odd, considering I see eight coaches. Shouldn’t that be around two hundred forty? I could be wrong.”
Gilda didn’t doubt Fortrakt’s numbers, as he was a better counter than she was. Still, she shook her head over his inexperience. “Your headcount is probably right. The extra coaches are most likely the human supplies.”
“Ah, got it. Still, Ancestors, these creatures are tall. Somewhat colorful, I guess. Pale pink to ebony skin, and look at the hair on top of their heads,” Fortrakt muttered. “I noticed most of them are wearing identical clothing. Brown with different colored patterns… uniforms, maybe?”
Gilda gave a slight nod. “Good guess. They look fit enough to be soldiers.”
Fortrakt hummed thoughtfully. “They came in by force. I’m counting at least thirty non-uniformed humans. That’s about five soldiers assigned per human. Wow. Ponies send only what, fifteen guards for five diplomats?”
Gilda had to admit, the humans were putting up quite a good impression. Still, something else caught her attention. “Those black tubes that are strapped closely on their sides. Weapons?”
Fortrakt nodded. “Makes sense,” he replied. “I have no idea how they are to be used though. No blade, no bolt, no arrow. They look like… blunt weapons.”
“So these human evolved their fighting through close combat?” Gilda wondered out loud.
Fortrakt snickered. “Ancestors, they’ll be open to our crossbows.”
Gilda was about to warn Fortrakt that underestimating the enemy would get any soldier killed when Giraldi harshly whispered, “Quiet on the line!”
Fortrakt shut his beak, giving Gilda time to contemplate once more on the human weapons before she noticed sixteen of the non-uniformed humans that rode the ground coaches were grouping together. She also noticed one particular human, who didn’t immediately join the others. He was instead talking to the uniformed humans, getting some reaction. Gilda noted that he wore a grey top and blue leg covers. It also had brown-colored skin and cropped ebony black hair. Then, it turned its eyes to Arnau and its lips broke out in a… smile?
Yup, it was a smile, showing two rows of off-white teeth. For being predators, Gilda thought their canines were a bit too small. And the way the ponies talked about them, she’d have thought they’d be more impressive. Then again, sharp teeth, no matter how small, tended to make ponies nervous.
Pride welled in her. The human seemed quite impressed and happy seeing Arnau. She looked towards the other non-uniformed humans, seeing if their expressions matched his; they did. Some were even pointing its white walls, heads nodding.
It took a moment, but the non-uniformed humans (from both air and ground coaches) finally grouped together. Gilda’s eyes were once more on the brown human who was running towards its compatriot, one with pale skin and short curly red hair. The two approached and each of their hands slapped together, producing quite a strange sound of sharp, escaping air before they talked in an animated fashion before joining the rest of the group. Even as the Ambassador motioned them to follow, leading them to the city gates, they wouldn’t stop talking.
Now that the humans were approaching, Gilda made sure her posture was straight. She kept her face as still as possible as group passed her. First thought that formed in her mind was that they didn’t smell as bad as she thought. They had that tell-tale musk of having traveled long, but it was in no way offensive to her. A darker part of her mind even wondered how they actually tasted.
“Oh man. It’s definitely like Minas Tirith!” the brown-skinned human declared to its red-haired companion as they stopped in front of Gilda. Its voice was… masculine. Male?
“Marco, can you shut it? No one wants to hear your lame-o opinion,” another human, the short-haired one with those protrusions on its chest area, declared in a feminine voice. Female? If so, it made sense the protrusions would be her mammary glands. It was odd seeing them placed higher than normal. Gilda also noticed that the human’s tone of voice indicated some sort of annoyance, maybe even anger. She was… frowning. “Stop being a dumb ass already. Ooh, you’re in the Rings Lords! Next thing you know, you’ll be asking those griffins for a sword so you can play some stupid character.”
The male — Marco, was it? — just smirked. “I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn. I wield Anduril, Flame of the West. Do you want to see it, my dear Gimli?” and he ended it with a thrust of his… hips? Gilda’s right eye grew a bit bigger. Was he…?
“Ugh, you’re a pervert, Marco!” the annoyed human (Gimli?) declared. “An absolute perv!”
Fotrakt’s throat was making an odd sound. Gilda was sure he was laughing, and nudged him with her foreleg. “I like this human!” the younger griffin whispered.
“You would,” Gilda muttered with a roll of her eyes. She watched as the other female suddenly guffawed, earning an irritated glare from the angered Gimli before she stormed away from this ‘Marco’ (or was it Aragorn, son of Arathorn? She decided to stick with the shorter version. The way these humans were named confused her). Her facial features looked quite… mashed, for the lack of better term.
The human with the red hair approached Marco. With a shake of his head, he said, “Marco, man, one of these days Dana’s going to bust your balls.”
“If she can find them,” the female human with long yellow hair declared. That earned a reaction from the two males.
‘Winced’, Gilda thought, if the way the humans displayed emotions was the same as the ponies.
“Tara!” the red-haired human declared. Gilda was reasonably sure Tara was the yellow-haired female’s name.
“Oh, come off it Chris, I didn’t mean it that way!” Tara exclaimed. “I was just saying she couldn’t find her own ass with a map and a flashlight, much less someone’s scrotes. Besides, ‘Ring Lords’? Christ Almighty. The books have been out there for years, and the movies are on Blu-ray! There is no way she should have gotten the name wrong! Why the hell is she on this trip anyway? She’ll probably act worse than in Equestria.” Her voice turned high pitched, trying to mimic the Gimli human. “‘Oh, why is there no internet? Where’s the room service? Oh, disgusting, they are naked! I can see their schlongs!’”
“Come on, she ain’t that bad,” Chris replied.
“Chris, dude, I love ya, but I have to agree with Tara,” Marco replied.
“You only agree with me because I have a nice ass,” Tara declared with a smile. Gilda blinked. That was the second time Tara mentioned donkeys. Apparently Gimli couldn’t find hers, and Tara had a nice one. Was having a donkey part of their culture? Slavery? It made no sense if the ponies were claiming humans were the sole sapient species of their world.
“Well, it is a fine ass, no doubt,” Marco agreed, his body positioning slightly to... was he leering at the female human’s rear? Gilda’s eyes narrowed. He was. Her thoughts of donkeys evaporated when she saw him look exactly like a perverted griffin, one that was blatant in his display. She felt her hackles rise. Such things were reserved for mates, and in private places at that. One does not look at a griffin’s rump, no matter how well-covered it is, especially not in public.
“Wow... this guy is a pervert,” Fortrakt whispered, chuckling.
“He does that to me, I’ll rip him open,” Gilda muttered.
Marco continued, unaware of Gilda’s antagonistic thoughts, “Dana’s here thanks to her Senator daddy,” Marco said, looking a bit… disgusted? And that was interesting. Humans have senators too? So that Gimli (or Dana... she wasn’t sure. Human names were definitely weird) was the daughter of someone important?
Human hierarchy dynamics were still unclear to her. She didn’t want to assume that this Marco was of a lower standing, but if he was, his blatant disrespect towards Gimli, especially in public and under foreign scrutiny, annoyed her more than the idea of him being perverted. Granted, she had met a lot of senators’ offsprings, and a whole lot of them were nothing more than immature cubs, but if this Gimli really bothered Marco, why wouldn’t he challenge her to a Duel and get it over with?
He probably only talks big. He may just be a coward, Gilda thought harshly, her eyes narrowing towards the brown-skinned human.
“I just hope she doesn’t annoy the Gryphons too much,” Marco said and then looked directly at Gilda for a moment. He hid it well, but Gilda caught him shivering for just a second. She felt triumphant, and hardened her gaze. “They look ready to eviscerate us at a moment’s notice.”
Yup, he’s just a coward.
As they went on their way, they were followed by a few uniformed humans, probably their armed escorts. Gilda was glad for the distraction. She’d rather take a closer look at their weapons than think about that Marco. Then Fortrakt nudged her. She stared at him, annoyed for a moment. “What?” she asked.
“What in the crows is a blue ray?” Fortrakt replied. “Or a flashlight?”
Gilda shrugged. “Probably a human thing.”
“Ah.” Fortrakt paused. He opened his beak, and closed it again.
“What?” Gilda asked.
“Humans are weird. Fun, but weird.”
“I’m hungry,” Fortrakt muttered. “Why are we in this shift and not the later one? I bet Schulz is eating up all the meat right now. He’s probably laughing his flanks off, maybe even trying to eat everything and leave nothing for us.”
“I’m pretty sure that the Kingdom ordered quite a good amount,” Gilda replied, not letting her eyes off the tables set in front of them, observing all the present humans. “And his mouth is bigger than his stomach. We’ll have our share when our shift is over. Now, stop salivating like a starved cub and stand straight.”
Fortrakt ‘hrmphed’. “I’m not salivating.”
“Right. And besides, I thought you weren’t a fan of cooked meat?” Gilda continued.
“Well, yeah, I mean, I don’t really prefer cooked meat, but I’m so hungry, I’d eat anything now.”
It was a few hours since the humans had arrived. Gilda, Fortrakt, and other Guards in Giarldi’s unit were assigned to stand guard around the prepared receiving area. The air now smelled of wood smoke and roast. Apparently, the humans themselves preferred to cook the meat before eating. Once more, the Kingdom accommodated leaving Gilda starting to think that the whole deal was a bit one-sided.
Fortrakt hadn’t eaten lunch, saying he wanted to save his stomach for a savory meat dinner, and he was now feeling it. Ever since he was assigned to stand guard, he had spent most of his time with his eyes closed, beak slightly open as he took deep breaths, as if trying to absorb the smell the air.
Gilda, on the other hand, was absorbing the scene in front of her. From the way the seating arrangements were done, she knew which humans were higher in their hierarchy by how close they were to Queen Molyneux. Her Highness herself looked steady and confident in her elevated chair at the end of the central table. She was draped with Royal Blue cloth under gilded hide (polished to a shine), her feathers dyed and styled with dark blue and orange, and had golden feathers adorning the sides of her head. On her left sat the Ambassador, and along his side the humans, nearest being the one that shook the Captain’s hand. On the Queen’s right were the High Lords and Ladies, all dressed in white cloth secured with golden buttons on their shoulders.
Gilda took one last look towards Marco, who was sitting beside the red-haired Chris. Both were done eating and were talking animatedly with each other. A little while, the female, Tara, joined in a few moments later. Gilda narrowed her eyes. At least the brown ape was behaving.
The surrounding tables were occupied with griffin and human soldiers, the latter rotating every hour or so. Apparently, according to a passing Wind Knight, the human soldiers rode out with the ground coaches and traveled two-fifths of a league away from the city. Apparently, they built their own camp, which Gilda hoped to visit and see it with her own eyes. When asked about the diplomats and the non-uniformed humans, a Fortus Knight advised that the humans had reserved a place for them and their armed escorts to stay somewhere in the Fourth Level.
Gilda was now definitely sure those black tubes the human soldiers brought were weapons. They carried them even during dinner. So far, they only seemed comfortable enough talking amongst themselves, though they did give some of the griffin soldiers a look (especially the Wind Knights and their crossbows). They were... rowdy, would be the best term she could describe them. Not violent, though. They haven’t once moved overly aggressive or gave any hostile signals but they were loud and spoke in obnoxious tones. She couldn’t read their ages, and a whole lot of them looked looked almost alike (they had same short hair styles and bare faces) but she was willing to bet that they were quite young. Their brashness was definitely something she associated with the younger griffins.
“Hey!” Fortrakt declared.
Gilda blinked. She looked at her partner, who was staring at her, his head signalling her to move. She was about to ask why when she saw Schulz and the Guard who were to relieve them.
“Come on, I’m hungry!” Fortrakt continued.
“Alright, alright,” Gilda muttered. “Let’s go.”
A short trip later, they were in the temporarily built pantry, a designated eating area for the Guards, which was filled with tables of uncooked meat. At the sight of it, Fortrakt was in awe.
“Ancestors bless us,” he declared.
Without preamble, he immediately rushed towards a free seat, leaving Gilda behind. She just snorted and looked around for a moment, seeing a few Talons and Knights around, most likely not appreciative of cooked meats. It took her a moment, but she found a seat next to a male Wind Knight.
“Would you take a rest already?” Gilda declared to Fortrakt as both of them walked out of the pantry. She tried to sound scolding, but she couldn’t keep the smile out of her face as she watched Fortrakt continue singing.
Dinner had been festive. In Gilda’s opinion, more so than the one with the humans. A few minutes after she had sat down, someone broke out a lute and began to pluck strings in tune with a lot of common songs the Gauntlet taught: battle songs to keep morale and marching tunes that staved off boredom. Fortrakt himself had sung together with a young female Talon, who seemed to laugh at all his jokes. Things had gone well enough that Fortrakt finally asked the female Talon if she would be available for a Round, a day where they could ‘spar’. She had said yes.
“March off to the land of ice and snow, where only the bravest griffins go...” Fortrakt continued to sing a marching song. He paused as he looked at Gilda. “Come on, join in already!”
Gilda rolled her eyes. “No, Fortrakt, I won’t make a fool of myself.”
“Maybe you need a pad-warmer,” Fortrakt replied. “How about that Wind Knight you sat beside?”
“Cub, the sun will melt all the snow in the North before you start playing matchmaker for me,” Gilda chuckled. “Besides, that Wind Knight had a mate. He was wearing a colored primary that wasn’t his.”
“I bet you can take her out, and claim him as your own.”
Gilda looked at Fortrakt, unamused. “Right. Because we don’t know if she’s the höher. Or maybe they are aequalis and challenging her may just insult him. Or maybe we don’t live in such times anymore?”
“You have to live a little.” Fortrakt shook his head. “I’ve known you a few months already, and I still haven’t seen you spend time with anyone else. I haven’t seen you try and look for a tiercel. Or maybe you are you into eagless instead?” Gilda narrowed her eyes to him, and he raised his claws in defense. “Hey, its cool if you are.”
“Maybe you ought to worry about your own romantic pursuits before you worry about mine? Or did you forget that I had a good look at that eagless and I could give her all your most embarrassing stories?”
Fortrakt looked at her with narrowed eyes and huffed. “You play dirty.”
“Only when you get condescending, cub.” Gilda smirked.
Before Fortrakt could reply, they heard someone speaking Equestrian. Gilda and Fortrakt immediately crouched, claws out as they spotted three figures walking towards them. The low lighting made it difficult to discern their features from afar, even with their eagle-eyes, but as they approached, Gilda recognized one of them.
“Great,” Gilda muttered darkly. Marco, Chris and Tara were making their way to them, with the brown-skinned human looking a bit... ruffled.
“Marco, come on, just ignore her,” Chris declared in a consoling voice.
“I’m trying,” Marco muttered with an even tone. “I left her alone at her table, hanging out with you guys. And what does that Whiskey Tango brat do? She rubs it in my face where they placed her.”
“Whiskey Tango?” Tara asked, confused.
“I know this,” Chris replied, frowning. “It means ‘white trash’. He learned it from his Marine friends.”
“Swear to God, Marco, you hang out far too much with them. Besides, Dana’s a damn brat,” Tara declared. “The fact that she can easily goad you is something that gives her satisfaction.”
“I don’t mind her going at me, but she was insulting you guys too,” Marco replied.
“Well... — Marco! Hey, look!” The red-haired human started pointing one of his digits towards Gilda and Fortrakt. Tara looked took a moment before she smiled.
“Marco! Marco! Here’s our chance!” she declared.
“Chance for what?” Fortrakt whispered, confused.
As the brown-skinned human approached, Gilda replied, “We’re about to find out.”
“Hi there!” Marco greeted. The griffins stopped and took a look at the new arrival. The human just gave a smile. “I was wondering... me and my friends were hoping to take a few pictures with you guys? I hope that’s okay?”
“We’re not all males,” Gilda replied almost immediately in Equestrian. She internally winced. Her Equestrian sounded rough. She was understood, though. Her statement earned a laugh from Tara, though much to the griffin’s annoyance, Marco didn’t seem to be discouraged. His smile got even larger as he looked at Tara.
“Oh you like that, eh?” he asked his female companion.
“Christ, yes,” Tara replied between her guffaws.
“To be fair, she’s right, Marco,” Chris said with a smile. “They aren’t all ‘guys’.”
Marco responded by sticking his tongue out at both of them before he coughed. Turning back to the griffins, he nodded. “Okay. As I was saying, me and my friends were wondering if it was okay if we took pictures of ourselves with such majestic and fine specimens of griffins.”
Before Gilda could tell him where to shove it, Fortrakt was beaming. “Of course!” he replied in an accented Equestrian.
“Fortrakt!”
“Oh, come on Gilda,” Fortrakt replied back in Aeric. He nudged his head towards Marco encouragingly. “He called us majestic and fine specimens. Surely you can stand taking a picture with him?”
Marco took a step forward, knelt down. Gilda stared at him, apprehensive. What was he doing now?
“We come in peace” he declared. “I’m really sorry if calling you a guy offended you.” He made a fist. “Friends?” He bumped it gently on Gilda’s neck.
There was a sound of air being sucked in as Fortrakt’s smile almost disappeared. Gilda’s eyes shrank dangerously. Marco’s eyes widened and he wisely backed away as much as he could. He looked at Chris and Tara.
“Holy crap, she looks pissed,” Tara declared.
“What the hell, I thought you said bumping them with your fist was a friendly greeting?” Marco asked.
“I swear, that’s what the Ambassador said,” Chris replied, taking a step back too.
Fortrakt blinked. He looked at Marco and to Chris. “Hold on a minute. What do you mean by... bumping with the fist?” he asked in Equestrian.
Chris looked at him. “Um, I kinda asked the Ambassador what’s the best way to greet griffins, and he mentioned that the younger ones seemed to bump each other with their fists as a greeting.”
“You mean... like this?” and Fortrakt slowly approached the still apprehensive Marco, who comically still had his enclosed fist held out, and the griffin bumped his own fist to the human’s.
Chris and Marco gaped, their expression utterly dumbfounded. They looked at each other for a moment, with the former smiling sheepishly.
“The Ambassador is really old,” Fortrakt explained, which earned a hard nudge from Gilda. The griffin looked at her. “What? He is! He probably didn’t know that it was called a fist-bump.”
“Okay, then... what the hell did I do then?” Marco asked.
Fortrakt chuckled. “You basically insulted her. It’s a... griffin thing.”
“Oh.” Marco looked towards Gilda, who slowly relaxed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know, I swear.”
Gilda sighed and nodded. “Fine,” she muttered in Equestrian. “Let’s get this thing over with.”
“Nice!” Fortrakt exclaimed as he walked beside Marco. The human, sandwiched between the two griffins, smiled towards Chris.
“Alright, game on!” Marco declared.
Chris took out a black box. Gilda hesitated for a moment. Whatever the red-haired human was holding, it was not the camera she had come to recognize. And with all the black metallic weapons the humans held, a suspicious thought entered her mind.
“What’s that?” she asked.
Chris, who was removing a cap that was covering a tube that extended outwards, paused. He blinked. “Its a camera.”
Fortrakt’s eyes widened. “I thought...” he blinked. His beak opened and closed slightly. “I... wow. I thought they’d be bigger. Gilda talked about how they even had a stand and big light bulbs and all.”
Tara chuckled. “Oh my God, yeah. Equestrian cameras. I swear, I thought I stepped back in time. We stopped using those kinds of cameras long ago,” she replied.
Marco chimed in, “Yup. We stopped even using film now.”
“Amazing!” Fortrakt muttered in awe. Gilda herself was impressed, but didn’t want to show it. Maybe they were technologically superior? But if so, why were their soldier’s weapons mostly melee? Before she could even think about it too deeply, Chris was already pointing the lens at them.
“Smile!” the red-haired human declared.
Gilda was about to smile when she felt contact at the base of her shoulders, where her flight muscles were present. It was a very intimate spot, something she knew the pegasi had as well, and on contact, she felt jolted, as if a lightning bolt lit up her spine and wings. She had never been touched there, in all her life. Her eyes narrowed, fire bursting from her cheeks and stomach as she stared at Marco, who was grinning like a moron, his hand and arm touching her.
There was a flash of bright light and, for a moment, she was blinded. Her thoughts took a darker turn. Marco, the human who she had known to be perverted and a coward... was he taking advantage of her? All logical thought processes were thrown out of in the air as she crowed out an attack and immediately shifted her whole body to her side. Without warning or preamble, she jumped at him in as another flash of light burst out again. She ignored it as she pinned the offending human down, her beak open as she trilled out a battle-cry as she stared into his wide eyes. She could feel him shiver as she held him down, his mouth opening in shock. She could almost smell his fear.
Before she could do anything, something hard slammed her from the side. She was forcefully thrown off the human and was pinned down. She immediately began to defend herself, her claws out and her wings trying to find an angle she could escape from.
“Gilda! Stop it!” Fortrakt’s voice came in loudly and clearly. It took her a moment, but she stopped. Her heart slowed back down and the flames began to recede from her cheeks and stomach. Only when she was still for a minute did Fortrakt let her go.
Once unbounded, Gilda immediately flipped upward and scanned the area. The humans were gone, though she could see shadowed figures scrambling away in the distance. She could still smell him. Part of her wanted to give chase, a hunt for the thrill, but she shoved those emotions away. Instead, she began to scratch the stone ground with her claws, trying to do away with the stiff feelings in her wings.
“Crows take it.” Fortrakt sighed. “Gilda, it was an accident. He touched me there too. You didn’t need to go the crows about it.”
“I know,” Gilda replied with a edged tone. Ancestors, she wasn’t calming down. She still wanted to chase Marco. Maybe it was the too-tight dress uniform that made her aggressive, or maybe it was the adrenaline but she wanted to confront him one more time, have a more decisive conclusion without Fortrakt getting in the way. “I know.”
“Your wings tell me differently,” Fortrakt muttered. Gilda just stared at him. He sighed. "Ancestors, I can’t believe he got you so easily. You weren’t like this when I got wing-grabby.”
“That’s because I drove you through a table,” Gilda replied stiffly. Her body shook, trying to release the tension that was built up inside her. “And also because I didn’t have this stupid dress uniform on.” She shook again, trying to calm down her stiff wings. Nothing. She sighed. “Crows take it.”
“Come on, Gilda,” Fortrakt said. “Let’s just report to Giraldi, go home, relax, and sleep, alright?” Gilda nodded, though her eyes traveled once more towards the direction where she thought the humans ran. Fortrakt snapped his claws together, producing a sharp sound that got her attention. “That human won’t bother you. You scared the droppings out of him and I’m pretty sure he’s going to do his best to avoid you. Just... let it go, alright?”
Gilda sighed and nodded. She scoffed, “You snare an eagless for a Round and you go acting all mature.”
“Well, someone has to be the adult here,” Fortrakt replied with a smirk.
“To think, the only way you grew a sac is to get a yes from a Talon,” Gilda declared as she walked towards their destination. Fortrakt uttered a sound, a mix of disbelief and sputtering. She finished it off with a flat, “You’re all grown up now, cub. Really grown up.”
“Oh shut up, Miss ‘Assault-The-Alien-Guest’,” he replied as he followed her steps. “Just for that, I’ll pray to the Ancestors that you’re going to be stuck with that brown-skinned human, one way or another.”
Gilda smirked. “Hah. Like that will happen.”