Dawn was breaking over the mountains of the Griffin Kingdoms as the Darkfeathers and their prison wagon approached Gryphus Tower. A glorious cascade of sunlight filigreed the clouds with golden lining, pillars of light shining out from among gaps in the clouds like spotlights. The Darkfeathers ignored the tableau, however as they set their cargo down on a large landing pad that stuck out from the smooth surface of the tower like a cliff. As soon as the wagon set down, the twelve griffins set about unstrapping themselves from the vehicle. They then picked up their weapons and moved to the back, getting ready to subdue the prisoners if necessary.
Inside the wagon, the six mares that embodied the Elements of Harmony had woken up during the trip. Finding themselves locked within the bars of the vehicle and unable to fly, use magic, or even walk due to their bindings, and with questions asked of the griffins being met with stony silence, they had been forced to sit down and wait to see where they were being taken in between bouts of comforting Fluttershy, calming Rarity, and restraining Rainbow Dash. This last bit was the most difficult, as Rainbow had been at the bars almost as soon as she’d woken up, yelling at the griffins and letting go with insults that nopony in the wagon had ever heard come out of her mouth, though after the latest restraint attempt she’d calmed down someone and laid down with the others. As the wagon set down on the landing pad with a gentle thud, Rainbow Dash jerked her head up and looked at the others. “We’ve stopped!”
Twilight looked out of the bars, seeing the door to the tower proper, the banner of the Griffin Kingdoms hanging over the door leading inside. She looked back at the others, shock on her face. “We’re in the Griffin Kingdoms!”
“Ya’ll mean t’tell me these featherbags took us out of Equestria entirely?!” Applejack exclaimed, her green eyes wide with surprise.
“Apparently,” Twilight replied, nodding. “But what they brought us here for, I’ve got no idea.”
“It can’t be anything good,” Rarity muttered as she tried to move her legs, which had grown numb from the long period of inactivity sitting in the wagon. “Breaking into my shop, tying Opalescence up in a sack and throwing her in a closet…The poor dear, she must be so upset!”
“Cheer up, girls!” Pinkie Pie chirped with her usual optimism as she looked out at the Darkfeathers as they gathered around the door. “For all we know, this could be fun!”
“Yeah, sure.” Rainbow muttered.
“Th…they’re n-n-not going to h-hurt us, are th-they?” Fluttershy asked timidly, doing her best to press herself into the floorboards of the wagon.
“If they wanted to hurt us, they could have dumped us out of the wagon while we were flying or something like that,” Twilight said. “I can’t be sure, though.”
“Well I’m not gonna stand here like a bump on a log!” Rainbow Dash said as she stood up as stably as she could with her legs roped together. “I bet that I can take on all these griffins with my hooves tied!”
The door finally opened, all of the Darkfeathers pointing their weapons inside in a thicket of steel that glittered in the morning’s golden sunlight. Rainbow’s eyes widened and she sat down, cowed at the prospect of attempting to fight through that.
“All of you out. Now,” said one of the griffins, wielding a sabre that he was pointing directly at Twilight. The ponies did as they were told, the Darkfeathers surrounding them as they exited the wagon. Twilight came first, followed by Rarity. Pinkie bounced off next, her customary smile fixed on her face as she jumped out and into the group of griffins. Fluttershy gingerly crept her way out, inching towards the exit before a Darkfeather grabbed her legs and dragged her out roughly, the pegasus giving a frightened squeak backed up by exclamations of outrage from the others. Applejack came out next, her eyes narrowed with suspicion at the griffins, watching them carefully.
Rainbow Dash’s egress was considerably more eventful.
As one of the griffins got up on the wagon’s step to order Rainbow Dash out, she gave a loud roar and lunged at him. She headbutt the griffin in the chin, causing him to fall off of the step with a yelp. Both hit the ground, Rainbow Dash butting and biting as the griffin struggled with her, attempting to get the violent pegasus off of him. Rainbow soon found her body being hauled off of her victim’s and a fist backed up by plenty of muscle rearranging her insides. The pegasus mare’s purple eyes widened and a line of drool fell from her muzzle as she coughed explosively, repeating the sound twice more as another pair of punches smashed into her gut, each blow lifting her hooves off the ground. After the third punch she doubled over, then was smashed to the ground by a hard right hook to the jaw. She was then dealt a few powerful kicks, the other Darkfeathers holding the rest of the ponies back to keep them from interfering.
“Enough,” the lead Darkfeather said as the griffin Rainbow had attacked got up and approached her, his talons ready. “We brought them here to hold them prisoner, not to kill them. Are you alright, Tragon?”
The griffin nodded, rubbing his chin where a bruise was starting to develop beneath his feathers. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.”
The griffin nodded and motioned towards the others with one wing. The two griffins that had beaten Rainbow Dash dragged her over to the other ponies and dumped her unceremoniously to the ground. As the others gathered around her to make sure that she was alright, the Darkfeather leader looked at them all.
“Listen up all of you,” he growled. “I am Commander Vaynar of the Darkfeathers. You are now at Gryphus Tower, home of King Aeris Gryphonus, the Golden King, Lord of the High Peaks, and Ruler of the Skies. You will remain here until the king sees fit to release you and your Princess. Whether or not that happens is his decision.”
“Princess?!” the six ponies gasped.
“What have you done with Princess Celestia?” Twilight demanded.
“I haven’t done anything,” Vaynar responded tersely. “And do not fear for her well-being. She is safe and well-cared for, so long as she doesn’t try to escape. Just as you will be. Until King Aeris sees fit to return you to Equestria-if he does, I should say-you will live in Gryphus Tower. If you attempt to escape, you will be punished. Severely.” He looked at the other Darkfeathers. “Escort formation. To the throne room.”
As one the Darkfeathers surrounded the ponies, and at another command from Vaynar began walking towards the tower. Twilight craned her head back to look at it, in awe at the sheer size. The tower’s top disappeared among the morning clouds, parapets and turrets dotting the massive structure. Banners hung from the crenellations, flapping gently in the morning breeze. Griffins in ornate yet functional silver-and-blue armor patrolled the fortifications, their eyes watchful for any sort of aerial attack. Twilight counted at least forty assorted ballistae and trebuchets before she lost her place.
“Impressed, little pony?” one of the griffins asked, looking down at her. He had eyes the color of a forest in midsummer, with brown and white feathers creating a speckled pattern on his face. He was young, possibly Big Macintosh’s age, with a youthful energy about him that seemed to light up the surrounding space.
“It’s enormous!” Twilight replied, looking back at him in amazement. “How long did it take to build this?”
The griffin shrugged, smiling. “No one really knows. Some say that it was carved out of the bones of the mountain. Others say that it’s been here since the dawn of time. Yet more say that the gods granted it to King Stormcall for withstanding their fury in a thunderstorm, with lightning strikes so powerful and so precisely placed that when the storm ended, the tower stood in the place of the mountaintop.” He looked down at her, the smile still warm on his face. “Either way, all I know is that it’s really damn old.”
“No chatting with the prisoners, Carif,” Vaynar barked from the front of the column.
“My apologies sir,” Carif replied meekly, inclining his head in his superior’s direction.
They entered the tower, the windswept surface of the landing pad being replaced with spotless tile floors, gilded pillars of marble and gold, high vaulted ceilings inlaid with frescoes of great moments of each of the twelve former city-states that now comprised the Kingdoms. Tapestries made from rich fabric hung from arches on the sides of the hallway, depicting the symbols of each city. Statues of the Kingdoms’ past rulers lined the hall, dressed in armor or robes. Each statue seemed to project an aura of strength and wisdom, a testament to the skill of the sculptors.
After what seemed like hours of walking, they finally arrived at a set of massive oak doors. Commander Vaynar made the column halt a short distance away, then approached the guards by himself. A short conversation later the two guards nodded. As Vaynar walked back to the column, of the guards banged his spear on the floor three times. The heavy wooden haft didn’t mark the tiles in the slightest.
With a sound like a trumpet being blown the doors of Gryphus Towers’ throne room burst open, a massive blast of wind shooting down the corridor. Aeris was revealed as the doors swung apart, his wings unfurled and pointing forward. He re-furled them quickly as the wind he had blasted the doors with faded.The Darkfeathers withstood the gust without any sign of effort and it was only due to their stability that the six ponies were not blown down the halls like so much dust.
“Forward,” Vaynar said casually, as if a gale had not just blown into their faces. The column began walking again, entering the throne room. It was a massive place, larger than the high-ceilinged hallways that the group had walked through before. More tiles and gilded pillars were evident here, tapestries hanging wherever one of the tall windows was not placed. The Darkfeathers spread out into a line, forcing the ponies to the forefront before bowing deeply. As they did, Twilight and her friends looked up towards the dais that held the throne of the Griffin Kingdoms.
Aeris smiled as the Darkfeathers knelt, rising off of his throne and stepping slowly down the steps of the dais. “Well well well,” he said, his voice filling the room as he reached the foot of the steps and walked towards the group. “So these are the famous six ponies that embody Equestria’s Elements of Harmony.”
He stopped before them and lowered his head, coming beak-to-nose with Twilight. “I expected you to be more impressive.” He straightened up and looked at Commander Vaynar. “Well done, Commander. Did you have any trouble with them?”
“Only with the rainbow-maned one upon our arrival, Your Majesty,” Vaynar replied. “We took care of it.”
Aeris turned to Rainbow Dash, taking in the splendid bruise on her cheek. “I see.” He turned back to Twilight. “What are your names, my little ponies?”
“I’m Twilight Sparkle,” Twilight replied, looking up at Aeris, fixing him with a stern glare. “And these are my friends. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie. And I demand to know where you’re holding Princess Celestia!”
Aeris looked at her for a moment, then threw his head back in a roar of laughter. Twilight’s glare gradually changed into a look of confusion. After a while, Aeris calmed down and wiped a tear from his eye. “Ah, so much spunk in such a tiny package. Then again considering what you six have done, I would have been disappointed if you had seemed scared.”
“Um…I’m scared…” Fluttershy meekly remarked as she raised her hoof. Aeris’s gaze immediately snapped to her, the butter yellow pegasus giving a squeak of fright and hiding behind Rarity. Aeris smirked and turned around, walking back to his throne. As he sat down, he looked at them.
“To answer your question, Twilight Sparkle, your Princess is safe in this tower, in her own room. I’ve given her all of the comforts she deserves, and she is being well cared-for. You all will be given the same courtesies that she is and free roam of the Tower. You will each be provided with a guard that will also function as your escort if you wish to go anywhere.” He looked at Vaynar. “Take them to their rooms, Commander.”
“Yes sire,” Vaynar replied. He stood up and moved the Darkfeathers into formation around the six ponies again, marching them from the throne room.
***
By the time the six ponies had been shown their rooms, Twilight was the only one left. Commander Vaynar had assigned Carif to her, and so the young Darkfeather kept up a steady stream of chatter while he led the purple unicorn to her room. He was curious about Equestria, having lived in Gryphus all his life. Twilight answered his questions as best she could, and even asked a few of her own. As they talked more, she found herself becoming more attached to the friendly young griffin, with his earnest smile and disarming demeanor. But as she talked, she shook her head.
No, she thought. This griffin is an enemy of Equestria. He helped kidnap us! I can’t get friendly with him.
“Here we are!” Carif said cheerfully as he stopped outside a large door. He turned to Twilight. “I have to guard your room too, so if you need anything don’t hesitate to ask.”
“Thank you,” Twilight replied. “I’ll be sure to do that.”
With that, Carif opened the door and Twilight went in. Twilight gave her room a once-over as Carif shut the door behind her. The room was actually quite luxurious; the floor was covered in soft blue carpet that yielded easily to her hooves, the four-poster bed sharing the same color scheme. A set of thick curtains hung from the wall across the doorway, which Twilight guessed concealed a picture window. There was a desk across the room from the bed, made from diligently polished oak and complete with several rolls of parchment, several pots of ink, and a number of quills.
The only thing it lacked, Twilight decided, was a bookcase. With that she turned around and knocked on the door with her hoof. Carif responded immediately, cocking his head. “Somethin’ wrong?” he asked.
“Not really,” Twilight replied. “But it’d be nice if I had some books…”
Carif nodded. “I’ll send for some.” With that he shut the door again. Seeing nothing else to do, Twilight walked over to the bed and laid down on it. The mattress yielded easily to fit the contours of her body and Twilight sank into it, forcing her to flail around a bit before managing to right herself. She sighed as she took another look around the room.
I guess that this will be my home for the foreseeable future, she thought despondently. However long that will be.