Hurricane watched as Gusty held the piece of flint and a small, steel hammer in her magic. She struck the hammer against the flint to cause sparks to fly into the dry grass and leaves under the logs on the fire. She struck it a couple more times before some smoke rose from the kindling and he saw the faintest glow. She fanned the flames with a gentle gust of a wind and the flame soon consumed the kindling and began work on the logs.
Heat radiated from the fire. Hurricane relaxed against a large rock as he enjoyed the comfort. The sun crystal lanterns filled their campsite with plenty of light, but put out little heat if any. A good old fashioned campfire was just what they needed to chase away the chill of the night.
He would have preferred to be in his nice, warm bed. However, it was probably crawling with those arachnids if they had not destroyed the town just to do it.
"Welcome to our bright and glorious future, ponies," Hurricane said, not bothering to had his sarcasm. He picked up a stick and shifted the logs slightly so they were more centered. "We don't have our idiot baroness bossing us around anymore. We don't have the Apples forcing their traditional values on us anymore. We're free to live our lives as we want without persecution. Granted, we lost our homes and livelihoods, and most of the barony was shrunk and eaten by a bunch of arachnids and their two-legged freak of a master, but you have to the victories as they come, right?"
Hurricane caught Gusty glowering at him out of the corner of his eye. "Really, Hurricane, we don't need your peculiar brand of humor right now."
Hurricane shrugged. "It's a coping mechanism." Hurricane motioned to Shady slouched over and looking even more particularly glum than usual. "You want to be a constant nervous wreck like Shady?"
Hurricane regretted the remark as soon as it left his lips. He did not even need the chorus of angry shouts telling him he was being unfair and mean to tell him he went too far.
"He's right," Shady mumbled. "I'm also a coward. I could have saved Baroness Crown Jewel, but I was too scared. Before I could even think she was dead."
Shady lay down and covered her eyes with her hooves as she sobbed.
"Frankly, the real coward is Wind Whistler," Gusty said sharply.
Hurricane scowled. Those were fighting words. He turned to Gusty who had caught everypony's attention. She returned their irritated expressions with a defiant scowl.
"All our friends and family are dead because she made us run away," Gusty added.
Hurricane turned to Wind Whistler. She had her head hung low and her ears drooping to her side. "It was the best course of action," she said in a very quiet choice. "Our attempts to fight were ineffective, so retreat was our only logical option."
"Logic." Gusty coughed a laugh. "Did you ever consider our feelings? Maybe we wanted to stay and fight even if it was hopeless. Maybe we preferred to go down with our home instead of abandoning it. Maybe we could have found a way to win if you didn't give up so quickly."
Wind Whistler seemed to make her smaller as Gusty tore into her. Tears streamed from her tightly shut eyes. While Wind Whistler was typically logical and austere in her demeanor, it was mask to hide a very shy and sensitive pony underneath. That shy and sensitive pony was now being ripped into by Gusty's rant. He wished Wind Whistler would defend herself, but she could not in her current state. Gusty had taken the very thing she sought protection in and turned it against her.
Hurricane felt the urge to break the rule that a stallion never hit a mare. His muscles tightened. Fortunately for him, Powder made the point moot as she smacked her hoof into the side of Gusty's head. Gusty fell to the ground.
"Enough, Gusty!" Powder snapped. "Nopony made you come with us."
Gusty rubbed the side of her head as she glared up at Powder.
"We're all still alive because of Wind Whistler's quick thinking," Powder continued.
"If you want to call this living," Gusty retorted.
Wind Whistler jumped to her hooves and ran into the darkness. Hurricane could hear her faint sobs as she ran away.
Hurricane rolled away from the rock and onto his hooves. He shot a glare in Gusty's direction. "Maybe you should have considered about her feelings."
Hurricane turned to Wind Whistler running into the dark plain surrounding their campsite. "Wind Whistler, come back."
Hurricane ran quickly left the light and warmth of the campsite. It was clear with the black sky studded by stars and the full moon shining down. The moonlight illuminated everything in a silvery light, so he could make out the forests edge in the distance. The mountains on the horizon cut triangular shapes out of the starry sky. Amongst the darkness was the pastel pony several years ahead of him and still running.
Wind Whistler ran until she did not want to run anymore. She slowed to a trot, then a canter, then a walk and finally stopped. She sat down in the tall grass and held her head low. Tears streamed from her eyes.
She was bathed in the sensations of the night. The chirping of crickets and calls of frogs fill her ears with an occasional owl adding their hooting. The air had a chill to it, but it was bearable. The air also had very little scent to it since there was not much in season and it had been a while since the last rain.
"We could not win," Wind Whistler murmured to herself. "Is it wrong to want to save as many lives as we could?"
"No," Hurricane said quietly behind her.
Wind Whistler picked up an ear and looked back. Hurricane stood in the grass several steps behind her. Wind Whistler was not one for personal contact or even closeness. Other ponies wanted to be so close, but Hurricane knew to stay a certain distance back until she welcomed him into her personal space.
She made a motion to come closer. Hurricane slowly walked close to her.
"Don't take what Gusty was spewing personally," Hurricane said. "She's just mad she came across something she can't beat or blow into submission."
"I know." Wind Whistler sniffed.
She managed a small laugh. "Look at me. Wind Whistler the pegasus who can organize a snap decision to handle a crisis reduced to blubbering mess because some pony took their frustration out on her."
"And it was really my fault," Hurricane said with a slight frown. "I set her off in the first place."
Wind Whistler heaved a sigh. "Feelings can be illogical and unpredictable. Why should I be so hurt and made unsure in my logic by Gusty? That is why I refrain for expressing mine so freely. It is times like this that wish I did not have feelings at all. I could not be hurt by such a petty argument."
"You also wouldn't be able to feel kindness or tenderness either," Hurricane said. "Would you have given me the time of day if all you were considering were logic and reason?"
"No, admittedly," Wind Whistler said. "You are a handsome stallion, but nothing too special."
"Hey!" Hurricane said, pretending to be insulted.
"It is the truth," Wind Whistler said to defend herself even though there was no need. "There were bigger, stronger stallions who would have made better mates and sires on paper. What attracted me to you that I felt, yes felt, more comfortable in your presence. I feel like I can express my feelings with you like I am now."
"Do you regret that you like me because of your feelings?" Hurricane asked.
"No," Wind Whistler said.
"Then feelings aren't all bad," Hurricane said.
Wind Whistler leaned against Hurricane and nuzzled her nose into his tangled mane. He gently placed his leg over her shoulder. Wind Whistler relaxed as she felt his body heat. She knew all those stallions who ogled her would never be willing put with her like this. Only Hurricane would, and she loved him for it.
"Thank you," Wind Whistler cooed softly.
"Oh, how positively romantic," a small, highly affected voice said.
Wind Whistler's eyes had been closing as she allowed herself to be absorbed in the moment, but popped wide open upon hearing the voice and the moment was shattered like a pane of glass. Hurricane took his leg off her and the two took a couple steps away from each other.
Wind Whistler looked around the moonlit meadow. She looked down at a nearby rock where Heart Throb was standing.
"The sight of a stallion comforting his mare in her time of emotional distress is just so dreamy," Heart Throb swooned.
The mask was back on for Wind Whistler. "Anypony could have comforted me. Hurricane was the one who just so happened to come after me."
"Yeah," Hurricane said, apparently returning to his typical demeanor. "I was just helping a good friend. That's it."
"Yeah, and I'm the queen of the changelings," Heartthrob retorted. "I know romance when I see it, and you two are more lovebirds than…a pair of lovebirds."
Wind Whistler and Hurricane looked to each other. "Maybe we should get back to camp. Everypony is probably worried about us," Hurricane said.
Heartthrob flew into Wind Whistler's mane. "Really, darling, you don't need to be so private about displaying your affections. It's nothing to be embarrassed about. Mares and stallions have been pairing off since long before we came along and will do so long after we're gone."
The last statement brought Wind Whistler back to the task at hand. "I am afraid that might not be the case if we cannot find a way to stop the creature that attacked Ponyville."
Magic Star turned to Wind Whistler and Hurricane as they walked back into the light of the fire. "Welcome back, you two."
"Plus one snoop," Hurricane motioned to Heart Throb poking her head out of Wind Whistler's mane.
Magic Star rolled her eyes. Keeping track of a dozen insect-sized ponies was going to be a pain, especially with ponies like Heart Throb and Surprise amongst them.
"Anyway, you have perfect timing," Magic Star said. "Paradise believes she's found out what that creature is."
Paradise was leaning against the rock Hurricane had been leaning against before going after Wind Whistler. She had one of the many books she brought with her opened in front of her. Magic Star was at first angry to know she had wasted precious space on books before remembering knowledge was power.
Paradise looked up as everypony gathered around her. She pointed at a picture on the left page of a creature looking very much like the one that attacked Ponyville.
"He calls himself Arachnis the Captor," Paradise explained. "Little is known about him or his kind, but the author suspects he comes from a far off land since nothing else like him has been seen before or since.
"Equestria first became aware of his presence because of the sudden disappearance of entire villages on the outer frontier. The buildings and plants were there, but all the ponies had mysteriously vanished without any sign of a struggle. No one knew why until news of sightings on the roads near the disappearances. However, nopony knew how he made villages disappear."
"Now we know he miniaturizes his victims for his arachnids to consume," Wind Whistler said.
"You said you had an idea of why we weren't shrunk," North Star said. "What was it?"
"The only thing all ten of us have in common is being in the room when Gusty turned on the Spectral Compass," Wind Whistler said. "It is believed the Spectral Compass points to the Rainbow of Light because it has a small piece of it. The discharge from opening it might have been power that built up over the centuries of disuse and released. The magic absorbed into our bodies and protected us from whatever spell this Arachnis creature used."
"So we're protected by the magical equivalent of a static shock," Gusty grumbled. "How did they beat him?"
Paradise turned the page. She skimmed the lines and her face bent into a frown of absolute dread. "They didn't," she said in horror.
Magic Star felt a chill go down her spine. "He obviously stopped before destroying all of ponykind."
"He was stopped, but at the ultimate price," Paradise said. "The four princesses and the bearers of the Elements of Harmony combined their power to fight Arachnis. However, all they could do was seal him away in some remote place. Even that overwhelmed them all. Celestia and Luna had to sacrifice their pony bodies and became one with the Sun and Moon respectively. Princess Cadence, Princess Twilight Sparkle, and all five of the other Element bearers died from exhaustion and the Elements of Harmony dissolved away. The side effects were felt across ponykind as they lost control over nature and the natural magicks took hold. This author believes fighting Arachnis was a primary cause for the fall of Equestria."
Magic Star stood there feeling numb. That was the only way she could describe it as her brain tried to process what she had just heard.
"Then it's game over," Hurricane said in an uncharacteristically serious tone. "There's no way we can fight him."
"There is one way," Wind Whistler said.
Magic Star's numbness subsided as she turned her attention to Wind Whistler along with everypony else.
"If a small discharge from a piece of the Rainbow of Light was enough to protect us from his spell," Wind Whistler said, "the Rainbow of Light itself might be powerful enough to defeat him. After all, it was the power used to make the Elements of Harmony in the first place."
Moonsoon opened a saddlebag and pulled out the Spectral Compass. He placed it on the ground and pushed the button. The top opened and the crystal came out. There was no flash this time validating Wind Whistler's point it was just a buildup of energy. The circle and arrow expanded from the crystal.
"The compass points west," Monsoon said, "towards the Jewel Desert."
"Then that's where we must go," Magic Star said.
"Who died and made you leader?" Buttons shouted angrily.
"Uh…Crown Jewel," Hurricane answered bluntly.
Magic Star shot him a stern glance before turning her attention to Buttons and the other shrunken ponies on the rock.
Posey tapped Buttons on her back. "I don't think we should argue about this."
Buttons glared back at Posey. "Well I think we should."
Posey took her hoof away from Buttons and backed up several steps.
Buttons faced Magic Star. "We're still the Ponyville Barony, and since Crown Jewel is gone without an heir or surviving close family, her title falls on the head of the Business Guild which is me."
Hurricane rolled his eyes. "Just what we need: another stupid dictator to lead us off a cliff."
"I agree," Wind Whistler said. "For a group this small, I think picking our leader as well as settling all other important decisions should be decided through direct democracy."
"Who thinks we should decide things democratically?" Magic Star asked.
All the full-sized ponies as well as Surprise, Posey, Cherries Jubilee, Ribbon, and Lofty raised their hooves.
"I thought I said I was baroness, so your silly little vote doesn't count," Buttons stated.
Magic Star glowered at Buttons. She was not going to put up this for another minute let along however long it would take to find the Rainbow of Light. There was a lot of west, and she was not going to traverse it listening to Buttons.
There was one way to shut Buttons up for good. Magic Star raised her hoof over Buttons. "My hoof says you're nothing but another vote. Besides, we have a super majority to override you."
Buttons looked up at Magic Star's hoof and then at Magic Star. She was obviously hiding her fear with seething anger. "Fine."
Magic Star put her hoof down and turned to the others. "Who should be our new baroness?"
Hurricane pointed to Wind Whistler. "I nominate Wind Whistler. She's the reason we're here to have this conversation, and she thought to burn the maps to keep them out of the claws of Arachnis."
"I second!" Fizzy chirped.
"No way!" Gusty shouted.
Wind Whistler hunched a little. "I do not want to be baroness anyway." Wind Whistler stood straight and pointed to Monsoon. "I nominate Monsoon as baron. He is the oldest and most traveled of us."
"There is no way Ah'm bein' a part of group led by a stallion," Truly shouted.
Hurricane scowled. "And where would you go, Hoofelina?"
"Enough, Hurricane," Monsoon said. "I have to decline the offer for the same reason Wind Whistler did. I have no desire to lead." Monsoon pointed to Magic Star. "Magic Star is the best choice. She is the one who formed our reunification group in the first place and led us through thick and through thin."
"I second," Paradise said.
"Any objections?" Paradise asked.
Everypony was silent. Even Buttons just stood there.
"Do you want the position, Magic Star?" Paradise asked.
"I don't know about want," Magic Star said halfheartedly, "but I will take it."
"Well, that was a lot of walk to get back to where we started," Gusty grumbled.
"We'll get some sleep and head west tomorrow," Magic Star said. "I don't know how far we have to travel or what we'll encounter along the way, but for the sake of ponykind we must find the Rainbow of Light at any cost."
Arachnis adjusted the binoculars as best he could for his eyes. The problem with plundering a different species, the equipment is never built for you. He put the binoculars to his eyes and peered through the lenses that were still a little too far apart.
A couple griffons stood on the front battlement of the castle.
"Are they ponies?" a spider asked.
"No, griffons," Arachnis replied. "However, the energy I sensed from those ponies led here. Perhaps they know something."
Arachnis got out of his crouch and walked out of the woods into the clearing in front of the castle. The griffons took notice and pointed the spears they were carrying towards him. More spear-wielding griffons joined them on the battlement. This was meant to be a show of force, but Arachnis had to keep himself from laughing at the pathetic display.
"Halt, whoever you are!" one of the griffons shouted, "whatever you are. What business you do have here?"
Arachnis stopped. "I wish to speak to the master of this castle."
A crestless griffon with a monocle came to the front of the group. "I am Lord Merv. To whom am I speaking?"
"I'm known as Arachnis the Captor," Arachnis said. "I encountered strange magic in Ponyville that led me here. Perhaps you know about it."
"Ponyville, you say," Merv mused allowed. "Let him in."
The gate lifted up and Arachnis walked into the confines of the castle. It was a smattering of rather plain-looking buildings of various sizes. Arachnis had not encountered griffons when he first came to Equestria, but they apparently did not share the ponies' taste in artistic flare. Either that or such flare fell out of favor when society collapsed.
Merv landed in front of him. He swept his eagle claw in front of him. "Please come in and make yourself at home."
Merv followed Arachnis into the den. It was the most relaxing room in the castle with a large fireplace, and couple of billiards tables. Merv hoped the visitor would admire some of his most prized paintings decorating the walls, but he instead sat in of the less comfortable armchairs. He glared at another chair.
Merv felt a bit of a chill go through him. Arachnis was an ugly creature. He looked more like a corpse than anything that should be alive. His behavior was also rather indifferent to those around him. Even beyond that there was just an air about him that made it impossible for Merv to get comfortable.
Merv sat in the chair where Arachnis was staring. It was perhaps the most comfortable in the room and Merv's favorite. The plush cushions gave as he lounged in it. However, it sitting in his favorite chair could make Merv comfortable with Arachnis staring straight at him. Of course he was not about to show his discomfort to his guest.
"Your news is actually serendipity." Merv decided to get right into business.
Arachnis focused on Merv. Merv was not sure if he wanted his attention. His face did not betray any emotion or thought behind it. He just frowned slightly and stared on with his discolored eyes.
Merv swallowed down a lump forming in his throat. "You see, I had 'obtained' an ancient artifact. A group of ponies then stole it from me the other night. If they came from Ponyville, I'll send my enforcers to retrieve it."
Arachnis did not move. "Don't bother." His voice was low and as emotionless as his expression.
"But it is mine and represents a large investment," Merv replied.
"Ponyville is no more and the ponies who had the magic escaped into the wilderness," Arachnis said calmly.
"What do you mean Ponyville is no more?" Merv asked. "What are you? I've never seen anything even remotely like you before."
Arachnis' face tightened into a scowl. Merv leaned back.
"I am an agent of destruction," Arachnis growled. "My horde and I killed almost every single pony in Ponyville, stallions, mares, foals, it didn't matter. We had done it before long ago and we will continue until not pony remains alive."
Merv felt his whole body run cold. He swallowed down another lump. "Well…you're certainly ambitious. I'm no fan of the ponies either, but I never thought of wiping them out as a race. That doesn't explain why you're so interested in artifact the ponies stole."
"The ponies who had the magical energy about them were immune to my spell," Arachnis said in a voice building into a snarl. "What did they steal?"
"I don't know how it could be connected," Merv said, feeling more uncomfortable in Arachnis' gaze. "It was just a compass."
"I doubt someone of your tastes would be so interested in a normal compass," Arachnis said. "What does it point towards?"
"Some stupid pony thing called the Rainbow of Light," Merv answered nonchalantly. "I doubt it even exists."
"The Rainbow of Light?" Arachnis boomed. He bolted out of his chair and loomed over Merv. "You let the ponies get their hooves on a device that would lead them to the Rainbow of Light?"
Merv pressed himself into the cushioning of his chair which gave a lot more than he thought it would. Either that or he put a lot more force into embedding himself in it than he thought he would.
"It's not like I wanted them to," Merv stammered. He figured he should leave out he intended to auction it off the baroness willing to pay the most for it.
Arachnis suddenly grabbed Merv by the throat and lifted him out of his chair. He held Merv so his beak pressed against his nose. Arachnis' eyes bored into Merv under his lowered and deeply furrowed brow. Merv took his eyes away as he choked in Arachnis' deceptively firm grip. His neck throbbed from the pressure. He grabbed Arachnis' arm in an attempt to make him relent. However, he held firm.
"The Rainbow of Light is the ponies' greatest power," Arachnis snarled. "It made the Elements of Harmony, the same Elements of Harmony that imprisoned me."
Arachnis tightened his grip. Merv choked and gagged as he tried to get air. The pain was unbearable.
"Now those ponies will can find the Rainbow of Light and use it against me because of you." Arachnis threw Merv into an end table.
Merv took the end table in the back and knocked it over. Pain shot through his body. He coughed and gasped for air. He looked up at Arachnis looming over him. His lips was peeled back to reveal his pointy, yellow teeth, and his eyes glared down.
"I was considering sparing you and your lackeys since you're not ponies-" Arachnis pulled a gold flute out of his coat "-but my horde could stand some variety in their diet."
Arachnis put the flute to his lips.
"Wait!" Merv half-blurted and half-choked. "Maybe we can work out a deal."
Arachnis took the flute from his lips. "What could you have or do that I would possibly want."
Merv took a moment to catch his breath. "A common enemy. There's an old camel saying that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Those ponies stole from me and escaped your attack on Ponyville. We could join forces against them."
"I highly doubt you mismatched feather dusters could help me," Arachnis snarled. "You couldn't stop the ponies from robbing you."
"We can fly and most of the ponies who took the Spectral Compass were pegasi," Merv said. "Just give us a chance. The ponies just caught us by surprise. On a level playing field they wouldn't stand a chance."
Arachnis paused. He then returned the flute to its hiding place. Merv was not sure what the flute was for. He was not sure if he even wanted to know.
"You and two of your subordinates will accompany my horde," Arachnis said. "However, you will take orders from me."
Merv wanted to argue this was a partnership. However, he suspected that flute would make a return and reveal its purpose if he pushed. Merv instead got to his feet and bowed. "We are at your command."
Merv gave Arachnis a wide berth as he walked to the main doors. He opened them and a group of griffons were standing around in the hall. The group included the two griffons he was looking for. "Garth, Gertrude, get in here."
Merv backed up as the two entered the room. Arachnis turned around and looked at them.
"Garth is my best enforcer and Gertrude is my best tracker," Merv said, holding his claw out to them. "We'll find those ponies and make them pay."
Merv balled his claw into a fist. He wanted to get those ponies back for humiliating him. His industry depended on the ponies fearing griffons. He would make an example of these upstarts.
"You better," Arachnis growled, "or I'll come back here and griffon will be on the menu."
Several large spiders and scorpions crawled out of the folds of Arachnis' coat and crawled towards Merv.
Merv backed up. "What are they?"
"Members of my horde," Arachnis said. "They're going to prepare you for working alongside us."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Merv asked as the spiders and scorpions started crawling up his claws. He wanted to throw them off, but thought better of it.
"My best magic doesn't discriminate, so you must be immunized," Arachnis said.
The spiders bit and the scorpions stung Merv's scaly front legs. Burning pain shot through his front legs through his body. He screeched and collapsed as his body hurt too much to stand. He landed in a heap with his stricken leg collapsing under him while his other leg collapsed forward. He wings shot out from his sides sending a wave of agony straight into his brain. He wanted to roll over into more comfortable positions, but his wings lay haphazardly around him and would not fold.
Similar screeches of agony came from Garth and Gertrude. The doors burst open and Merv heard the claws and feet of griffons running in. It probably sounded like they were being murdered in here and Merv honestly wondered if that was not the case.
"Don't interrupt!" Arachnis boomed.
The footfalls stopped.
"The venom spreading through your bodies will protect you from my magic," Arachnis said.
Merv was too busy writhing in pain and trying to breathe to care. Whatever magic Arachnis was talking about better be nasty enough to justify the agony of this 'protection.'
The pain began to subside slowly, and it was getting easier to breathe. Merv managed to get to his feet and fold his wings. He was still breathing heavily.
He wondered what kind of an unholy alliance he just entered, he suggested. Arachnis and his pets were like nothing he had ever seen. There was something truly evil about them. Their venom spreading through his body had a sinister feeling to it.
Merv turned to the other griffons looking at him out of concern. His flock, he could not have asked for a more loyal bunch of followers.
"Are you all right, Lord Merv?" Gary asked.
"I'm fine," Merv lied. He was not fine in any way. "Garth, Gertrude, and I will be accompanying our guest for several days. Hold down the castle until then."
The griffons parted to let Merv hobble to the door. His limbs still throbbed, and he was not about to open his wings again. He had to concentrate to keep his balance and threw out a limb to keep from falling on more than one occasion.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend, Merv thought with contempt. He had forgotten camels were not the most thoughtful of races. The Saddle Arabian ponies had a counter saying. The enemy of my enemy is still my enemy.
Merv leaned up against the doorway as he tried to regain some strength. He remembered another saying. 'Keep you friends close and your enemies closer.' So long as Arachnis was chasing after ponies, he would not be after griffons.
Better the ponies than us, Merv thought.