//------------------------------//
// Report To Commander Cat Bird 
// Story: Utaan 
// by Imploding Colon 
//------------------------------//

	Rainbow Dash said nothing.  She stood with her limbs locked in place, crouched on the northwest corner of the building's dim interior.  Several steam tanks and catwalks loomed between her and the source of the echoing voice.

"Every time we catch you, you get away," Seraphimus' booming voice rang off the metallic structures all around.  "And yet every time you flee..."





"..we catch up with you."

Seraphimus glared into the shadows as she took her first step, pacing slowly away from the front entrance.  On icy claws, the Commander strolled through the dormant pipework.  Her charcoal eyes swept every space and niche inside the building.

"It is a pursuit that profits no one..."





"...and all that we manage to accomplish is chaos and property damage.  This doesn't do you any more good than it does Rohbredden..."

Rainbow's marefriends bit their lips, staring at their anchor.

Rainbow inhaled and exhaled with very shallow breaths.  She didn't dare make a sound.  On cat-like hooves, she slinked backwards and away from the griffon's reverberating voice.

"Except for one thing..."





Seraphimus took a deep breath.  She paused in her steps, staring limply into the shadows.

"What you do... and the actions you commit..."  She fought the urge to snarl, then eventually exhaled, "...they produce tremorous effects all across this countryside."  Seraphimus slowly shook her head.  "And I am none too proud of the ugliness that I see between the fissures.  Already, I have a real mess here in Steamfall to attend to... a corruption that infests Ivory Prefecture and possibly even deeper."  She craned her naked head around.  "I've no clue why the Consortium wants you so terribly.  But trust me, I will find out."





"But I simply cannot pursue this corruption and chase you at the same time.  And yet, to ignore both problems, I would be abandoning my loyalties to Verlaxion and the Tribes that she unified so many years ago..."

Rainbow Dash found herself backing up into a wall.  The mare gnashed her teeth—at least until she spotted a lavender hoof waving in her peripheral vision.  She glanced over, blinking.

Twilight gestured at Rainbow Dash, then emphatically pointed at the nearest steam tank.  Rainbow followed Twilight's hooves to a series of valves and a steam gauge.

Rainbow blinked, then glanced at Twilight.

Twilight and Pinkie Pie exchanged looks, then nodded back at Rainbow.

"I would like to believe that you are a civilized pony, Rogue."

Holding her breath, Rainbow Dash rushed over to the steam tank and gripped a valve in her fetlocks.  Slowly—with careful precision—she rotated the large metal wheel.  A dull hissing sound echoed from within the pipes—too quiet for Seraphimus to hear at a distance.

Rainbow Dash didn't stop there.  She scurried up to every over valve in front of her, rotating them quietly while her ghostly companions watched.

"My biggest mistake was assuming you were nothing more than a cretin of beastly nature."





"But my Lieutenant... Lieutenant Keris..."  Seraphimus weathered a melancholic breath.  "He gave me a very thorough... very honest testimony of what transpired at Red Barge.  If I had only taken his words more seriously... if I had respected his account of you as a flesh-and-blood creature beneath the shadow of your crimes, then perhaps I would have approached you like this earlier... and we both could have avoided many... many unnecessary moments of pure calamity."

With a steelly gaze, Seraphimus lifted her beak.  She growled into the shadows and pipeworks.

"Wherever you come from, surely it is a place full of respectful pegasi..."





"...and surely you must have a deep-seeded respect for what is lawful... for what is harmonic."

Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth.  She sweated as she twisted one valve after another.  Her eyes darted over, watching as the dial in each gauge rotated until it registered in the red.  The hissing in the interconnecting pipes intensified, and the air surrounding the tanks raised in temperature dramatically.

"I doubt that you wish to see this great kingdom collapse into ungodly corruption any more than I do.  And I know that you are not completely bereft of compassion."





"You saved the ponies in Braum.  Several ponies testify of this, as does my Lieutenant," Seraphimus said.  Her eyes swept left and right across the catwalks above.  There was a slight hint of warmth in her feathers as she spoke:  "Keris also speaks of the heroics that you nobly performed in Red Barge.  At first, I refused to believe that a pony capable of so many atrocities in the Quade could somehow be the sole reason for a completely different community's salvation."

Seraphimus took a deep breath.

"But nothing is ever going to change if all I do is approach this situation with a stubborn, spiteful heart.  It takes courage and tenacity to lead the Talon, and it takes even greater fortitude to protect this great nation."

She came to a shuffling stop, exhaling.

"And thus," Seraphimus muttered into the shadows.  "I concede that there is some good in you, Rogue.  At least... enough that is worthy of honor.  You have... no idea how difficult it is for me to say that... to choose to set aside my anger and resentment over the actions that you have committed in maligning Verlaxion and the Goddess' divine will."

She closed her eyes.  Swallowing a lump down her feathered throat, the guardian eventually said:

"And now... I propose that you attempt something very courageous and difficult yourself."  Her eyes reopened—charcoal slits adrift in darkness.  "Turn yourself in, Rainbow Dash.  Keris says that you are desperate to make your way east.  Well then..."  A deep breath.  Then deeper.  "Let us make that happen for you."





"...!"  Rainbow Dash froze, clinging to a valve.  Her muzzle hung open.  She looked over her shoulder.

Her four friends stared back, wide-eyed.

"If you give yourself up to the Talon, willingly and peacefully, I shall do my best to escort you east, through the heart of Rohbredden and beyond... to the midnight waters, if need be..."

Rainbow bit hard on her bottom lip.  Fighting heavy trembles, she glanced between the walls and the hissing pipes.

Twilight, Pinkie, Rarity and Fluttershy exchanged worried, uncertain expressions.

"You are obviously on a trek of great importance.  And as it currently stands—with such turbulence and opposition—it is benefitting nopony.  So why must we continue to let such strife reign?  What purpose does the hunt serve?  For you, for the Talon, or for Rohbredden?"





"Lieutenant!"  Starstorm flew over, followed shortly by Sarda and Raptr.  "You signaled for us?"

"That I did, Sergeant," Keris said, applying more bandages to the injured stallions.  "We have quite the development here—"

"Kayman!" Sarda shouted.  Breathless, he fell on his knees and grasped the pony's shoulders.  "Speak to me!  How badly did she hurt you?!"

Kayman winced.  "It... it was..."  A gulp.  "...v-very painful."  He shuddered.  "Boss, I... I-I'm sorry."  His eyes clenched shut.  "I... I told her.  I t-told here where to find the Rogue—"

"None of that matters, you lucky bastard."  Sarda managed a crooked smile.  "You're alive.  That's all I care about."  He looked over at Keris.  "How are the others?"

"Weak, but stable," Keris said.  "Alas, I'm not the expert."  He looked up.  "Starstorm?"

"My pleasure, Lieutenant."  Starstorm knelt down and began examining the villagers' wounds.  "Just relax.  We're going to get you back to health."

"Where..."  Raptr blinked, looking left and right as his helmet rattled.  "Where's the Commander?"

Keris took a deep breath.  With a single claw, he gestured behind him.

Raptr's beak hung open as he flashed a look at the structure.  "She's in there?!"

"Yes."  Keris nodded.  "And according to these gentlecolts, so is Rainbow."

Startstorm looked up, eyes blinking wide.  "She's in there with the Rogue?!"

Sarda and Kayman gaped at the sealed metal doors.  "Just what in the Hell is your boss planning?"

"To be perfectly honest..."  Keris gulped.  "...I'm not entirely sure."






"Dashie, don't even pretend to listen to that metal goose!" Pinkie Pie hissed.

"It's a trick, darling!" Rarity remarked, nevertheless trembling.  "It h-has to be!"

"But... think about it," Fluttershy murmured, looking over Rainbow's shoulders.  "Think about what she's offering!"

"And just what does she have to gain from escorting Rainbow through Rohbredden?!" Rarity exclaimed.  "There's no 'glory for Verlaxion' in it!"

"She obviously knows that this hunt is futile and pointless," Fluttershy murmured.  She waved a hoof.  "If Keris can change his opinion of Rainbow after dealing with the plain and simple facts, then surely his Commander can!"

"You sure of that?"  Pinkie muttered.  "She's the sliciest-and-diciest of the catbirds chasing Rainbow Dash!"

"Not to mention quite prone to anger," Rarity said.  "Keris himself implied that."

"You're all forgetting one key thing," Twilight Sparkle said, attracting the attention of everypony.  "This Commander is—above all things—loyal to Verlaxion and the Court named after her."  Twilight gulped.  "It's a dedication that transcends rationality... if not usurps it."

"So what are you saying, Twi?" Pinkie whimpered.

"She might think she's cutting Rainbow a break," Twilight said firmly.  Her brow furrowed.  "But when push comes to shove, she'll just revert back to a silver-plated witch hunter."

"Then that settles it!" Rarity exclaimed.  "We can't trust her!"

"I wouldn't," Twilight said.

"But she's offering us a free an unobstructed trip through Rohbredden!" Fluttershy exclaimed.  "That's precisely what Rainbow needs now!"

"Not everypony is as sincere and kind as you, Fluttershy," Twilight said.

"And what about when we get to Applejack?" Pinkie stammered.  "Isn't she—like—stuck in Verlaxion's HQ?"

Rainbow Dash's ears drooped as she slumped against the wall.  She clutched her skull, clenching her eyes tightly shut in deep thought.

At last, Seraphimus' voice rang through the building once more:  "Did you hear me, Rainbow Rogue?  Or are you busy contemplating what I've just offered you?"





Seraphimus looked left and right across the catwalks.

"I desire peace," she said.  "Peace for Rohbredden.  Peace for Verlaxion's foals."  She shuddered slightly.  "Peace for all families... and children under the Goddess' warmth."

Her grip of her helmet tightened.

Nevertheless, she relaxed her muscles in time to regather her words:  "And this chase... this absurd game that we're playing across the continent is not wholesome.  It is a catastrophic mess.  And we have the power to stop it—you and I."

Seraphimus strolled forward, her claws scraping coldly against the hard floor.

"So, how about it?"





"Will you be a responsible mare and accept my offer?  As I'm being a responsible guardin in giving it?"

Rainbow's ears twitched from the high-pitched whining of the pipes.  The air around her grew hotter and hotter as the gauges of the steam tanks fogged over from the overloading pressure.

"I dunno about you girls," Pinkie murmured, her hair limp and shiny.  "But I'm feeling party pooped."  A gulp.  "And I just dunno how much more of this Dashie can take!"

"But the Desperadoes have been so kind as to provide us a solution already!" Rarity whispered loudly.  "If we just find a way out of here and rendezvous with this Remna mare—"

"But Wyvern Point takes us in the opposite direction of Applejack!"  Fluttershy nervously squirmed.  "If Seraphimus sticks to her word—"

"But she's already given her word to Verlaxion."  Twilight gulped and looked straight at Rainbow Dash.  "Rainbow... it... it..."  She seethed, "All of this is up to you.  You've dealt with this kind of craziness before.  What do you think should be done?"

"... ... ..."  Rainbow Dash took a deep breath.  Her eyes opened up.

A scalding mist began venting from the seams in the red hot steam tanks.

Rainbow Dash slowly stood up.  With the mares watching, she lifted her head up to the ceiling and spoke out loud, "We can agree on one thing, lady!"





"...!"  Seraphimus slid to a stop.  She craned her feathery head to the side.

"We both have immense respect for Keris."

Seraphimus gulped.  "The Lieutenant and I go far back.  We've struggled through many trials together."  She tilted her head towards the reverberating sound of Rainbow's voice.  "His calmness and patience in the face of adversity has always been a major inspiration to me."

"Huh.  Would you imagine that?"





Rainbow paced slowly towards the center of the building.

"If you respect the Lieutenant so much, then you must respect his decisions."

"Indeed."

Rainbow waited until the Commander's voice was echoing back, and she spoke so that her voice rang along with it.  "Then it must mean something that he let me go..."





Seraphimus blinked curiously into the shadows.

"I... I'm afraid I don't read you."

"He let me go, Commander.  Back in Red Barge—he could totally have bagged me."

"Absolutely not."  Seraphimus frowned.  "He was gravely injured and—"

"He had Elsaack and the entire friggin' crew of White Barge at his back.  Sure, I could have given one heck of a fight, but I doubt I'd be here today if your beloved Lieutenant followed through with the same stupid orders that the Council gave you."

The guardian raised an eyecrest.  "What are you trying to say?"





"Isn't it obvious?"  Rainbow Dash spoke as she threaded her way through the pipes.  One by one, the metal tubes glowed hot red behind her.  The air on her end of the building grew thick with fog.  "I left Red Barge without any fight.  I entered Osmanthus uncontested.  In Seed Prefecture, I made some travelling buddies, and we giggled and trotted our way happily through the agricultural heart of your great nation."

She lurched to a stop along with her marefriends.

"Don't you see, Commander?  There was no fuss... no fight... no craziness or pain or struggle..."





Seraphimus glared into the darkness.

"... until you decided to intercept me.  So who's the one causing calamity here, huh?"

The Commander grumbled in a dull tone:  "You've committed terrible crimes and it's my duty to—"

"Yeah yeah.  You know what?  I've heard it all before."

Seraphimus breathed heavily, looking left and right in a desperate search for the source of that raspy voice.

"I've seen more sights and I've spanned more countries than you can even begin to imagine.  And someway, somehow, there's always some self-righteous goon who forcibly trips me along the path, insisting that might-makes-right and that their cause is pure without even bothering to question it.  And you know what happens?  Every time and without fail?  Those same melon fudges who refuse to think about what they're fighting for end up being totally burned by their own fruitless passions.  You seem like a pretty respectful griffon, Commander.  I would really... really hate to see you crash and burn like so many others who've butted heads with me before just because they could.  I mean—if you're the kind of friend to Keris that you say you are—then there's too much good in you to go to waste."

"And what of you, Rogue?"  Seraphimus spoke calmly.  "How do you know that you're trotting the righteous path?"

"Most of the time, I'm not.  But at least I have the courage to admit it."

Seraphimus blinked.

"What happened in the Quade was a mistake.  At the time, I felt like I didn't have any other option than to tear down the Reed.  I was wrong.  I was wrong, and I've since suffered a whole heck of a lot for it.  But that still doesn't change the fact that my journey is super friggin' important and I can't risk giving it up—not for you and not for me."

"Then take a leap of faith," Seraphimus said.  "Accept my offer."

"I can't do that."

"Why not?"

"Because I hear in you the same fool that I was a month ago... the soul who refused to think that there was more than one option... the pathetic idiot who thought that everything could be fixed in nothing but a straight line.  You wanna talk about leaps of faith, Commander?  Let me go."

Seraphimus tightened her beak muscles.

"Let me go... let it all go.  Your anger... your remorse... your insistence that catching me is somehow going to solve everyth—"

"You cannot begin to imagine what the stakes are," Seraphimus growled.  "How much I owe Verlaxion.  How much..."  She gulped hard.  "...how much she possesses."

"Well, that's the cost of faith, lady."

"...?!"  Seraphimus spun around.

Across a narrow space between tanks, the pony and griffon faced each other, naked eyes gleaming.

"It's not all about risking things for your Goddess."  Rainbow's ruby gaze glinted.  "But risking it all for yourself."

"Then let us take that risk together," Seraphimus said, turning to face her.  The sharp silver plates shifted on her taut muscles.  "Let us take you to the Court of Verlaxion.  Let us take you to the shadow of the Goddess' throne."  Her charcoal eyes narrowed.  "Let me fight for your freedom.  I and only I can get you to where you wish to go at this point."

"Really?"  Rainbow raised an eyebrow.  "And what if I refuse to acknowledge the 'glory' of your Goddess?"  She clenched her jaw.  "What if what my journey... what if everything I've learned and accomplished only serves to prove that she's not what she says that she is?  Would you and the Council still be so merciful then?"

Dead silence.

Seraphimus stared at Rainbow.

Rainbow looked straight back, unmoving.

"I refuse..."  Seraphimus growled.  "I categorically refuse to allow any creature—born this side of the Blight or beyond—to undermine the sanctity of our beloved Goddess in such an abominable fashion."

Rainbow took a deep breath.  "Figured as much..."  She slowly shook her head.  "And that's why I can't afford to let you take me anywhere."

Four ghostly mares blinked at Rainbow Dash.  Nervously, they turned to look at Seraphimus.

The griffon sighed.  "Alas..."  She dropped her helmet.  "...you need not worry about affording anything."  FWOOOOOOOOSH!  She crossed the distanced between them in a silver streak.

"...!"  Rainbow scarcely had the time to blink.  CLANGGG!  She found herself shoved against a concrete beam with Seraphimus' gauntlet around her neck.  "Aaaauckkkt!"  The mare winced from the pressure to her left side.

"Do not struggle," Seraphimus snarled.  "And I promise you no pain."  She raised the other claw towards Rainbow's face.  "It will be the last thing I can provide in your favor.  The rest will be up to the Council."

"Snkkkt..."  Rainbow's eyes teared as she dangled in the Commander's strong grip.  "Mrmmfffgkkkt... y-you hear thatttt...?"

"Hmmm?"  Seraphimus blinked.  Suddenly, her feathers fluttered from a hot gust of air.  She looked at the tanks beside them, only to discover that they were burning a hot red and rattling.  "What...?"

Rainbow managed a crooked grin.  "Shoulda let me go, ya turkey."  Whump!  Her lower hooves slammed into Seraphimus' breastplate.  Cl-Clank!

"Augh!"  Seraphimus dropped the pegasus.  Within milliseconds, she was lunging for the pegasus again.

And that's precisely when the overloaded tanks ruptured.

POWWWWWWWW!!!

Rainbow Dash was already diving.

Seraphimus—

"Rrghkkkt!"  She shielded herself with her wingblades as a misty mess of shrapnel and pipes cascaded violently across the building's interior, blanketing both of them in industrial chaos.  CRASSSH!