The Reader

by GnollReader


Chapter 96: Departure

He watched the scenery pass beneath him slowly, perched on the stern of the airship like a monument waiting for time to pass... which essentially was what he always did. He was Tag, weapon to Scar the gnoll, and as he watched the lands pass so far beneath him his thoughts went to his own past.

Untold to anyone, he was more closely related to Sombra than most could imagine. He was a creation of all those things Sombra's hate had shut away so long ago... all the happy memories, emotions, his childishness, his hopes and wishes, love... his smiles. Everything that had once given Sombra's soul the slightest speck of light had been pushed away by an unforgiving hate... and he had hidden from that darkness for so long it had almost made him forget himself.

And all of these things, everything that Sombra had banished from himself... all these things had waited for a chance to escape... The chance had come in the form of a maul impacting on Sombra's horn.

That short moment had been enough, and all those little but so very important things had escaped into the weapon in an instant, taking a resting place within wood and stone... mixing with the strange and unconscious memories of the maul to form a new consciousness... Sir Tag.

It felt strange, now that he actually thought about it... how high must the chances have been for things to turn out like this? Then again, he was thankful for his new purpose. Tag shivered as he remembered the first time his master gave him a swing... the roar of the air as he pushed it away... the feel of the impact... and the satisfying sound of things breaking.

Tag wondered if he should be aiming for something more than just being a maul, maybe he could use magic as well? If he would have had a head he would have been shaking it. No matter what he had been before, he was Sir Tag now, and he would concentrate fully on satisfying his master. The feeling of being useful was more than enough to fill his heart with bliss, even more so if he could crush bones and flesh while doing so.

The maul reached a conclusion which he had made unknowingly already, he was a tool... and he loved it. He was his master's weapon, and that was all he wanted to be.

His master... He gave a silent laugh as he remembered their departure from Equestria a few days ago. It had been full of tears and promises, everyone present saying their farewells to their friends and loved ones... even Spike had come to say his farewells and had drawn him a lovely new mustache with water-proof paint... which had moved Tag to absolutely masculine tears of gratitude.

But nothing had compared to the amusement he had gotten when it was his master's turn to board the airship. The gnoll had simply outright refused to step on it, and not even Celestia's kind words or Purple Haze's promises had been able to persuade him to change his mind. In the end Purple Haze actually had to drag him onto the ship by one of his ears... which had gotten her quite a reputation amongst the crew of the ship and the griffons. They all kept their heads low whenever she was around from that point on.

On a special request, his master had been kind enough to place him here so he could enjoy the view. After all, it wasn't likely to be a view he'd get to see often in his existence. It was a breathtaking experience for him... all those little things waiting to be crushed... all the little houses, barns and rocks waiting to be reduced to rubble... it was lovely. For a moment Tag felt tempted to fall off the airship and onto a small house below.

His master though, was anything but happy with the situation. The moment the airship had taken off, the gnoll had been miserable. He stayed inside his cabin most of the time, hidden under his sheets as he fought the battle against his dizziness and only coming out when it was absolutely necessary. Tag couldn't help but chuckle about it. Scar had no problem at all with scaling walls or mountain cliffs, but if there was nothing for him to hold on to, it was a completely different matter.

So Tag spent his time standing on the stern of the airship, watching his surroundings and lost in his own thoughts. It never got boring though, there was always something happening on the large deck to watch.

Most of the time the members of the Hunter squad used their free time to train, doing workouts, simulating different battle situations or simply sparing with one another to hone their skills. It was amusing to watch, their movements always served to remind Tag just how beautiful he must look when the gnoll was swinging him. None of the ponies would ever be able to attain such grace. There was, of course an exception... actually two of them... Vayu and Purple Haze.

The two of them were constantly sparring with one another, up to a point were Tag wasn't sure if they weren't actually fighting. Both of them were impressive fighters, quick and agile... and stubborn beyond good health. Tag couldn't help but wonder if there was an untold conflict between the two of them.

Once, when the weather had been especially tranquil the gnoll had actually stepped onto the deck while the two of them had been sparring, whether out of boredom or out of curiosity Tag could not decide. But the moment the two females saw him watching, they had gone about their sparring with a vigor that had left the other members of the squad in a baffled state. Both of them had been on the verge of simply collapsing where they stood at the time Scar left again.

It made Tag wonder... maybe Vayu was jealous because Purple Haze and Scar shared a cabin? Or did they just not like one another? He gave a silent sigh, it really didn't matter as long as his master wasn't troubled by it... or did it?

The maul pushed the thought aside as he watched the sun touch the horizon and bask the sky in a beautiful crimson color. He enjoyed these moments of silence, he really did... Peace always preceded war, so if the whole week it would take them to arrive in the griffon empire would be this peaceful, then a grand battle would surely be waiting for them at the end of their journey.

Tag watched the world pass around him... This was his destiny, his calling... It would be a true adventure for all of them. The Hunter squad was going to the griffon empire, and the rats would know his and his master's name... and Tag was intent on making it go down into history. He would make his master proud of him.

"Onwards we go..." Tag shouted into the wind with joy, "Onwards to glory!"

----

In the bowels of the airship a heap of blankets was snoring softly, rising in sync with the gnoll's slow breathing. In between his snores Scar twitched for a moment, looked up and around himself half awake before mumbling, "Shut up, Tag." and returned to sleep once more.

Somewhere in the back of his mind and hidden from the rest of the world, a soft feeling of melancholy started to spread. His journey would take him close to his old home, to the mountains where his old clan now slept... the place he had dreaded to return to for so long now... A soft sigh escaped Scar's sleeping form, he had a new clan now... it would be alright. Everything was fine.

---

Back in the Canterlot castle, a lone door was standing guard in its original position once more, guarding the entrance to the audience chamber in lonesome solitude. A silent thought passed through the wood unnoticed, more of an emotion than an actual thought, "That was fun."