Megan Williams of Equestria

by MrNelg

Chapter 2

Nothing interesting happened at the checkpoint. At first, Megan thought this might be customs, but no. They just exchanged unintelligible banter before handing over what looked like gold coins, and then after signing a ledger, they were passed on through. Megan noticed that the griffin soldiers, again all female, wore a strange symbol on the crest of their armour. It was of an edged shield before a griffin. The griffin was soaring into the sky, its wings majestically spread out other either side while above its head, and two gladius swords were crossed over each other. The same symbol was on the horizon blue banner situated off to the side of the road, which flapped in the strong breeze that blew in from the ocean.

After this, they entered the city, or rather, the industrial sector. A few griffins plodded along the roads, but a good number of them soared high above. The roads appeared to be reserved for non-griffin traffic. Like their caravan. The buildings were wooden structures with stone supports. They appeared quite advanced. The smells coming from a good number of the buildings indicated that the economy here revolved around food. Not surprising considering how close they were to the sea. Fish smells dominated the air, and some griffins wore cloaks over their bodies as they entered and exited from the many warehouses that lined the road.

Finally, they reached a warehouse which caused the caravan to halt as the door was unlocked, and then slid open. The boar was ushered inside and once all were in, the door slid closed. No lights were lit to unravel the darkness as the griffins set to work. Megan suspected that they could see perfectly well in the dark. Her cage was lifted down and placed aside as item after item was removed from the boar. Finally, once it was all finished, the boar was lead over to a stall where it was led inside.

Megan could only look through her peephole as the griffins went about their business. The items that the boar had been carrying were divided into two piles. The ones that were sacks and barrels were separated from each other. Megan remained where she had been placed. She tried to distinguish the many griffins, attempting to make out any differences between individual's that would make it easier to identify them. The only real difference she could make out was that one of them, a rather big looking female, had head feathers that appeared to mimic human hair. These feathers were coloured red and black, like a striped pattern running across her head.

Growing bored with that, Megan tried to see what else of the warehouse could be seen through her tiny peephole. Nothing of significance. It was fairly small, with the boar's stall taking up about a quarter of the space. The rest appeared to be reserved for storing and crews quarters. There were a number of camp beds at one end of the building, which a few griffins were placing duffel bags besides.

After all activity ceased, the griffins then left the warehouse through the sliding door, locking it closed behind them. Once again, Megan was on her own. She leaned back from the peephole and groaned. This was going to be a long day.

She must have dozed off because the sliding door caused her to sit up with a start. She could hear the sounds of two griffins talking, and she leaned forward to look out through the peephole. She could make out Joan alongside a griffin wearing a hooded cloak. Behind them, the rest of the griffins shuffled in. They all walked over to the pile that contained the sacks, and Joan grabbed one, opening it up.

Inside were these bizarre red teardrop shaped things that were paper thin. Joan picked up one and tested it with her forepaws before the cloaked griffin. It looked like it was made out of metal. The cloaked griffin walked up and peered into the open sack, nodded, and then indicated to the others. Three griffins walked forth and opened up multiple sacks. They all contained the same teardrop shaped metal plates. A few were yellow. Megan's eyes narrowed as looking at them seemed to bring up a sense of déjà vu. A few of the sacks carried what looked liked large dinosaur bones.

Then Joan appeared to get excited over something as she led the cloaked griffin over to one particular sack and opened it up. Megan could not see what was in there, but the cloaked griffin gave an audible gasp. Then it too appeared to share Joan's excitement. Joan then pulled out a familiar looking contraption, the one with the jewel in its centre. It pointed it at the open sack, and the damn thing lit up like a Christmas tree, so much so that Megan had to turn away. The cloaked griffin nodded satisfactorily, and the griffins began closing the sacks up, and then to hoist them onto their backs, before heading out the door.

As the last of the sacks was closed, Megan's eyes went wide as it finally dawned on her, just what those metal plates were. Scales. Or to be more prices, dragon scales. They were the scales of the dragon that had tried to eat her. The frown deepened. What was so important about dragon scales? Her thoughts were cast aside as both Joan and the cloaked griffin were walking towards her cage. As they drew closer, she could make out more details on the other griffin and it caused her to frown. The other griffin looked different. Wrong almost.

They halted before her cage while Joan said a few more words, and then dramatically ripped of the sheet that covered Megan's cage. The griffin wearing the cloak was frozen for a split second before performing a rather comical double take at the sight of her. Megan rolled her eyes. Then frowned as the griffin moved closer. In the darkness, she noticed that its features were vastly different from griffins. In fact, it was not a griffin at all.

Failing to notice what Joan was doing, the griffin had moved off to the side to light a lamp, casting a flickering orange, yellow glow over the cage, and the surrounding area. At that moment, the new creature pulled back its hood. It was Megan's turn to perform a comical double take. She had been so used to dragons and griffins, that what stood before her caught her completely off guard.

It was a zebra.

It was an honest to God zebra. Although it was immensely shorter than a proper zebra, and more stocky to compensate for the lack of height, like a large dog. Its face appeared neutral, except for the constant twitching of its ears. It moved closer towards her, and then circled her, once, twice. Finally, it approached her cage, and put a fore hoof to its chin, almost mimicking a human thoroughly thinking. Megan nearly laughed.

Finally, it spoke to Joan in the griffin's tongue, shaking its head. Joan frowned, and spoke back, gesturing at Megan. The zebra gave Megan one more disbelieve look, before repeating what it said, more emphatically this time. Now Joan looked worried. Although her features were alien, many of the facial expressions she made were alarmingly human.

The zebra said something with a hopeful tone, to which Joan simply shook her head. She repeatedly pointed a claw at Megan as she spoke slowly as if trying to hammer home a point. The zebra turned to look at Megan, and then asked something that made Joan all flustered. The zebra's eyes narrowed in a pseudo human expression that seemed to ask, 'What are you hiding?'

The zebra then suggested something with a suggestive tone, to which Joan shook her head, a serious expression on her face that told the zebra not to ask that question again. The zebra sighed and spoke to Joan, who just made an unpleasant face. She looked from the zebra to Megan and back again.

Finally, Joan sighed in defeat and walked over to a bag beside one of the camp beds. She came back with a length of rope, along with some rags, and Megan instantly realised what was going on. She was going for a walk. Joan opened the cage door, and motioned for her to hold out her hands. Megan complied, and her wrists were tied and secured. Then she climbed out of the cage and waited. The zebra involuntarily took a step back as she rose to her full height.

Megan ignored it as Joan started placing the rags over her head arms, covering up as much of her exposed body as she could. Once she was done, Joan motioned for Megan to follow as she was led out of the warehouse and into the street. She shivered as the cold stone road stung her feet. She gritted her teeth as the wind howled around her in spite of all the rags over her arms and head. Damn it, she had to have to think of some way to tell Joan she needed her clothes back.

They walked down the street, encountering only a few griffins who gave curious stares at Megan. It was then that Megan realised that Joan had not covered her up to protect her from the cold. It was so that her human features would be hidden. However, for some strange reason, the instant they saw the zebra, their expressions turned into one of understanding as if the zebra were the explanation behind Megan. Every time a griffin got a glimpse of Megan, Joan appeared to get more and more irritated. It was as if Joan did not want Megan to be seen. Again, that would explain the rags covering her head, but she was the only bipedal creature she ever seen so far.

Their travels took them to another part of the warehouse district. This one smelt different. In fact, it almost smelt familiar. It took Megan only a second to comprehend why. It reminded her of the barn, back home. Where all the animals were kept. They came to another warehouse, this one much larger than the one she had been kept in. It was right on the dock, in fact the rear opened up to the large topsail schooner she had seen upon catching sight of the city. The zebra knocked on the door, and it was slid open. As they were ushered inside, Megan realised that the Zebra had given a rather fancy knock, much like one used to get into secret clubs in those old gangster movies.

Another zebra stood inside, holding the door open, and it appeared startled upon seeing Megan. Apparently, it was supposed to close the door right behind them for the zebra leading the way angrily snapped back at the door zebra in a language that was completely different to the griffins. The door was hastily shut, and the group moved on into the warehouse.

It was a zoo. Animals of all kinds were everywhere. Flamingos, alligators, so many different types of birds, chimpanzees, wolves, bears, lions, even a lone kangaroo. Towards the back, Megan saw an interesting sight. The griffins from her caravan were here. They were loading the sacks of dragon scales that they had onto the backs of other zebras, who in turn were walking out the back of the warehouse. Getting a through observation of the zebras, she could make out the different genders. The males were more stocky and defined with their muzzles while the females more slender and had shorter muzzles. The females also wore long, Egyptian eye make-up. That caused Megan to frown. How could you wear make-up over fur?

Nearby, stood a female griffin wearing a suit of armour that sported the same symbol similar to the ones she saw guarding the city entrance. She was standing by a desk, holding a bunch of papers in one hand, and a quill pen in the other. One of the other griffins sat opposite her, and as she professionally shuffled the papers, before placing them down before the griffin opposite it. The guard griffin was speaking in a monotone voice as she pointed numerous times at the sacks being loaded onto the zebras. She then reached into a bag around her waist, and pulled out more papers, adding them to the already large pile. She then handed the quill pen across and leaned back, waiting to see the response.

The said griffin placed the pen back in its ink well, and then reached down to slid a bag full of metal some things, for it clinked rather loudly as it was slid under the table towards the griffin guard. The guard idly glanced down at the bag, and reaching down, opened it up. Megan caught a glimpse of what looked like gold coins within the bag. The guard smiled and closed the bag up rather quickly. She then rose back up to the table, and taking the papers and the pen back from the other griffin, began filling them out.

Both Joan and the zebra she was with appeared pleased at the transaction that had just transpired. They started talking amongst themselves in the griffin tongue, an excited tone to their voices. Megan blinked in surprise. Did her griffins just bribe the customs department? Why? What was so special about those dragon scales that required them to be off the books? The customs agent blinked upon seeing her, and she heard Joan give a little growl of annoyance to the zebra who simply brushed it off. However the rags all over her prevented the griffin from completely seeing her and just like all the other griffins on the way over, she quickly lost interest. Instead, she picked up her sack of gold and left out the back. Her thoughts were interrupted as she was forced to keep moving.

They were escorted passed, over to a corner of the warehouse towards more cages. Then they came to a cage containing a gorilla. The animal in question was lying down on its side, and barely paid any attention to the three creatures before its cage. The zebra talked to Joan as it pointed at the gorilla. Joan, much to Megan's amusement, face palmed and began talking in an irritated tone, occasionally pointing at the gorilla and shaking her head.

The zebra listened intently, before shrugging its front shoulders, almost identical to the human gesture. It raised a fore hoof to its chin in thought, and then said something that Joan really did not like. She replied with an angry tone this time, and the zebra made apologetic and calming motions towards the griffin.

Megan would have given anything to understand just what was being said. She looked up at the gorilla, stilling not even bothering to acknowledge the presence of everyone before its cage. She cocked her head in thought. Was Joan trying to find out if more humans existed? She turned to look down at the zebra, before looking at some of the other animals in the warehouse. Was this zebra a trapper and seller of exotic animals? She turned her attention once more back to the gorilla and gave a satisfied smirk. Well, at least they had the right idea that she was some kind of ape, and not a monkey.

Observing the zebra with Joan, she was able to see the features of a male upon the zebra. So, it was a he. She did not know the zebra's name, but a quick glance around the warehouse quickly brought one to mind. P. T. Barnum. PT for short. Back on Earth, zebra's and gorillas both came from Africa. Did the same rule apply to this mixed up world too? Or some kind of African variant?
Then a thought popped into her head. Why not ask?

Megan coughed, grabbing the attention of both Joan and the zebra. She then said the Joan's real name, before pointing at the gorilla, and giving an exaggerated shrug. Joan was caught off guard and blinked. PT on the other hand just stood there, his jaw hanging loose in clear shock. Before Joan could say anything, the zebra let loose a torrent of alien babble directed towards Joan, jabbing a foreleg towards Megan. The griffin now took on a guilty appearance. She said something in a soothing tone, but it only served to aggravate PT even more.

Finally, Joan ended the conversation with a harsh sound that made PT wince. PT now took on a more apologetic tone but still did not lose his insistence. Whatever was being asked of Joan, the griffin just calmly shook her head in response. PT did not like the lack of answers and kept stealing furtive glances towards Megan. It was almost as if PT were afraid that the next time he turned his head, she would vanish.

Was PT trying to buy Megan from Joan? Why? She just made it clear she was not an animal but a thinking creature, capable of asking questions. The conversation abruptly came to a close when PT said something as he gestured towards a pouch on Joan's side. Megan recognised it as the storage pouch that contained that strange rock with the Jewel in its centre. Upon indicating it, Joan snapped something at PT that caused the zebra to take a step backwards.

With that, Joan grabbed the rope that held Megan's arms and unintentionally yanked hard, causing Megan to wince as she was jerked along. Joan was leaving. PT realised this and tried to stop her, but Joan just brushed right past him. As they left the warehouse, Megan cast one look back over her shoulder at PT. The zebra was busy talking with another zebra, making occasional gestures back towards her. The other zebra was listening intently, its eyes sliding to the side in order to get glimpses of Megan before Joan readjusted all the cloth coverings and finally, leaving the building.

Once outside, Joan led Megan straight back to their warehouse, their pace much quicker than the previous trip. Once inside, Joan rushed Megan back to her cage and gave a much satisfied sigh once she was safely locked away. Megan had no idea what had just happened.

She softly called out Joan's real name. Once she had the griffins full attention, she then gave what she thought was PT's real name. It was a word that she had heard Joan repeat often when talking to the zebra. She hoped it was his name. On the other hand, it could very well be 'Zebra' in griffin. After she said PT's name, she said Joan's name, then gave an exaggerated shrug.
Joan sighed. She pointed at herself, and then said her name. After this, she mimed a thinking pose. She then said Megan's name, and repeated the pose. Megan's eyebrows shot up with excitement. Joan truly did understand she was intelligent. She then pointed at Megan, said her name, and then pointed at herself, before giving the thinkers pose again. After this, she nodded.

She then pointed back at Megan, and spread her arms wide, encompassing the whole warehouse. She said two words, slowly. The first was followed by her name while the second was followed by PT's. Megan realised that she was telling her the names of their respective species. After this, she mimed the thinkers pose then shook her head.

So, if Megan could get a rough translation of what Joan wanted, Joan did not want her acting intelligent in front of the griffins or the zebras. The griffin reached through the bars to give her arm a soothing pat. She said Megan's name, followed by another word, which Joan accompanied with a smile. Megan realised that it was a positive word. She raised an eyebrow. Was this the griffin word for good? Joan repeated the words and gesture.

Megan pointed at herself, said her name and repeated the word. Joan nodded and smiled. Megan smiled back, and Joan jerked back. Megan froze, unsure of what she had done wrong. Joan sensed her distress and made calming noises. After settling back down, Joan said her name then pointed at her beak. She smiled, and this time, Megan saw that Joan's beak was closed as she did so. She then said the griffin word for 'Good.' Megan nodded. She then said Megan's name again, pointed at her beak, and smiled once more. This time, Megan noticed that her beak was open slightly. She shook her head and said another word. Megan mentally translated it as 'Bad.'

Megan gave an exaggerated shrug. What was wrong with the way she smiled? Joan sighed, and pointed to her beak, jabbing inside, towards the edges of the beak, and then made an exaggerated gesture of her own. A chomping motion. Megan almost cried out in understanding. They were afraid of her teeth. Looking at Joan's beak, she had not noticed they held no teeth of their own. Her mind flipped back to PT's warehouse. PT had smiled, but only with his mouth closed. He never once showed his teeth.

Megan rubbed her chin in thought. That would explain that time back at the griffin village her feeder had reacted so badly to her smiling at it. It would also make sense for a species that did not have any teeth to be deathly afraid of them. Megan nodded towards Joan. She said her name, and then tapped the side of her head. She smiled with her teeth, then shut her mouth and shook her head. She punctuated the understanding by saying the griffin word for 'Bad.' Joan smiled and nodded. Megan smiled back, this time keeping her lips closed.

Joan once more made soothing sounds, as she reached through the bars to pat Megan's arm, and then grabbing the sheet, threw it over her cage. Megan listened to the sounds of Joan's footsteps receding before the door slid open, then closed and locked. Megan smiled and pumped her fist in the air as best as she could within the confines of the cramped cage. She had made progress. Maybe with more time, she would get out of this damn cage. To Megan, the thought of being kept in a bird cage by birds was unsettling to her. Not to mention degrading.

Once more, being left alone gave Megan time to think about what she had seen. For starters, the night she first arrived on this world, it had not been a coincidence that she had run into both the griffins and the dragon at the same time. The griffins had been hunting the dragon for its scales and bones. She just happened to be the bonus prize.

Secondly, why had Joan taken her to the warehouse with PT if she clearly did not want anyone else to know that Megan was intelligent? And what was up with the gorilla? PT was a seller of exotic animals. Did Joan think that PT knew about her species? Was Joan trying to locate more humans? If so, why? Was there some big enormous threat to the griffins? Megan thought back to the dragon. The griffins were able to handle that pretty well, why would they need humans? What could be more powerful than dragons?

As she sat there, mulling over the bizarre equations, she heard the sounds of the door opening. Looking through her peephole, she saw a rather big looking female, had head feathers that appeared to mimic human hair. These feathers were coloured red and black, like a striped pattern running across her head. One of the griffins from Joan's caravan. She was leading a zebra into the warehouse. Was PT coming back?

Looking harder, she frowned. No, it was not PT. It was not even a zebra. It had the same build as one, but the fur on the front legs was an indigo blue. Plus the large grey cloak it wore obscured the rest of its body. There was a slight bulge in the hood, just above what should have been the creatures face.

The griffin led the hooded creature over to a pile of knapsacks. There, it quickly rummaged around in one. It kept making furtive glances over its shoulder at the door before it finally emerged with a large brown paper parcel. It handed over the parcel to the hooded figure who eagerly took it with its front hooves. It then gave the griffin a pouch which jingling sound as the bag of coins that had been used to bribe the customs agent.

The griffin opened it and squealed with glee. What happened next caught Megan off guard. The brown paper parcel then gained a blue aura around it, as it hovered in mid-air. Then it began to slowly unwrap itself. Only to the point where the hooded creature could observe part of its contents, before quickly wrapping it closed. Megan blinked in astonishment. The parcel was then levitated under the cloak and vanished from sight.

The hooded figure abruptly sneezed, and Megan was able to get a quick glimpse of a zebra like muzzle that was the same colour as its legs. The creature then made a harsh cracking sound as it moved its bottom jaw from left to right. The noise sent a shiver down Megan's spine, and she inadvertently groaned. The creature must have heard her because it turned in her direction all of a sudden. It pointed at her cage and made questioning sounds.

The griffin now looked nervous. Instead, she brushed off the questions, but pushed the hooded creature towards the exit. The hooded non-zebra obliged but kept casting curious glances back at her covered cage. Finally, both creatures left the warehouse, and she was once more alone.
Megan blinked. “Well that was short, but pointless,” she muttered. Thinking back on the scene that had just transpired before her, got her to thinking about Joan. It was obvious that there were secrets going on in this city, some of which the griffin herself was conspiring with. However, there were also secrets that even Joan was not aware of.

“The next question is, should I be worried about that?” It took a few seconds to realise that it was Megan herself who had said those words. Not surprisingly, no one answered her. She looked around for anything else that might keep her entertained, but alas there was not.

She must have dozed off because the sounds of rambunctious laughter abruptly filled the warehouse. She looked through her peep-hole and saw the griffins returning from wherever they had gone before. They were all talking excitedly amongst themselves, some even looking quite pleased. Megan watched as they headed over to their cots, and grabbed their bags.

Were they leaving already?

They all then shuffled over to her cage, looking for all the world that they were about to leave the city. Joan lifted up the sheet to grace Megan with a comforting smile, before dropping the sheet back down. She gave an order and the griffins all lifted Megan's cage up, and started carrying it out the front door.

They closed and locked the door behind them. So they were not leaving the city. Megan doubted that they would leave their pack boar behind. Instead of walking down the street, the Griffins attached a rope to the top of the cage, and with mighty flaps, lifted into the air.

Megan hung on for dear life as the cage swayed back and forth as the group began to gain altitude. Looking through her peep-hole was impossible as the view before her swung this way and that, also not helping her poor stomach. Although unable to see where they were going, she was able to determine that they were going up on an angle. From what she had seen of the city, Megan deduced that they were travelling up the mountain side. Or more importantly, travelling up to the buildings that were higher up.

Finally, the cage slowed its accent before finally, gradually lowering down to settle on a wooden floor with a dull thump. Joan snuck a quick peek under the sheet to make sure she was alright, and Megan was given a quick glimpse of a grand open doorway. Five guards stood watch over the entrance while a bright light showed from within. Past the entrance, lay some kind of foyer that ended in a large red velvet curtain. From behind this, echoed the sounds of laughter, music and other sounds she could not identify, all of which flowed out to mingle with the outside noises.

Outside the entrance, on the building, hung deep purple banners with a highly decorated outline of an elegant shield at its centre. Within the shield was an armoured griffin soaring towards the sky in a classic superman pose. Megan cocked her head. They were different from the banners she had seen at the entrance of the town. Not even the customs guard had sported that symbol.
Looking behind her, Megan nearly lost her stomach. Just as she had deduced, they were high up. They were up at the highest point in the city, that large mansion like building she had seen when they first arrived. The platform they were on, granted a view over the city below, the harbour and the ocean beyond. It would have been a rather pleasant view. If not for the fact that the share drop was two-hundred feet straight down, and the ledge that they were resting on may have been large, but sported no safety railings whatsoever.

After slating her satisfaction that Megan was indeed okay, Joan let the sheet drop and the cage was once more lifted up, and to her surprise, she was being moved in a direction that was not towards the entrance she had just seen. She had no idea where they were going, but there was a lot of grunting as the cage tilted on an angle, betraying the existence of stairs.

Eventually, they levelled out, and their footsteps creaked under the wooden floorboards much more loudly than before. From the sounds of the voices around her, they were in some kind of enclosed area. Looking through the peep-hole confirmed that theory. Then, were in a large open room.

Looking through, Megan saw a long wooden table, at which sat a large male griffin sitting on a large wooden throne like chair, a warm, welcoming was aimed at Joan. Behind him lay a deep purple banner with a highly decorated and more elaborate version of the banners she had seen outside the building at the entrance. Beside the big male griffin, female griffins sat at the table, along with a few males, and... She gasped. Was that PT? Her suspicions were confirmed when Joan pointed at the zebra and started squawking loudly, almost protesting. PT looked smug as he sat there. The big male griffin on the other hand, dismissed Joan's protests with a simple wave of his right forepaw and some gentle words.

Joan glowered at the zebra, before turning back to the big griffin and began talking in what sounded like a rehearsed speech. The big griffin cut her off halfway through and started speaking in a bored tone, with occasional gestures towards both Megan's cage and PT. Judging from the situation, Joan was bringing Megan here to show to this big griffin. From the way the said griffin spoke and the sly grin on PT's face, she was not going to be the surprise she was supposed to be. He then finished off his monologue with a series of low grunts that could easily be translated as, 'This had better be good.'

To Megan's surprise, Joan smiled back as she pulled off the sheet. Megan was now fully exposed to the whole room. It was a semi-circle shaped room, with overhanging lofts above. From these, multiple griffins in armour stared down at her. On the left side of the room, stood a huge grandfather clock, easily twice her height. She cocked her head at that. The inner workings were on display, and what they did display showed elaborate mechanical workings that looked highly above the technological level of these griffins. The walls were lined with paintings of either portraits of important looking griffins or landscape sized paintings of glorious looking battles. A good many of those battles were against other griffins. One painting showed the griffins duelling it out against a group of minotaurs. So, another mythological creature to add to the list of inhabitants of this world.

Looking at the minotaurs in the painting, they wore Linothorax armour and Corinthian helmets, modified to allow their large horns to fit comfortably through. They were armed with aspis shields and dory spears. In the painting, the minotaurs had been attempting a testudo formation against the griffins but the painting had them frozen in the process of the manoeuvre falling apart. Her eyebrows furrowed in concentration at the painting as the griffins, raining flaming arrows upon the minotaurs, appeared to be sporting the banners of the emblem that was behind the big male griffin.

Looking at the other landscapes of triumphant battles, the griffin victors were all wearing or proudly displaying that banner. Scanning the room, she saw that yes, the griffin soldiers all sported armour that bore the symbol of the big male griffin. A question went through Megan's mind. Why would there be two different banners in this city? The other banners belonged to the city guards and customs, but not to the guards of her current host. Not knowing anything about griffin culture was maddening. Her host was obviously the ruling power in the city, so why were his soldiers not guarding the entrance or controlling customs?

Observing the paintings that showed triumphant battles, she noticed something very odd about them. They were older than most of the other paintings in the room. Many of the griffin portraits looked newer, hell, some of the paint on one or two looked fresh while the battles looked like they had been hanging around for a long time. The paint was faded and cracked all of them. There were no new paintings of glorious battles anywhere.

Unable to find a logical answer, her mind began to wonder around, leading her to spot another grand entrance way, blocked off by a red main curtain. This was situated behind her. Beyond that, came the distorted noises she had heard outside. There must have been some kind of grand hall or something back there. Joan had not wanted to take Megan through there for reasons she could only theorise. Judging by the way Joan had been rather annoyed at taking Megan out in the streets, it was pretty obvious she wanted as little people, or griffins, to know about her as possible. A gruff sounding chirp brought her attention back to the big griffin. He had an interested look on his face, but he was still unimpressed.

One of the guard griffins from high above said something that caused the whole room to erupt in laughter. Joan did not look annoyed; she looked smug. All eyes turned on her, expecting an answer of sorts. Instead, she turned to Megan, said Megan's name, and then said the word for good, adding a questioning tone to the end. Megan realised Joan was asking her if she was good. She was trying to prove that Megan could hold a conversation of sorts. That she was an intelligent being. Would this get her out of the cage finally?

Megan decided to gamble on the chance. She nodded emphatically, causing a few frowns, before answering Joan with a word she had heard repeated many times in answering a conversation that ended in a questioning tone. She had mentally translated it as the griffin word for yes. There were a few gasps. Eyebrows shot up all around. Megan smiled. So that was the right word. She then decided to roll with it. She said Joan's name and the word for good, indicating that she could do more than just repeat words like a trained parrot. It meant that she not only understood the meanings of the words, but knew how to apply them in a basic sentence. That was undeniable proof that she was sentient.

The surprised gasps were more audible and numerous this time. Joan was smiling broadly. She then started preaching to the audience, with occasional references to Megan. She finished off her speech with a worried pause as she shot PT an equally worried glance, before asking a question of the big male griffin that contained a reference to PT. He looked fascinated, but said a short sentence that contained the griffin word for 'No.' Joan looked over at PT who still looked smug, and reached into her side bag, pulling out that strange device with the jewel at its centre. She held it aloft for all to see, before pointing it directly at Megan.

As always, it failed to glow when pointed at her. Megan rolled her eyes. What on earth was that thing? Her thoughts faded away as she became aware of something else. The lack of noise within the room. All eyes were staring directly at her, disbelief clearly visible. Even the big male griffin looked stunned. PT on the other hand looked like a salesman who had been ambushed by a fatal flaw in his pitch. Joan once more shot him a worried glance, before launching into another speech, occasionally pointing at PT, who was beginning to shoot daggers at the female griffin. All eyes constantly flicked back and forth between Joan and Megan.

Once she finished, she looked expectantly towards the big male griffin, who was still looking flabbergasted. One of the females beside him had to discreetly nudge him in order to get him to respond to whatever Joan had said. Now the griffin spoke softly as he pointed at PT. PT's smug confidence vanished, and he started shouting in rushed sentences at the griffin as two guards dived upon him, landing on either side and started pushing him towards the exit. Other griffin guards up in the rafters readied what appeared to be stone bows should the situation turn nasty. Thankfully, it did not. PT's shouting was almost pleading as he was escorted from the room. Finally, as he reached the curtain, he gave up, turning around and leaving with dignity. Not before shooting Joan one last angry glare.

All present watched as PT left, after which the big griffin gave a signal to those guards and with a nod, they walked through the curtain after PT. Megan was able to get a quick look at them taking up positions outside the door before the curtain fell back into place. Then, all attention was once more focused back upon Joan. Puffing her crest feathers out in triumph, she walked into the centre of the room and started up another rehearsed speech, aimed at the big male griffin. All in the room listened intently to what Joan had to say this time. There was no interruption. When she finished, at least a good solid chunk of the griffins extolled the speech. Some gave worrisome looks. A few looked like they had been sold something they did not understand.

The big male griffin, Megan sighed. He needed a nickname too. Observing him, sitting in his large wooden seat reminded her of a throne. Okay, a king's name, but what would be appropriate? Looking to either side of him, she once more paid attention to the numerous female griffins that flanked him. She smiled. He would be Henry the Eight.

Henry looked both worried and interested at the same time. Clearly what Joan was pitching appealed to him, but whatever it was also carried great risk, most likely for him. He kept making nervous glances towards the curtains and the noises that flowed in from the other side. This confused Megan. If both Joan and Henry were trying to be inconspicuous, why were they taking such massive risks with so many witnesses close by? Was there some kind of schedule that could not be delayed? Was there a time limit of sorts that was fast running out?

Henry then started speaking, slowly and deliberately. Watching the other griffins, Megan saw many of their faces beaming with joy. Joan herself looked overjoyed with what she was hearing. A few faces were worried. Megan was beginning to suspect that whatever gamble that Joan was proposing, the answer that Henry gave must have been akin to betting the entire house on it. That would explain the few worried faces and even a solitary alarmed one.

That griffin then rose and spoke in a careful speech towards Henry. Those faces that had been worried, nodded in agreement to the griffins words. The rest were neutral. A few looked as if they did not want to hear what was being said. Henry sighed heavily and spoke calmly in reply. It went for a while, eight minutes. When he finished, the griffin who had spoken up looked conflicted. He opened his beak to say something, but instead closed it. He nodded and sat down. Those who had supported him looked annoyed that he had given up.

Megan in turn had her own worries. What had she just gambled on? What if she could not deliver whatever it was that they wanted? Would they kill her if she could not? For all she knew, these griffins could have been expecting her to construct a thermonuclear weapon. She inwardly groaned at not thoroughly thinking this through.

Her train of thought derailed as Henry made a gesture towards her. Joan reached through the bars to pat her arm reassuringly. Megan looked worried until the sheet was once more thrown over her cage, and she was lifted off the ground. Her worry turned to curiosity as she realised that they were not going back the way they had come in. They were heading in a different direction. Stairs once more made their presence known, and Megan realised that they were going up even further.

To where? The attic? From the constant shifts in her balance, they were travelling up a winding staircase. Then her carriers levelled out onto flat ground. Finally, her cage was set back down on the ground, and Joan lifted up the sheet to greet her with a smile. She patted her arm again, and said Henry's name, followed by the word for good. She said Megan's name and the word for good again. She looked at Megan for a response. Megan rolled her eyes. What exactly could she do or say?

Then she knew. She said Joan's real name, then pointed both fingers at the ground, before giving an exaggerated shrug. Why am I here? She hoped that translated across. Joan looked perplexed, not by the question, but rather how to answer it Megan suspected. Instead, she just patted her arm once more, and then said the word for good, before pointing back in the direction they had come. She said Henry's real name and pointing at Megan, said her name and followed it by the word for good. She then dramatically paused, before miming opening the cage door.
Megan's eyes went wide. If she interpreted that right, it would mean be good for Henry, and you can get out of this cage. Megan said 'Yes,' and punctuated it with an enthusiastic nod. Joan smiled and let the sheet drop back down.

Megan listened to the sounds of the griffins retreating, before locating one of her many peepholes to look through. She was in some kind of attic. Well, she suspected so, for the wall she faced was slanted on an angle, with a large window allowing the moonlight to spill in across her cage and the floor. Before her, lay a highly decorated rug with an image of what looked like three horses upon it. Megan cocked her head. No, not horses. Horse-like beings!

On closer examination, she saw that all three of the horse creatures were different. The one at the rear was a regular horse, but the middle one had wings. A pegasus? The one at the front had a horn. A unicorn?

Pegasi? Unicorns? Why not? Griffins, dragons, zebras, minotaurs. She would not put it past this crazy world. The scene on the rug showed the three horse beings bowing down to two unicorn monarchs. The king and queen? It was impossible to tell as both sat in a ridged posture, head held high wearing jewelled crowns and decorated robes as the other horse beings all lined up to deliver their gifts. These included gems and fancy clothes of sorts. Why would unicorns need clothes? Situated above the horses in the centre of the rug was a strange symbol. It was a series of star patterns that reminded her of the constellation Southern Cross.

Looking around, there was not much else up here to observe. Plus, in spite of the moonlight, it was too dark to see what else lurked at the edges of the darkness. So, with a resounding sigh she leaned back and tried to get some sleep. On the bright side, that damn boar was finally out of her life.

***

“So what did you do, Grandpa?” Megan asked.

Sitting before her grandfather, at the tender young age of 12 years, Megan could not help but be riveted to the cushion she sat upon, as her grandfather regaled both her, Danny and Molly of his most daring adventure during the war.

His B-29 bomber had been returning from a mission when they'd been ambushed by a squadron of MiG fighters and, unfortunately, shot down. Grandfather had managed to escape, but only four others of the bombers eleven man crew had managed to escape.

As he and his surviving crew mates were approaching the front line, they had hit a snag. There was a large enemy encampment that was impossible to negotiate around. They had to go through the camp and the make matters worse, patrols were everywhere. How were they going to get through the enemy camp to friendly territory? Sitting ridged before her grandfather, Megan wasn't sure how even she could pull it off without the aid of a great fairy wand.

“The answer was simple,” he said with a wink. “We managed to sneak into the camp, and just strode around camp like we owned the place.” Both molly and Danny gasped.

“Were you caught?” Danny asked. Grandfather smiled at him.

“That was part of the plan,” he said. “Sneaking into the camp from the rear was the easy part. The hard part was moving around. There were no shadows for us to hide in because there were lights everywhere.” He gave a low chuckle. “Pretty dumb considering, but then again, what did you expect from Communists.”

“So what happened?” Danny cried, almost shaking with excitement.

“Before we made our first step into the camp, we waited and watched. We worked out the shift rotation of the sentries, it was almost clockwork. While waiting, we noticed that there were Russian officers in the camp. That was when I came up with the second phase of the plan. We waited until the sentry's shift was nearly up, when they were tired, and not as alert. That is when we went strolling on through.”

“Were you seen?” Danny had his hands up before his mouth in fear.

“Oh yes, we were,” Grandfather said with a laugh.

“W-what did you do!?”

“Well, before I answer that question, I am going to ask you one,” he said. “How does a magician pull a rabbit out of his hat?”

“Magic,” Megan said. Her grandfather shook his head.

“There's no such thing as real magic,” he answered. “Only illusions.”

“Then how does he do it, Grandpa?” Molly asked. Their grandfather leaned forward towards Molly, holding out both hands. Then with a quick flick of his wrist, he produced a playing card between the front two fingers of his right hand. Megan's eyes went wide.

“He distracts the audience,” Grandfather answered.

“So, you distracted the guards?” Megan asked.

“That's it,” Grandfather answered. “We walked along as a group. The first sentry we came across, I called out to him in Russian. This caused the soldier to pause. Then, I said to him in bad Chinese, 'What's the matter? Don't you know how to salute?'”

“Did it work?” Megan almost shouted.

“It sure did,” he said with a broad grin. “The soldier not only saluted, but turned about, and headed in the opposite direction. I knew the soldiers would be tired from the sentry duty, and not as alert near the end of their shift, that they would not question a Russian officer, whom they were probably used to giving orders, walking around at night.” He paused. “Nearly all the soldiers were conscripts, peasants that hadn't been trained too hard. All the proper soldiers would be in the trenches, not performing guard duty. They'd be more concerned with clocking off and going straight to bed.”

“And that is how you got through enemy lines?” Danny asked.

“Yep,” Grandfather said. “However, we did not push our luck after that. We kept to what little shadows there were, and sneaked through to the enemy trenches. Getting through them proved more difficult, as these were proper soldiers, not peasant conscripts.”

“What happened?” That was Molly. Grandfather smiled.

“Well, we ran into a soldier on duty and we thought we were done for.” Both Molly and Danny gasped audibly. Megan just tightened her hands on her knees. “Out of desperation, I tried the Russian officer bit.” He paused for dramatic effect. “But it did not work.” Molly let out a little scream.

“But you escaped, right?” Megan quickly added.

“Yep,” Grandfather answered. “You see, the guy was educated, and realised that we weren't escaped prisoners, but downed airmen. That is when I remembered something my commanding officer, a World War Two vet once told me. A trick POW's would use on prison guards and the locals. This soldier was no prison guard nor peasant farmer mind you, but I took a gamble. And it paid off. Turns out he had a massive sweet tooth, which we were more than capable of satisfying.” He laughed. “Enemy soldier or prison guards, all people love chocolate.”

“You... bribed him?” Megan asked.

“Sure did,” Grandfather answered with a laugh. “We practically loaded him down with all our candy rations, and he just pointed in the direction of our lines and it was pretty much, 'See you later alligator.' We were careful crossing no-man's land, but I nearly died when this cockney voice suddenly shouts out, 'You four there, hands up!'” He laughed out loud. “I never thought I'd be so grateful to see a Limey in my entire life.”

Both Danny and Molly applauded as Grandfather's tale came to an end. Megan just sat in awe. Not only at the story of her Grandfather's clever escape, but something else.

“How did you do that card trick, Grandpa?” Megan asked.

***

Megan never got her answer. The sound of a wooden hatch being opened dragged Megan back to reality. She blinked the sleep out of her eyes and looked around. Then rolled her eyes as she realised that the sheet was still covering her cage. Looking through the peephole, she could see it was still night outside, but the moon was no longer visible through the large window.

As if on cue, the sheet was pulled off, revealing a griffin, carrying a bowl of soup, complete with spoon, and a goblet of water. “Oh goody,” Megan said sardonically. “Room service.” The griffin seemed startled by her voice, but none the less approached her cage. As it unlocked the door, Megan realised it was nervous. She was about to reassure the griffin when she stopped. Its eyes were darting around, as it handed Megan her soup bowl. It wasn't nervous about her. It was nervous about something else.

Megan frowned. What was up with this guy? No, girl. How Megan had missed the armour she was wearing, which was staring her right in the face, was too embarrassing to think about. What was interesting to think about was the griffin herself. After closing the door to Megan's cage, she took a step back and watched her eat. Megan was both curious and alarmed at this. None of the other griffins had stuck around while she ate before.

She cocked her head in thought. What if this griffin was being ordered to stick around and make sure she ate her meal by Henry? Were they trying to make sure she was comfortable in her new home? That sent her down another path of thought. Was Joan about to leave her? She still ate all the while. Being fed only twice a day did make one hungry enough to eat whenever the opportunity arose.

She finished her soup and washed it down with the goblet of water. To her surprise, the water was chilled. She raised an eyebrow at that. If they did not have refrigeration, how did they chill the water? As she pondered that question, she began to notice an odd tang to the water.

Unfortunately, it came too late as she did not catch on until the goblet was fully drained. It had been there on the background of her tongue. A metallic taste of sorts, very faint. Now that she'd finished the drink, it was strong in her mouth.

Looking up, she saw that the griffin was now relaxed. Now it was Megan's turn to be worried. What was in that water? She rubbed her tongue around the inside of her mouth, trying to get a feel for what that metallic tang was. She crossed the possibility of poison off the list. Considering the lengths that Joan went to not only keep her alive and healthy but try to win her over to her side, it would be counter-intuitive to kill her now.

She eyed the symbol on the griffins armour. It was the one of Henry's group. She looked back up at the griffin and saw that she was now looking confused. Megan just gave the griffin a confused look back. Then she decided to ask it. She coughed, grabbing the griffin's attention, before pointing at the goblet, then giving an exaggerated shrug. It took a step backward. The look on its features was one of shock.

It did not take long for Megan to realise that it wasn't reacting to her being intelligent, it was reacting to the fact that she knew something was in her drink. Now the worry gave way to nervousness. The griffin looked behind her, then all around the room. “Way to be inconspicuous,” Megan said to the griffin, startling the bird once more. Again, she looked down at the empty goblet. It would not be poison. So what was it? She frowned.

Then snapped her fingers in triumph, startling the griffin yet again. “Drugs,” she cried. She cursed herself for not figuring it out before.

Something she should've realised way sooner, but didn't, was the dart that the griffins shot her with when she first arrived. It was drugged. However, it had taken its sweet time affecting her. In the meanwhile, she'd fallen down a hill, was nearly eaten by a dragon, and went for a mad dash through the forest before it finally began to make her feel drowsy. In all the time that had passed between then and now, she'd never once stopped to think about why it had taken so long for it to start working. Well, in her defence there was a hell of a lot that was shoved in her face at the time. Thinking about less than effective drugs was a long way down the list of priorities.

Now she was back at that particular junction again. If that were the answer, then she would not begin to feel sleepy for a while. However, that was not her major concern at the moment. That title belonged to the reason 'why' she was being drugged. Was this part of Joan's plan?

Looking at the nervous griffin, she wasn't able to tell. It could be that this griffin was just a patsy, ordered by Joan to drug her so that Megan would not know it was her. Was it something else? A missing piece of this bizarre puzzle that she had yet to grasp with her mind. If so, why did it involve her?

Meanwhile, the griffin was now panicked. It was pacing on the spot, casting more and more nervous glances behind her. Finally, it turned to hiss something back down the way it came. Megan could not see the hatch it had come from, but heard something else come up through. This one was another griffin guard. She looked baffled by the inaction of the drugs, but not worried as she stood there, rubbing her chin in deep thought.

Then it turned and said something to its panicky comrade. The griffin in question seemed unsure of the answer, and the other griffin just rolled her eyes. She stepped forth and opened up the cage, gesturing for Megan to hold out her arms. Megan was about to comply when she stopped. What was being asked of her was to hold out her arms so that they could tie her wrists together. That translated into 'She Was Going For A Walk.' Where and why?

As she looked closer, she saw something that looked familiar. The griffins head feathers were a combination of black and red. Her eyes widened. She was one of the griffins who worked with Joan, who had come into the city with the caravan.

She shook her head, and pointing towards the hatch, said Joan's real name. The griffin which was trying to get her out blinked then shook her head. She once again made the gesture for her arms, more vigorously this time. Megan repeated her demand, and punctuated it by folding her arms across her chest. The griffin once again demanded her arms, this time with a hint of anger in her voice.

She did not like the idea of going with these griffins. She was beginning to suspect that what they wanted to do with her wasn't what Joan wanted. She did not want to swap one unknown for another. She said Joan's name and yes, before holding up her wrists to show she'd let them be tied up. Then she said Joan's name and no, before folding her arms and shaking her head.
The griffin face-palmed. The one behind it was now looking so nervous it was almost cartoonish. The griffin gave an exaggerated sighed, and with a shrug of defeat, tried to get Megan to come out once more, this time, pointing to the hatch and saying Joan's name.

Megan sighed. The damn bird just didn't get it. She held up the goblet and pointed into it. She dipped her finger in, running around the edge before holding it up for the griffins to see, before sticking it in her mouth and sucking on it. She then mimed going to sleep, before asking the griffin word for yes, adding a questioning tone to it. The griffin which was trying to get her arms gave her a serious look, before turning to her companion. They spoke back and forth, before finally turning back to Megan, and said yes.

Megan nodded. She hated to reveal the fact that knew they were trying to drug her, but she had no choice. Whether they were taking her to Joan or not didn't matter. What did matter was that they had drugged her, and she now understood that their drugs take some time before they knocked her out. Since she could not put a time limit on when the drugs would kick in, a walk to an unknown destination could lead to her passing out in the middle of the street, exposed to the elements and whatever hostile parties were out there.

Considering that there were secrets in this city that Joan both knew and didn't know about, she just couldn't take that big a risk.

Why they were taking her for a walk Megan could only guess. Since their drugs didn't work, they would probably assume that they wouldn't work, period. There was no way they would know it takes time. Remembering the huge grandfather clock downstairs, she hoped that her next attempt at communication would work. Again, she held up the goblet and pointed into it. She dipped her finger in, running around the edge before holding it up for the griffins to see, before sticking it in her mouth and sucking on it. This time, she moved her arms as best as she could, and imitated the hands on a clock, ticking. She even added little tick, tick sounds. After doing that, she mimed going to sleep.

The griffin who'd been trying to coax her out did a double take. She turned to the griffin behind her and immediately started up a highly animated discussion, with gestures in every direction. The other griffin tried to calm down her companion, before suddenly coming up with an idea. She managed to get her friend to pause long enough to start explaining some new plan, to which the other griffin listened intently.

When the plan was finished, the griffin rubbed her beak in thought. Then she nodded. The other griffin reached in and started patting her arm, making soothing noises, before gesturing her to come out. Megan shook her head, adding the griffin word for no.

The griffin's paw gripped her arm all of a sudden, and Megan was yanked out of the cage. It all happened so fast, she was caught off guard and could only let out a startled yelp as she landed on the wooden floor. Before she could move, there was a heavy weight on her back, and her limbs were secured with rope before she could even blink.

“Hey!” Megan shouted, as she twisted her head to look up at the griffin that she now realised was sitting on her back. “What the f--!” Her voice was muffled as a cloth of sorts was shoved into her open mouth; so far in she almost choked on her own tongue as it was rammed up into the back of her mouth from the impact. Then another cloth was used to blind her. She thrashed around like a fish out of water, before clawed hands held her down.

She winced and cried out as the claw tips scratched her skin, and she stopped fighting. A clawed hand patted her head as she calmed down. She was lifted up off the ground, carried a short distance towards an open crate, then carefully, they heaved her up and over, before lowering her down gently inside. Once inside, they placed the lid back and immediately sealed it.
Megan tried to yell and move, but the ropes were tied so that any sharp movement caused pain to shoot up her arms and legs. She quickly stopped trying to shout too, as the gag in her mouth was pushed so far in that any attempts to scream proved impossible. Megan could not see much encased in the darkness of the crate, but she was able to manoeuvre her face towards a small hole in the wood.

The griffins seemed satisfied that she could not be heard from outside the crate. They nodded to each other, before suddenly turning and squawking loudly, making a terrible racket, as they flew straight for the exit.

Megan could not help but ponder what their plan was, before they returned with five more griffins in tow, Joan among them. They pointed to her open and empty cage, accompanied by frightened and confused squawking. They then picked up the goblet that held the drugged water and pointed to it, still keeping up their fast paced talking. Joan took it and thoroughly examined it. She abruptly threw the goblet aside, looking and sounding volatile.

She began squawking much louder than the other griffins had, as she started pacing on the spot. Megan recognised PT's real name mentioned over and over again. Megan so wanted to let Joan know where she was, but she could not make any sounds nor could she thrash about and make noise. Suddenly, Joan turned and shouted out something harshly, and all the griffins tried to exit through the hatchway at once, three stooges' style. The sight would've been comical had they not somehow managed actually to fit through the hatchway. Joan herself followed suit, her loud squawking echoing up from down below.

Megan just lay there, inside the crate. She'd been kidnapped again. This time, by an unknown party. Joan at least felt like a weird friend of sorts. Even if she did drug her, and keep her in a cage. She was still nice to her and had even promised to get her out of her cage. The real question now was who had kidnapped her? Would they be as kind to her as Joan? From the racket that Joan made, it would appear that the guilty party was setting up PT to take the fall. She frowned in deep thought.

Or be the distraction.

How does a magician pull a rabbit out of his hat?

The question rolled around inside her head as she lay there. Hours seemed to tick by in a boredom that was slowly eating at her sanity. Not being able to move an inch was maddening. Finally, she felt drowsy.

So, the drugs were finally kicking in. She cursed herself for not timing the effect. Then again, she did not have her watch. Her eyelids felt heavy as she sighed and just gave up. It was no point fighting the drugs. They'd win just like the last time. As they closed and refused to open, she could only pray that whatever would happen next, wouldn't be a worst case scenario.

***

Megan leaned back in her chair, plucking at the strings of her guitar, attempting a fast rendition of Kenny Rogers’ 'The Gambler.' Beside her, her father lounged in his chair, listening with a pleasant smile on his face.

“You got to know when to hold 'em,” Megan sang. “Know when to fold 'em; Know when to walk away; And know when to run; You never count your money; When you're sittin' at the table; There'll be time enough for countin'; when the dealin's done.”

Keeping up the fast tempo proved more difficult than she first thought, as she struggled to move her fingers into place for following notes. The song abruptly ended when Megan's fingers slid off the top strings, making a loud, off-key screech that caused her father to wince. Megan grunted in annoyance.

“Don't be too hard on yourself, Megan,” he said, sitting up. “You were doing quite well there.”
“I almost had it,” Megan said a slight hint of irritation slipping through her words as she flexed her fingers. “I always have trouble proceeding through the notes during that part of the chores. My fingers just don't move fast enough.”

“Calm down,” her father insisted. “Christ on his cross girl, you're not superwoman. You cannot do everything right. You're always going to make mistakes.” He smiled warmly at her. “You know, you've been improving greatly since you started. Heck, that time you hardly made any at all. Do you remember the first time you tried it at that pace?”

Megan rolled her eyes. “I would rather not,” she said. Her father nodded his head.
“Exactly,” he replied. “You are getting there. Slowly but surely, you are getting there. As the old saying goes, Rome wasn't built in a day.”

“But I'm not getting there fast enough,” Megan complained. “Granddad said he had songs more complicated than this, mastered when he was half my age.” Her father frowned.

“Dad comes from a different upbringing, Megan,” he said. “You've got to stop comparing yourself to him. Your talent will improve with practice, but it won't improve if you keep trying to live up to impossible expectations. Granddad was forced to play the guitar. You asked to.”

One side of Megan's mouth twisted in indignation. “But why can't I get that one verse right? I've practised till my fingers are numb.” She flexed the said appendages.

“You cannot always get everything right, Megan,” her father answered with a sigh. “You'll always do something wrong. The real answer you should be looking for is how you handle the outcome. When you make your mistake, you will be faced with a choice. The choice you make will determine how you manage other such problems. You can cry and moan about it, or you can do something about it. Remember, it's not about falling down, it's how we pick ourselves up is what counts.”

“Yes Zen master,” Megan said with a mocking salute.

Her father cocked an eyebrow, and then smiled. “Well, if you are not going to play, why not let me?” He held out his hands. Megan clutched the instrument to her chest as if it were a life preserver.

“No way,” she teased. “I like having my hearing intact.” Her father answered the jibe with a mock hurt expression, before both of them laughed.

“So, what are you going to do?”

***

Sunlight.

Megan winced as a sliver of the sun's rays was mockingly stabbing her right the eyes. She grunted, but no sounds were forthcoming due to the large cloth gag in her mouth. Good God, her head felt like someone was inside pounding on a base drum. She tried to raise her head but found any attempts at movement were blocked by something hard, with a wooden feel to it.
She opened her eyes and immediately regretted doing so as the sun light went right through her eyeballs to ricochet around inside her throbbing skull. She managed a muffled growl as she slammed her eyelids shut. Trying to move her whole body was impossible, as not only was her movement blocked by the wooden objects, but her limbs were held together with something that felt like rope.

Rope?

She momentarily calmed herself down as the events of last night returned to her like a smack on the side of the head. She sighed. Cracking open one eyelid just a slither, she attempted to move her head out of the sunlight. That proved impossible due to the confined space she was located within. With another sigh, she closed her eye.

She had so many questions. Where was she? Was she still back in the attic, or somewhere else? Had she been rescued? No, she'd be out of this crate if she were. Would her new kidnappers let her out? Would they be better or worse than Joan?

With nothing else to do, she strained the only other of her senses she could use in this situation: her hearing. There was much creaking. Wooden creaking. It almost sounded like those old sailing ships in movies.

Then there was a new sound. Footsteps. Many footsteps. They were stomping above her. Strangely, not too far above her. There were voices, as well. Two. One sounded agitated, the other was more calming, almost soothing in nature.

The sunlight was blocked from her view as the footsteps came to a sudden stop, allowing Megan to open her eyes. She was still inside the crate she'd been stuffed into, but it was now clear that she wasn't in the attic anymore.

Then she paused. She knew one of those voices. The agitated one was Joan. She could not make out the other. Although muffled by the layers of wood between them and the language barrier, Joan sounded like she was cursing a blue streak. The other voice was calm and precise. Whatever they were saying only furthered Joan's anger. There was a stamping of a foot, followed by some very stern, but calm words. Joan was silent, and then sighed. Her voice now took on an apologetic tone.

Megan wanted to let Joan know she was down here, but she could not make any sounds. Her body was tightly constrained so she could not bash a limb or something against the wooden crate. She could only lay there, listening as Joan explained something in great detail. Finally, it was the other person’s turn to sigh. They gave hopeful idea, to which Joan gave no answer.

Then they gave another hopeful suggestion. This time, Joan grunted in agreement, and the two turned about and left. Megan listened to the sounds of their footsteps receding with helplessness. She could not even do anything to let Joan know she'd been standing right above her. Who was this mystery person, why did they want to steal her, and why did they want to blame PT?

Her mind travelled back to the dining room last night. PT had not exactly been subtle when he was thrown out. Who ever had kidnapped her had no doubt saw that and figured PT would be the easiest to blame. So who was it? A rival to Henry the Eighth? Again her mind wandered this time to those griffins with the other symbol on their armour.

That again got her to thinking about the power balance in this city. Who did those other griffins represent, and how come, if they could so brazenly control the law and order of the city, did they have to resort to sneaking her out? If they were blaming PT, and detaining him, then they could sneak her out through the harbour on one of the many ships she saw.

Whatever the answer was, she would be finding it out soon.

The sun's movement across the sky was measured by the sunbeam that was shining in her face. Eventually, it moved out of her eyes, allowing Megan to be able to use them. But it was a fat load of good when she was encased in total darkness. Even when her eyes began to adjust all she could see was the wooden walls of the crate. Looking up, she could make out the light shining down through the cracks. It would be interrupted now and then as someone walked across the wooden floor above.

She grew so bored that she even tried to go to sleep. However the constant noises prevented that from happening. She thought she'd be able to do it since she'd been so used to the giant boar's snoring. So she waited. And waited. And waited.

The sun had long since vanished from the cracks in the wooden crate when there were three loud bangs from above her. Something opened, and her crate was being moved. She was lifted up from below, up onto a wooden floor. Then, the lid of her crate was pulled off.

Megan blinked up and squinted at the light that was shone into her face. She tried to tell them to shine it elsewhere, but the cloth gag only allowed her a muffled grunt. Besides, it wasn't like they'd understand her. Instead, she tried to turn away. There was a soothing voice, and the light was lowered. Looking up, her eyes bugged wide, almost threatening to pop out of their sockets. Hovering above her, looking in, was the last creature she expected to see.

It was PT.

PT had kidnapped her? Why? Why would he do so, if he knew that Joan would come straight to him? Hell, she did so. She must have even come back, considering that there was no way in hell he would've been able to slip her aboard his boat without her seeing. She paused. Or was there?
How does a magician pull a rabbit out of his hat?

If PT were going to kidnap her, it would be pretty damn obvious to anyone who the culprit would be. She remembered that she had not been moved out of the attic, but hidden there. They'd called in Joan, told her that she was gone, and Joan had gone straight to PT. So, if he was the first person they'd come to, they'd search his place from top to bottom, tear everything apart, and they would not find her. She would be still back in the attic.

So, if they didn't find her at PT’s when they first went there, then they wouldn't be so thorough in searching the place later on. Or they wouldn't be so vigilant if he were loading cargo, or crates onto his ship. He'd slipped her through, literally right under Joan's nose.

Now the most important question: what next?

That was answered when hooves appeared and lifted her out of the crate and onto the wooden floor. They were in a ship all right. The wooden walls that surrounded them could not be anything else. What else surrounded her were zebras. Not only PT, but five others.

PT appeared over her with a knife clutched in his mouth. Her eyes widened with fear, and he must have seen this, for he suddenly reached out with a hoof, and stroked her skin softly, reassuringly, just as Joan had done many times before. Megan stopped shaking, but the fear did not leave her. PT saw this and gave a quick swipe of his head. Megan tried to scream, but she felt not stinging pain of metal slicing through flesh. Instead, her arms and legs fell free.

Run. That was the first thought that went through Megan's mind. But she did not. The rational part of her brain reminded her that she was surrounded. She probably wouldn’t make it to her feet before they pounced on her. Instead, she looked up at PT, now minus the knife. He smiled back down at her, and gestured for her to stand.

Rising to her feet felt weird, after so long being cramped in that cage, and then that crate. She was still wearing her bare skin rug which she hugged tightly to her. PT smiled again, and this time, he said her name, and then pointed towards a stairway, leading up to an open hatch. No light shone down through the hatchway.

Megan turned from the stairway to PT. Pointed at herself, then at the open hatch. PT nodded. Go on; go up, he seemed to be saying to her. Megan turned and looked up at the hatchway. What was up there? Only one way to find out. Slowly, cautiously, she stepped towards the stairway. No one moved to stop her. She took another step, before slowly walking forward, and up the stairs.
Looking up through the hatchway, she saw a cloudless night sky, filled with thousands of blinking stars. PT's voice sounded behind her, urging her to keep going. She walked up the stairs and out into the open night air.

There were a few more zebra's up on deck. All doing various chores and they trotted this way and that. A few stopped to stare at her, the rest attempted to look like they were still working, but they were keeping an eye on her all the same. She ignored them.

Looking past them, she saw the still ocean waters. She looked behind her and saw the same sight. A slight sense of dread slowly trickled down her spine. Spotting the highest point on the deck, she hurried for it. There were no cries of alarm as she walked, no hooves grabbed her. She moved unimpeded, although a few zebras scurried out of her way with unintentional haste.
She reached the spot and looked around in all directions. Nothing but ocean. There was no escape from here. She did not know whether to laugh or cry. Footsteps, no, hoofsteps behind her caused her to turn and see PT, watching her. She was now his prisoner. From one prison to another, she thought bitterly. On the plus side, she wasn't in a cage anymore.

PT called out to her, and motioned for her to come down. She did so and stood before him. She said his name, then mimed being tied up, and followed that by an exaggerated shrug. PT nodded then spoke in griffin.

<Me-ghan, good. Me-ghan, ****.> The word he said wasn't in the griffin tongue. It had an alien sound to it, and it only took Megan a few seconds to realise he'd said that word in his own language. He then said the word again and mimed a thinking pose. Intelligent? She folded her arms. He already knew that. He had known that since she'd spoken before the gorilla in his own warehouse. She gave an unimpressed snort, followed by another exaggerated shrug. He said Joan's name, followed by the word of bad. Megan scoffed loudly at that. Joan, bad?

She said Joan's name, followed by bad, and shrugged. She said PT's name, followed by bad and shrugged. She said Joan's name, followed by good, and shrugged, and finally, PT's name, accompanied by the word for good and shrugged. She then mimed a headache and gave an exaggerated shrug. Hopefully, that would get the point across. She did not know whom to trust. Or she had just confused the tar out of him.

He must have understood because he paused in deep thought. He looked around, then pointing at Megan, said her name, then said his own, before sweeping his hoof wide, encompassing the whole ship. He said Megan's name once more, followed by Joan's. Then he rose onto his hind legs, a little wobbly, and mimed holding bars. He then fell back down to all four feet.

The point was clear. She was free to roam the ship, and was not stuck in a cage. Still, could she trust him? Both PT and Joan had drugged and kidnapped her. However, PT wasn't keeping her in a cage.

She sighed in frustration. Turning to PT, she nodded. “Fine, I'm yours,” she said. What else could she do? Jump overboard? She looked over at the endless expanse of the ocean before turning back to PT. The zebra was nice to her, and refusing to go along with him could result in something much worse. She'd have to take a gamble on him being nice. Just as she'd had to do the same thing with Joan.

Damn it, she just wished she could have some idea what it was that everyone wanted with her. Why was it every creature they encounter wanted a piece of her? What was so God damned special about her that required her being sneaked past everyone? To be kidnapped from kidnappers?

She paused and turned back to PT. An idea popped into her head. She called out his name, grabbing his attention. She said his name, followed by her own, then holding up both hands, mimed two people talking. The zebra's that were watching Megan all looked on with growing curiosity as her fingers worked.

PT enthusiastically nodded. He then thought for a moment, looking up at the moon in the night sky, then shook his head. Before Megan could question why, he pointed at her, then mimed sleeping. He then pointed at her again, before speaking in his own language. He could not do the sign for 'Yak-yak,' with his hooves like Megan could do with her hands, but the point was clear. Sleep now, then we'll start language lessons tomorrow.

Almost on cue, Megan herself yawned and she believed she heard PT chuckle. He motioned for her to follow him, presumably towards her bed, but interestingly enough, it wasn't back down the way she'd come. It was towards a large door near the rear of the ship.

PT opened it and motioned for her to go on inside, which she did. The inside was cramped, made for a creature of PT's height. Megan was forced to bend down as she followed PT. The room itself was small. A large table sat near the rear of the room, behind which was a large window, granting a pleasant view of the ocean outside. There were three cupboards containing who knew what. There was a simple wooden poster bed with a draw curtain surrounding it.
PT called her over to a rug with a pillow and sheet that lay not too far from the bed. PT patted the spot and mimed going to sleep. Megan could not help but raise an eyebrow. Well, it wasn't a bed, but it wasn't a cage either. So far, so good. Megan sat down on the rug and pulled the sheet over her, before lying down her head on the pillow.

It was soft and extremely fluffy. Megan closed her eyes and let out a contented sigh. She never thought a pillow could feel so good. Looking over at PT, she saw that he was looking rather pleased. He nodded to her, before climbing into his own bed. Megan could not help but watch with rye amusement as he pulled back the sheets with his teeth, climbed up onto the bed, and then snagging the curtains with his teeth, drew them shut. She could make out his silhouette laying down and once more, using his muzzle to pull the covers atop himself.

She'd found the sight rather comical, seeing human like objects being used by a creature that wasn't human. She tilted her head slightly. Did he find her amusing to watch in action? The zebra's on deck had been intrigued by the way her fingers worked. The griffins had finger-like claws, but having observed a good number of them in action, they did not have the dexterity of humans.

She turned away to look out the window at the starry night sky and the ocean as her mind began to work around the new problem at hand. What would happen to her now? Whatever Joan had planned for her, she'd never know. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? Was her future with PT for better or for worse? So far, it looked better. PT gave her a bed, not a cage. He gave her free roam of the ship. However, all that new found freedom would be tested once they hit shore.
And what would happen then?

What did PT want with her? Was it the same thing Joan had? Or something else? If she could learn a fraction of the language, maybe she could start asking questions. PT obviously had some secret trade deal going on with Joan, and he had risked a great deal not only stealing Megan from her, but covering his own tracks. Thinking back to the griffin city she was now leaving behind, she thought back to the shady deals she'd witnessed. The bribes, the backstabbing, the unknown deals. She had a feeling that she'd only scratched the surface of the secrets that lay beneath.

And would they come back to haunt her?

Author's Note:

Hey guys. Sorry for the slowly update, but here it is. Chapter 2. There's a lot more story to come and I hope to get the rest up soon. By the way, if some one would like to be editor or a pre-reader for me, that would be greatly appreciated. Please, tell me what you think. Constructive criticism wanted.

Comments

[Mad Library Scientist]

You should seriously consider starting a companion story to this, from the perspective of the griffons, zebras, and whoever else will turn up.

[MrNelg]

3297499 Interestingly, when I first conceived this story it wasn't from Megan's POV. The reason I made it so was because I wanted the audience to be unsure of who were the villains and heroes. One thing I've learnt when it comes to writing is a good political thriller, is to write a story were the audience has no idea whom they can trust. Maybe later, but not right now. To do so would spoil too much.

[Moon_Dew]

Are the Mane 6 going to be a part of this story, or is this before they were even born?

[MrNelg]

3298132 That question will be answered in chapter 3.

[Jlargent]

You should check this story out. It might give you a few ideas.

[Adin]

Well your spelling is terrible, your prose is weak, and your protagonist is dumber than a box of rocks. Overall dissapointing.

[Pinklestia]

This story is going great so far, maybe you could look for a beta readers in fanfiction.net?

[Zap Transfer]

3351273 Your lack of criticism astounds me. Out of the three very general issues you have with the story, the only one I've noticed to even have a slight bit of truth would be the grammar. And that's at very isolated, occasional times. Overall, you're an ass. Like the user said above, either actually give feedback, or shut up. That's just uncalled for.

Anyways, I'm honestly coming to enjoy this story quite a bit. I'm somewhat unused to stories without much dialogue, but this one seems to execute it well regardless. Megan isn't a dull character, and neither are any of the characters so far. I genuinely don't know what's going to happen with Megan, whether she just got thrown into much worse of a situation, or that PT may very well have been helping her. Either way, I'm interested, and shall continue reading! :3

[eraser]

A frontline soldier letting airmen go? Unlikely.

[DerpyDucks]

Joan was defiantly trying to make her seem like a trained pet she's totally the bad guy, pt is saving her and bringing her to equestria.

[SaphireHoyt]

3351273 ....... Dude... I'm hooked on this story... And ALL the words I've read are spelled PERFECTLY.