Artex quickly opened the wooden box holding the crystals from Chris. He set the box down on the ground and withdrew the purple crystal. Holding it up to his mouth he spoke into it, "Chris? Chris are you there?"
A few seconds later the crystal lit up as a voice came through, "Heeeeey Dan!" Chris greeted jovially, "You guys ready for those supplies?"
Artex smirked and spoke into the crystal again, ignoring the dumbstruck look on Major Heartford's face, "Yeah. How do we use these crystals to send the signal?"
Chris sighed on the other end of the crystal, "I sent you instructions. It's pretty easy though. Just plant the crystal where you want it and run magic through it. Stand back though, the supplies are on a teleport pad that's about ten Fathoms by ten Fathoms. You don't want to be close. It won't hurt you, it'll just exchange the Space in the two locations so you'd end up here in New Humansville."
"Thanks Chris. Hey, is there any noise or light or anything startling that will accompany the supplies?" Artex asked.
"Yeah, there will be a bright flash of light but that's about it. Just make sure nobody is standing close to it." Chris answered.
Artex turned to the Major, "Are your Marines going to be alright with a bright light? I don't want any incidents."
Major Heartford turned his head to his guards, "Weapons down Marines. We're going to see a bright flash in a minute. It is not an attack, do not take action." He looked back to Artex as his Marines lowered their bows completely, "Good to go civilian."
Artex spoke into the crystal again, "Be ready to send those supplies. I'm about to activate the crystal right now." Artex replied. He kept the purple crystal in his right hand and picked up one of the others in his left. He stood up looking around for a good space. The only viable area was right next to the camp that he and the team had erected. Shrugging his shoulders he paced out eleven Fathoms and planted the crystal in the dirt, "Hey Razor," he spoke in American English, "Can you run a current of magic through this crystal please?"
Razor rolled her eyes and stood next to him with her horn lit. Artex saw the glow on the crystal and spoke into the communication crystal again, "Do you have the signal Chris?"
"Yep. Supplies coming at you in 3... 2... 1..."
A brilliant flash of light illuminated the area for half a second. Once the light faded everybody looked on in awe. A stack of wooden crates stood ten Fathoms tall, ten Fathoms wide, and ten Fathoms deep in a perfect cube. Major Heartford stood in place with his arms crossed, "You want to bring one of those down here so we can get to it?"
Razor huffed mildly and lit her horn up again. One of the topmost crates lit up and slowly floated down to the ground in front of the Major. Artex stepped over to the crate and lifted the hinged lid.
The crate was packed full to the brim with burlap bags that had their mouths tied. Artex withdrew a single bag and untied the string around the mouth. He opened it up and withdrew an entire loaf of bread with sprinkled walnuts and brown sugar on top. He handed the loaf to Major Heartford, "Here you go. Enjoy."
The Major never touched the bread. Instead he turned his head toward the front gates of the compound, "Marines, retrieve supplies on the double!"
The front gates swung open and male and female Marines swarmed out. They scaled the crates like monkeys and within less than a minute, they had an assembly line of Marines moving crates from the pile into their camp. Artex whistled, "You guys work together like ants."
Major Heartford grumbled something unintelligible under his breath, "You held up your end of the bargain civilian. I said I'd take the negotiation seriously." He sighed and rubbed his forehead, "I need assurances Mr. Emissary. I need to know that my Marines will be treated with respect."
Artex crossed his arms mimicking the Major, "There is only so much I can guarantee. I don't control the Gryphons, Major. The King wants his people back and he mentioned that the involved families should be compensated for what happened. I'll level with you Major, if any of the Gryphons have died while captured, Gryphon law has a 'one-for-one' policy. The representative behind me doesn't speak English so you can be honest with me."
The Major uncrossed his arms and looked at Artex evenly, "None of the Gryphons have died but we've lost over a tenth of our number since we got here. What do they plan to do once we release their civilians?"
Artex turned his head toward Heidi and spoke in Velensovth, "What's going to happen when the Gryphons are released?"
Heidi's crest rose, "I will bring in medics to make sure they are safe to travel first. I can have them here within a day."
Artex nodded, "What's going to happen to these people?" He gestured to the Marines.
Heidi's crest lowered, "They will have to answer for their crimes against Gryphonvale in a tribunal as is law. Their leader will be one deciding voice, King Myrmidon will be the second, and Celestia or Luna will be the third."
Artex turned back to the Major, "She said she'll bring in their medics to make sure the civilians are safe to move. After that there will be a tribunal. You will be one of the three deciding voices in the tribunal. The other two will be Princess Celestia of Equestria and the other will be the Gryphon King. Celestia will be a fair judge. She's learned a few things about Humans since we arrived in Equestria. I can guarantee she'll shoot down any ideas of imprisonment or execution. In the tribunal I will act... basically as your defense in a courtroom setting. Razor Wit will be the defense for the Gryphons and Celestia will be the neutral party."
Artex crossed his arms again, "Come on Major, that is worlds better than you'd get back on Earth. Help me out here. If you release the Gryphons as soon as possible I can make it look really good during the tribunal."
The Major's mouth pursed into a grim scowl, "The medics will be unarmed and unarmored. We have thirty-five Gryphons in here so I will allow no more than seventy-one of their medics. They will stay away from my Marines and not cause any trouble or we will respond accordingly."
Artex had to hold back from an excited fist-pump. He calmly turned back to Heidi, "Bring only seventy medics plus one more to oversee. No weapons or armor and keep them away from the Marines or there will be trouble."
Heidi quickly stood up and nodded, "Done." Without another word she took to the air and sped upward through the foliage.
Major Heartford reached out and placed a strong hand on Artex' shoulder. For a brief moment he looked like a tired older man, "Tell me I didn't make a mistake just now."
Darryl stood up and walked over, "You didn't Major. This was for the best... for everybody involved."
Artex placed his own hand on the Major's, "If anything happens Major, I'll stand with you."
Major Heartford lowered his hand. He was the commanding officer with the steel spine again, "Good. Have a pleasant evening Mr. Emissary. When can we expect more supplies?" He pointed to the diminishing pile of crates as he walked away, "This won't feed two-thousand Marines for very long."
Artex held up the communication crystal to his mouth, "Chris?" He asked in an unsure tone, "How soon can you send more?"
Chris' voice came back grumpy, "Just as soon as I get all these damn leaves out of my shipping center!"
* * *
Darryl woke first the following morning just before dawn and coaxed the fire back to life before waking the others. Everybody had to sleep in different tents since they had all agreed that the Marines probably would not take well to a Human sleeping with three mares even if they were not fooling around. Artex and Razor set about cooking breakfast while Oriana set up a small workshop with her alchemical tools and devices. Rose Thorn stuck to her normal morning exercise routine and did vertical pushups to start.
Just as she finished her pushups, the front gate of the camp opened up. Two long lines of Marines emerged from the gates at a jog with Sergeant Dyson in the lead. Darryl saw Rose watching them as they formed up, "Let's go join them." he said with a smile, "You remember that song in English I taught you about my grandma? Go run at the front with Dyson and sing that. Trust me, they'll love it." Rose smiled and without a word the two of them fell into the front of the line as they went through their morning P.T. Dyson stared at Rose as she took her place next to him. She turned toward the front and matched his step, "When my grandma was ninety-one."
The Marines followed along with more than a few chuckles, "When my grandma was ninety-one."
Dyson and Rose began the jog together, "She did P.T. just for fun."
The Marines parroted, "She did P.T. just for fun."
Artex, Razor, and Oriana watched the procession with obvious amusement until the dual line of Marines was out of sight. It was only barely dawn when a line of Gryphons wearing saddlebags and led by Heidi marched up to the front gates of the Marines' camp. The Marines at the front gates opened up immediately and the Gryphons walked in unobstructed.
Artex listened carefully for a while but after hearing nothing that sounded violent or confrontational he simply shrugged and enjoyed his breakfast and the rest of the morning. Darryl and Rose returned from their jog a short time later and sat down to a slightly cold breakfast of their own.
Several hours later the Gryphon medics emerged from the open front gates of the Marines' camp carrying stretchers. Loaded onto each of those stretchers were thirty-five other Gryphons. Instead of taking to the air, the Gryphon medics walked onward in the same direction they came.
Heidi was the last to leave the camp. Instead of following the medics though, she approached the team's camp and sat down right next to the fire, "That went even smoother than I had hoped. We have a series of field tents set up just outside the forest and we're taking our civilians there. Tell your people that the King was so pleased by their immediate cooperation that he extended limited service of the medical Gryphons to tend to the Marines, should they decide to accept the offer. King Myrmidon also wishes to know if they have agreed to the tribunal."
Artex nodded, "They have. I assume he has a way to reach Celestia to arrange the meeting."
Heidi chirped twice, "He does. I will come back and inform you when the date is set. As you might have guessed, it will be soon. You may begin your information gathering for the tribunal. I will return as soon as I know the date." She rose to her feet and spread her wings, "Thank you, all of you. Take care of yourselves." She met every set of eyes in the small camp though her eyes lingered on Darryl half a second longer than the others.
Razor Wit sighed heavily, "Now comes the difficult part." She rose to her hooves and levitated her belongings out of her tent, "I have to take statements from the captured Gryphons about their treatment at the hands of the Marines."
Artex nodded, "Yeah. We're not allowed any sort of contact between now and the day of the tribunal." He frowned, "I'm going to miss you Razor Wit."
Razor couldn't agree more, "I'm going to miss you too, but it's only for a couple of days."
The sound of footsteps approaching the camp made Artex turn away from Razor, "Good day Major. Is there something we can do for you?" he asked.
The older man had come with only two Marines and was obviously feeling more at ease around the team. He did not answer Artex immediately. Instead he stared at the tan Unicorn mare disassembling her tent, "Are all of you leaving?"
Artex shook his head, "We aren't but she is. She has to go take statements from the Gryphons who were... under your care. She has to compile a list of grievances perpetrated by your Marines against the citizens of Gryphonvale. As soon as she leaves you and I can begin our list of grievances of Gryphonvale vs. Marines." The Major opened his mouth but Artex quickly held up his hands, "We cannot discuss this in front of her right now. Wait until she leaves."
Major Heartford sat down and folded his legs, "Very well. When can you have that next shipment of food and tools ready?"
* * *
Less than an hour later Razor Wit had left and Chris had teleported a second shipment of food and tools and then a third not long after that. He had also included some basic clothing and personal grooming supplies. Having heard there were more than 2000 Marines to take care of, he felt inclined to send a few things he had purchased on his own. He was apparently making a disturbing amount of money with his shipping service and he wanted to spread the wealth a bit.
To say that the Marines were pleased with five crates of personal grooming supplies would be an understatement. And since Chris had included two cases of soap, they were ecstatic.
As the day wound down, Oriana announced that she was ready to start making potions for the Marines if they so desired. In short order she had a line of Marines waiting for various cures for a variety of ailments. Many had initially expressed doubts about the supposed abilities of the potions, but once they saw a fellow Marine's damaged teeth miraculously fixed by just sipping a potion, they were all too ready to request something. Since they had no money, the Zebra mare only asked for the Marines to fetch the necessary ingredients for the potions.
Night crept up on the two camps, but Artex was planning to stay up late talking to the Major. Darryl of course decided to do the same while Rose and Oriana turned in.
The three men, five if one was to include the Major's guards, sat around the evening fire as Artex explained the workings of the tribunal, "Alright, there will be three beings who act as voices, you already know that and you know who they are. What we need to establish is what grievances we're going to levy against Gryphonvale. We can discuss protocol for the tribunal later." He steepled his hands and rested his mouth against his fingers, "What did your Marines do to the Gryphons and to their country? We should know exactly what we're dealing with and what to guard against. Walk me through the events here Major. Start with how you and your Marines arrived here."
Major Heartford sighed as he stared into the flickering firelight, "We all woke up right here in this forest. Not one of us had so much as a single stitch of clothing or even our dogtags. We were disorganized for about... I'd guess half an hour before I took command. We organized ourselves into groups and started off in different direction looking for food, water," he shrugged, "Anything. Well we found water easily enough, food though, that wasn't so easy." he said wearing a haunted look, "Lack of food has been the biggest thorn in our side since we got here. First day a bunch of us found some berries. They were edible but it wasn't anywhere near enough to feed all of us so we all went to bed hungry after having eaten two or three berries each. We stripped those bushes bare on the first day. On the second day the heavy reality really hit us and I'm glad it did. Plenty of us were still in shock. We had heard about The Event," he paused and pointed to Darryl and Artex, "That's the storm that took you guys. We were doing training exercises, long distance marches... that damn storm hit us during the night. Lucky for us we were under cover so nobody was injured by the hail."
"Anyway, on the second day we started sharpening sticks to use as spears to hunt. Thank God a few of us actually knew how to hunt. We set up snares using vines and rocks. The second day was better though. By nightfall we had enough quail and pheasant to eat, but the following day we couldn't find any. It was on the third day that one of our groups encountered the first Gryphon. They were startled but hungry enough to attack it with sharp sticks and rocks. Well they managed to knock it over the head, but before they could finish it off they saw that it had something like a backpack. Dyson was there and stopped them before they could kill it. They looked through its backpack and found two sets of bolas, a couple of nets, fishing hooks and a few other things. They toted it back here and we decided to tie it up. Dyson said it was smart so we thought that maybe we could learn something. When it woke up it panicked but the bolas we used to tie it up held strong. We tried to talk to it but it was uncooperative. We knew two things at that point. We knew there was a tool-using being around, and we knew it was intelligent. We decided to use the bolas and nets to catch more of them in the hopes of finding one that might cooperate."
Major Heartford shook his head sadly, "Not a single one was receptive. They all but completely ignored our every attempt to communicate. I would have expected that kind of reaction from my Marines, we're trained for that. By the time we had thirty-six Gryphons we hit a snag. We couldn't release them for fear of them leading others of their kind back here, but we also couldn't bring ourselves to capture any more of them. One of them escaped and we were worried that they would descend on us in force but then two days later you came along. We were in dire straights before you guys got here. We had to feed not only ourselves but the Gryphons too. We learned how to hunt deer and other small game, but we never had enough." His face became somber, "We lost nearly four hundred Marines to starvation."
Artex' brows knit together, "How long have you been out here?"
The Major bit his lower lip, "About fourteen weeks, give or take."
Artex nodded but something suddenly occurred to him, "Have any of you thrown up any kind of golden colored liquid since you've been here?"
The Major's eyes narrowed suspiciously, "How the hell did you know about that?"
Artex and Darryl exchanged a meaningful look, "The same thing happened to us." Artex explained, "The Human body isn't built to handle some of the naturally occurring elements in this world. Don't worry, you'll only throw up about three times total. After that your bodies will have adapted to it. It isn't dangerous or anything, just irritating."
The Major nodded, "No kidding. We discovered that the stuff we threw up made plants grow faster than all hell so we used it on the berry bushes as much as we could. That was one of our saving graces and probably why we survived this long."
Artex chewed his cheek, "So what grievances do you want me to bring to the tribunal?"
Major Heartford shook his head, "There's nothing to bring against them. They didn't attack us, they never tried to hurt us intentionally. Some of my Marines were injured when that one escaped, but it wasn't out for blood." He sighed, "I hate to say it but it looks like we were practically the proverbial bad guys here."
Artex smiled, "No, no, no you've got it all wrong. YOU'RE the victims here."
Major Heartford looked at Artex like he had suddenly sprouted another head, "How?"
"Here you are, stalwart defenders of the innocent, helplessly taken from your home against your will and thrown into a world where you don't even speak the language. You kept your honor. When the Gryphons discovered you they didn't try to offer you food or shelter. No they called their neighbors to do it for them."
Major Heartford scowled deeply at Artex, "That's not fair to them. They didn't know what our situation was." He shook his head, "No we're not doing that to them. I may not trust them, but they could have handled the situation much worse. They aren't the enemy as far as I can tell."
Artex rolled his eyes, "That's the way that tribunals work here though. Everybody is guilty of the good they could have done as well as the negative deeds. In this way, all parties are guilty and each side walks away having learned what they could have done better for future reference. This is a stage for compromise, Major. The end result should be that nobody is happy with the outcome but everybody is willing to live with it. It's one of the biggest differences between this world and Earth. The beings here think differently on a fundamental level. On this world the deck is stacked in your favor, all you have to do is not screw it up."
Major Heartford scratched his newly shaven face thoughtfully, "So... how do we begin?"