Steeled Betrayal
Deep within a chamber below the city of Canterlot, a ritual was about to take place. It had been years since Twilight, Cadance, Celestia, and Luna had been down here. The four alicorns stood within a marble room, at the center was a magic circle, with rune symbols and other archaic script written into it.
“It’s been awhile since we used this room, I almost forgot it was here,” said Cadance.
“Yeah…So did I,” said Twilight.
“This was the place we swore to keep our stronger powers locked away, and sealed that pact with this circle. As I recall, we made that pact when we first found out of our pregnancies, did we not?” asked Luna.
Celestia nodded. “Indeed, becoming a mother really did put things into perspective, for all of us. And it is for that same reason that we do this.”
Twilight stared at the circle, a feeling of trepidation entering her heart at the sight of it. The other alicorns looked to the youngest of their kind with worried filled looks.
“Twilight, you don’t have to –”
“No,” interrupted Twilight, “We voted, I have to do this…It…It has to be me who ends this war…!”
Celestia got in front of her former student and used her hoof to gently lift Twilight’s chin, allowing them eye contact. “Twilight, you mustn’t do this if you feel you can’t…None us really want to enter the battlefield. Equestria is a beacon to the others, to give them strength and hope in dark times. We must protect that hope, for the sake our children…”
Silence fell over the four alicorns, prompting Luna to step up. “Twilight, forget it, I’ll take your place. My sister and I have seen more than our fair share of battles, you should –”
“NO! I want to do this!” Twilight’s shut her watering eyes. “I have to; this war has torn my daughter apart!”
“But, I thought Star forgave you and Flash?” asked Cadance.
“She’s a better mare than me, because I can’t forgive myself! We crushed her dreams, we took away the one thing that she looked forward to in her life, trained so hard, and worked herself into the ground, literally, to be ready for that day! My daughter…My first child…I did that to her…And that is why I have to do this. I’ll face the enemy head on, she wouldn’t back down from a fight, and as her mother, and as High Princess of Equestria, neither will I!”
Celestia, Luna, and Cadance glanced between each other, Twilight’s resolve was firm, but they didn’t know what it would be like once she actually stepped hoof onto the battlefield. Twilight pushed past the three alicorns and stepped into the center of the circling, awaiting the initiation of the spell. With reluctant sighs, the other three High Princesses took up positions at three different points of the circle.
Celestia’s horn flared up with magical energy, followed by Luna, and lastly, Cadance. The three alicorn mares raised their heads and bowed down, touching their horns to the magic circle. Their magical power flowed through and activated it. Twilight stood still at the center, feeling the familiar magical essences of her mentor, friend, and sister-in-law. As the magic circle glowed something appeared around Twilight’s body. Chains made of aquamarine light were wrapped around her, and around her horn, with tiny glowing runic markings on them.
These chains symbolized the spell that kept their full magical powers from being used, the powers that some considered godlike. Twilight never saw herself that way; she doubted any of them did. They just had incredibly strong magic, magic that could do the impossible, and defeat the undefeatable. This power, which both excited and scared her, was the one thing that could raze a kingdom to the nothingness, or build up from ruin. Maybe that’s why some ponies see us a goddesses, our power has nearly no limit but that upon which we place on ourselves, guess that’s why I also saw Celestia as a goddess, and to a degree, even Cadance, Twilight speculated.
Suddenly the magical chains started to crack; Twilight felt a small surge of her full power course through her body. It was a hard feeling to describe, familiar, yet foreign. The chains cracked again in multiple places, causing Twilight to feel another surge of power. She nearly stumbled to the floor from the rush.
“Ease up,” said Celestia, “Too much too soon and we could over stimulate her nervous system.”
“And potentially blow every magical pathway in her body and cause a major backlash, you see why I didn’t want to do this,” said Luna.
“Maybe we should stop now, we can still repair it,” suggested Cadance.
“Keep going…all of you!” Twilight ordered.
With worry in their hearts the three mares proceeded. The chains continued to crack, releasing more and more of Twilight’s true alicorn powers. Twilight kept her senses about her, feeling her true powers flowing through her body. The first chain link snapped, and then the second, the third, the tenth, and lastly the sixtieth chain link snapped and then there was light.
It filled the entire room, Twilight’s cutie mark shined above her, symbolizing the release of her power. Her mane flowed in much the same way as Celestia’s and Luna’s, sparkling and undulating in a nonexistent wind, as if the very cosmos were embedded into her mane and tail. Soon the star symbol disappeared, and Twilight’s mane and tail returned to normal as she collapsed onto the floor. The circle powered down, allowing the other three High Princesses to stop the flow of magic and rush to the side of their friend.
“Twilight, are you okay!?” asked Cadance in worry.
“Twilight, please say something,” begged Celestia.
Several tense seconds passed, all three alicorns held their breath in fear that they might have overstimulated Twilight’s body and possibly damaged her internal magical network. After a bit, she stirred. Twilight’s eyes slowly opened, she then looked to each of them and gave them a placating smile.
“I’m alright, don’t worry.”
Celestia and Cadance released sighs of relief. Luna bent down and nuzzled the side of Twilight’s face, her fur a little wet from some tears she had shed. “Don’t scare us like that.”
“Sorry, it’s been awhile since I’ve felt my full power again. Could you help me up?”
Twilight pushed herself up on her forelegs; Luna maneuvered her neck underneath Twilight’s and kept her steady as she found her hoofing. Cadance stayed at her side, along with Celestia, both making sure that she wouldn’t collapse again, or if she did they’d be there to catch her.
“H-How soon can I make my way to Maretonia?” asked Twilight.
“Not right now you’re not,” said Celestia sternly.
“You need time to adjust to your magic, give it at least forty-eight hours before using any complex spells,” suggested Cadance.
Twilight sighed, but relented to their caution. It would do her no good to rush out and use her magic right away. She might accidentally use too much power and destroy Maretonia in the process of liberating it. Still, Twilight did need a little training to get acclimated to her power.
“Couldn’t I just do a little training?” asked Twilight timidly.
“Do not make me get my daughter to come and knock you out, Twilight Sparkle, because I will.”
Ponyville, 5 Days Later…
It was the rumor being spread all throughout Equestria. The day was coming soon when Maretonia would be liberated from griffon control, and that an operation would take place soon to head for the fallen territory and free the populace from the oppression of the Empire. Of course, Starburst needed more than just rumors to go off of, after her radio mysteriously got a hoof sized hole in it, which was right about the same time that Star heard Emperor Stratus’ little broadcast.
So, needing information, Starburst turned to the one pony she knew would have what she needed. Star jotted through the town, undercover of the distortion field, and found Sunny in one of her usual hiding/spying spots. After slipping her a note, Starburst awaited Sunny’s arrival to the library. It was about two or so hours later that the Sunny Skies appeared in the library.
“S’up Star, your note said you wanted to talk to me about something, but I can already guess what you’re going to ask me,” said Sunny with a smug grin.
Starburst rubbed the back of her head bashfully, “Y-Yeah…I wanted to know if you knew anything about what’s going on? Are these rumors about taking back Maretonia true?”
Sunny moved to one of the couches and got comfortable, no doubt she’d be here awhile while Star picked her brain. Fortunately, being in the EBE did grant her special privy to operations such as this.
“Yes, it’s true. It’s being kept under wraps for the time being, but the word within the EBE is that the High Princes and Princesses are conducting an operation to retake our territory. Some of the details aren’t fully known yet; even the launch date is a guarded secret.”
Starburst could barely hide her elation about the news. Her wings unconsciously began to flap in excitement, knowing that maybe her past victories over the Griffon Empire had probably stirred the Royal Guard into fighting back harder against their enemy.
“This…This is big!”
“Uh-huh,” said Sunny as she laid back on the comfy couch.
Starburst began to pace about, a happy grin spreading across her face as her mind started to put together a plan.
“Sunny, you have to find out the launch date for the operation!”
Sunny’s eyes went wide from hearing that request, she then looked to the young pegasus mare and saw that happy, eager look on Star’s face that told her what she was planning on doing.
“Oh no, nononononono – N. O. NO! There’s absolutely no way I’m going to let you fly all the way to the Equestrian Territories to fight!”
“Sunny please, just let me go out and help! I can help retake Maretonia! Just cover for me, at least for one day, two at the most.” Star pleaded.
Sunny brought her hoof to the bridge of her nose and shook her head back and forth. “Star, retaking a single city and retaking an entire territory are two vastly different things! For one thing, you won’t be facing just a small invasion force; you’ll facing armies – ARMIES! Ten to fifty times larger than Stalliongrad and Cloudsdale combined! You also have to take in the area you’re fighting in, terrain, geography, enemy numbers, possible evac routes, and so on and so forth!”
“Sunny,” Star raised her right hoof showing her yellow power ring, “I think I’m more than a match for an army of griffons.”
“I said ‘armies’, plural, as in more than one! You told me that that ring has to recharge or your dead in the water, do you really think you can pull that off? Recharge that ring in the middle of a warzone? Take Starlliongrad’s chaos and multiply that times a hundred, and you still won’t come close to understanding.”
Starburst grunted in slight anger from Sunny’s refusal. “I can do it Sunny! I can’t just sit here on my flank while everypony is out there fighting! I have the power to make a difference, why can’t I use it to do so?!”
“Because what if you face Steel Wing or Shadow Wing again?! You barely survived fighting Steel Wing, and Shadow Wing’s power can match your rings!”
“Okay, one: my fight against Steel Wing, I was inexperienced with the ring. I’m not anymore. And two: Shadow Wing caught me off-guard with that dark power of his. Now that I know that his powers can counter my constructs, I can fight him with a degree of caution.”
Sunny sighed in frustration, “Star…Even if – IF – I agreed to do this, the territories are hours away, it’s a least a day’s trip to go to and back from some of them, and others longer. How can I cover for you for days?! One maybe, but eventually they’ll come in and I’ll have to explain why I’m in here and not you.”
[While active, I am able to increase the speed of my bearer to exceed the speed of sound. In space, I can achieve light speed for interstellar travel.]
“You gotta be kidding me?” Sunny groaned.
[Negative.]
“Well, there you go. I can be there and back in the blink of an eye.”
“Answer’s still no.” Sunny got up from the couch and donned her hoody. “I won’t let you put yourself needlessly in danger Star.”
Starburst snorted angrily at that, feeling as if she were being treated as a child. “Like I need your approval, I could be gone before you knew it,” she muttered.
Sunny rushed towards Star, startling the mare. She then quickly struck Star with the tip of her hoof, hitting a point on her neck. Star’s eyes went wide, her legs started to give way under her, and in the next moment she found herself on the floor, completely paralyzed.
“W-What that heck is this!? What did you do to me Sunny!?”
“A Neighponese fighting style, it targets pressure points along the opponent’s body, points that have to do with magical energy that flow through our bodies and give us strength. By focusing, and directing your own internal magical currents, you can either disable an opponent, or completely destroy them from the inside out.”
Starburst desperately tried to move her body, but her legs wouldn’t move. Her wings were limp; the only thing she could move was her head. “This isn’t funny Sunny!”
“Neither is what you want to do.” Sunny Skies leaned down and looked Starburst straight in the eye. “You saved my Mom, and you saved my life, Star. I want to help you, believe me, I do. But when you rush into a battle without knowing what you’re up against you’ll only hurt yourself. And then where will Equestria be without its Golden Star? Also…” Sunny then poked the same area on Star’s neck, allowing the young mare to regain feeling in her limbs, “you’re one of the few friends I have…”
“Sunny…?”
“It was kinda tough growing up. A lot of the parents of the other foals didn’t want me around them; they thought I was unnatural since I was born from two mares instead of a stallion and mare. So, I consider you a friend, you didn’t shy away from me when I told you about my origins, you accepted me. So as a friend, I urge you to think about how your decisions affect your friends.”
Sunny didn’t give Starburst the time to respond, she made her way out the door without another word. Star got up off the floor and cursed under her breath. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, Sunny was right. She was acting the same way she did a few months back. Was it really so wrong to want to protect everything and everyone you cared about? To lay your life on the line to ensure that no one would have to suffer the horrors of the griffons, thousands of Royal Guards did so every day, so why couldn’t she?
Well, she’s angry, thought Del.
Starburst had shown up on the Apple family’s orchard. Del was currently working the fields and, as per her usual MO, Star wanted in on the action for training purposes, she even tied her hair back with her pink ribbon to keep her bangs out of her eyes. He didn’t see much of a problem with it, since Star had been happier lately and was stronger than she used to be. However, this day was different.
The pegasus mare was bucking, and knocking down apples from the branches with a vengeance. Every once and a while he would hear her grunt and let out little frustrated sighs with each hit, now Del was a hard worker, fast too, but right now, in Starburst’s angered state, she had already filled many baskets with apples. After a bit of time had passed, Del and Star took a break.
Del scanned Star’s form; her chest was heaving in and out, her coat glistening with sweat from working so hard, it wasn’t that he hadn’t seen this before, the familiar sight of the young mare pushing her body to and past its limits. Before, Del knew why she did it, he didn’t like it, but he knew why. Training for the eventual day she would join the Royal Guard was the thing that drove Starburst, she had this look in her eyes that was full of determination and fervor that somehow added to her…well, it added to her…Oh for Pete’s sake, beauty! There Ah said it!
Since her dream had been, well, derailed, Star kind of lost that spark in her eyes, it didn’t diminish what he felt for her, if anything he was saddened to see Star like that. But recently, Starburst had gotten that spark back in her eyes, and somehow it had turned from a spark into a blazing fire. If he was being honest with himself, which he kind of had to being an Apple and all, Golden Delicious thought that Starburst was…hot.
“You alright, Del?”
“W-What!?”
“You’re, uh, staring me,” said Starburst, slightly blushing.
Del quickly shook his head, and slapped himself across the face for good measure. “Sorry, Ah-Ah was. Ah was makin’ sure you weren’t goin’ to pass out on meh again.”
The corner of Starburst’s mouth curled up, half-smiling at the stallion’s concern for her. “Well…I’m fine, really.”
“Heard that before.”
“I mean it.”
“Sure, sure, heard that before, too.”
Starburst then punched Del in the arm. The stallion hissed a little, but shrugged it off, finding that she was stronger than she looked, `cause that did smart a little.
“Anyway, what’s got ya so worked up? You’re going at the trees so hard Ah’m afraid yer gonna snap one in half.”
Starburst sighed heavily, “I just…had a fight with somepony, it’s no big deal.”
Del moved closer to the stubborn pegasus, “Now Ah know it’s a big deal. So, was it Prism givin’ you a hard time or maybe Nidra?”
“Uh-uh, it’s not anyone you know. Trust me on that. I just…Sometimes I feel like I’m being treated like a kid! Even when I step up, I still feel like others are looking down on me because they don’t take me seriously! I don’t know if it’s because of my size or the way I go about things! I just want to do what I think is right Del…is that so wrong?”
Del wasn’t expecting something like that. And he’d be lying if he didn’t say that sometimes, yes, she Star’s stature did sometimes make her look a little less intimidating, when she wasn’t using her special talent that is. Even he sometimes treated her as such because of their differing heights, but he had to remind himself from time to time that she was a sixteen year old pony, but she had the maturity of a mare that was a few years older.
That’s when a strange thought entered the stallion’s head. It was one that he wondered if he should even utter aloud. There were so many ways this could go down, Star could either see him as weird, take it as an insult, laugh it off as a joke, or accept it. In the case of the fourth option he was now wondering of the other three were better.
“Uh…ahem…Star.” The orange pegasus looked up at him. “Ah got a day off tomorrow, so…Ah mean – if ya don’t got nothin’ better to do that is! Do you want to…Ah don’t know, hang out tomorrow?”
“Sure.”
“Ah mean, ya don’t have to Ah was just – wait what?”
“Yeah, why not? It’s been a while since me and you just hung out, plus, I don’t have anything better to do…not now anyway.” Star grumbled under her breath.
Del grinned happily, “Good, then it’s a date.” Then his face turned beet red, along with Star’s, at the word “date”.
“W-W-What did you say!?” asked Star.
“Ah-Ah didn’t mean a ‘date-date’, Ah meant just a regular date!”
Del watched as Starburst’s face was crimson red now. He then face hoofed himself when he realized how he said that.
“That’s not what Ah meant either! Ah was tryin’ to say just an outin’, you know, a-a-as friends!”
An awkward silence befell the orchard; both Del and Star looked away from each other, faces still glowing red from the embarrassing conversation. And yet, Starburst didn’t move away from him, despite what he had said. Del was taking this as a hopeful sign that Star didn’t think him a complete idiot for saying that, or she just didn’t want to move to far away, and lose her chance of pouncing on him and kicking his flank from here to Canterlot. Yeah, the last part seems more probable.
“J-Just as f-friends…right?” Star asked.
“Y-Yeah…if-if that’s alright with you.”
Starburst began to fidget, her right forehoof scuffled the ground as she contemplated her answer. It wasn’t as if she didn’t find him…attractive. He was a good friend, her best friend among the others, and probably one of the only other one besides Claire and Lance that she respected. Plus, it would be the first time she was ever on one, if she chose to see it that way that is, and who better than a friend for your first. THAT’S NOT WHAT I WAS THINKING, NOT THAT KIND OF “FIRST”I MEANT FIRST DATE, FIRST DATE!!!
“Uh…Hypothetically speaking…If I were to say that, maybe, I want it to be a real date, instead. H-How would you feel about that…?”
Del gulped audibly, he looked at Star and she at him. He couldn’t help but grin a little, finding her tied back mane look very cute, which was a nice contrast to that of her normally fierce appearance, which held its own appeal.
“Well…”
“Finally, darling, I was starting to wonder how much longer you were going to make us wait!” Claire exclaimed.
“So you’re finally going after Star, huh? Aren’t you quite the player, going after a Princess,” teased Prism.
“Just remember to keep your hooves off of her, `cuz. She may be mature for her age, but don’t forget she’s still a minor, and I don’t want to visit my cousin in prison,” warned June.
Somehow, unbeknownst to Del and Star, Api was nearby when she heard the awkward conversation being held by them in the orchard. What awaited Del on his return home were the happy, if not somewhat smug, grins of his friends Prism and Clarity, and his cousin Red June. Right at this moment, Del was on the floor of the living room of his house, covering his head and groaning as he heard what the others said. Yes, he had agreed to make it an “official” date, and yes, he did like Star, at this point there was really no denying it. But now he was filled with anxiety over the whole thing.
“Ah don’t know the first thing about datin’! And what do you mean ‘keep meh hooves off of her’!? Ya really think Ah do somethin’ inappropriate with Star!?”
Claire walked up beside Del and patted him on the head, “Now Del, none us would ever think you would, and you are a gentlecolt after all. June is just…looking out for you.”
“Gotta say though, Star’s cute, short, but cute, didn’t really see you as being into jailbait.” Prism teased.
Claire’s horns started to glow as she gave the pegasus stallion a narrowed glare. “What was that Prism dear? Surely you aren’t trying to make our friend Del feel more self-conscious about his upcoming date, are you?” Claire breathed out through her nostrils, a little wisp of azure flame flared out as she did so.
Prism immediately shut his mouth and vigorously shook his head back and forth. Satisfied that there would be no more of that, Claire released the glow from her horns and turned her attention back on their friend.
“Ah honestly don’t know why, of all ponies, why her!?”
“What’s wrong with Star? I thought you liked her?” asked June.
“Ah do…But, what will Ma say!? What will Star’s mother say!? Ah don’t want to do anythin’ that puts ‘em on bad terms, they’ve been friends for a long time, and Ah don’t want to ruin with me and Star have as far our friendship!”
“Oh `cuz…”
“Sounds like y’all are in a real pickle.”
Claire, Prism, June, and Del turned towards the front door and saw that Applejack was leaning against the doorframe, listening to the conversation the four were having.
“MA!?”
“Del, sweetie, ya can’t spend yer time worryin’ about everythin’ else. If Starburst is the one yer heart tells ya to go for, then ya should listen to it. And don’t fret about how it’ll affect Twi’s friendship with me. On that note, Ah want ya to go and take the rest of the afternoon off, and get to plannin’ yer date with Star. Wingin’ it is good and all, but not always.”
With that said Applejack left the room and headed back to the orchard, closing the door behind them, and leaving the four ponies within in slight awe.
“Wow, didn’t know Aunt Applejack was so open minded about this,” said June.
“Well, see, even you’re family supports you. So don’t worry Del,” said Claire.
Just then the door opened back up, with Applejack sticking her head in and grinning happily. “Remember though, if you do anythin’ that ends up with meh becomin’ a grandmother, Ah’ll have Twi turn ya into a mare, permanently. Bye now.”
Applejack, once again, left them alone. The four just stood there in silence, Prism then looked to Del. “Dude, your mom can be really scary when she wants to be…”
Del’s left eye twitched as he nodded in agreement.
Golden Delicious wasn’t the only one having second thoughts about this dating idea. Word spread to the rest of their friends, and when Starburst arrived back at the library, she found Cotton Candy, Anthea, and Turquoise waiting outside her home. What followed next was a never ending stream of questions from Candy, and a lot of embarrassing questions from Anthea.
“So did you guys pick out where you’re going!?” asked Candy.
“No.”
“Did you kiss yet?” asked Annie.
“No!”
“Are going to the movies for your date!?”
“Maybe.”
“Are you going to let him get to second base?”
“Mayb – NO!!!”Star shouted, her face once again beet red.
“Annie, Candy, don’t you think you should ease up on Star?” asked Turquoise.
The earth pony and unicorn mares gave the half-dragon a withering glare, although in Annie’s case, it just came out as a cute, puffy, pouty face.
“T,” Annie began, “we have to make sure that Star’s ready for her date with Del! Since we’re a couple, and as her good friends, she’ll need our advice.”
Starburst gave said couple and incredulous look. “What makes you two think I need ‘dating advice’ anyway?”
Candy sidled next to Star and draped a foreleg around her neck. “Star, we’re friends, and as your friend, I gotta tell ya, you do need dating advice. I mean, how else will you know what to do when Del tells a joke?!”
“I’ll laugh if it’s funny, and won’t if it’s not.” Star deadpanned.
“OR!” Star smushed her cheek against Starburst, getting into her personal space. She did not like ponies getting into her personal, unless permitted. “What if you try and order some food when he takes you to a restaurant, and the waiter asks what you want to eat, how will you know what to choose!?”
“I’ll read the menu, Candy.”
T just sat there, with Annie close to him and his wing draped over her, watching as Candy bombarded Starburst with one ridiculous hypothetical situation after the other. All the while, he noticed that Annie hadn’t said word after the earth pony mare went into her rant. T looked down and noticed that Annie had a hoof to her chin, and her face was scrunched up as if she were thinking hard about something.
“Annie, you alright?” asked T.
“You know what, you should practice kissing,” stated Annie.
That caught everypony in the room by surprise, even Candy. They stared at Anthea in disbelief of what she just said. Starburst sputtered and stammered multiple times trying to say something back to Anthea, but each attempt brought her mind thinking of kissing Del.
“You know, you have a good point Annie,” said Candy.
“WHAT!!?”
“A lot of good relationships are dependent upon the first kiss, but that’s not always the case, some get better as they kiss more. Take me and T for example!” The dragon-pony blushed upon hearing this. “When I first tried to kiss Turquoise I almost poked his eye out with my horn…I was kinda afraid he’d dump me right after that, I mean, how could he kiss me if he was too afraid of me stabbing him with my horn?”
“I-I wasn’t going to dump you for that, it’s not like you planned it,” said T defending his lover, and himself.
Annie nuzzled up against his arm in appreciation, causing Candy to gush from the display of affection, while Starburst awkwardly averted her eyes, seeing them like that made her mind replace T with Del, and Annie with herself, wondering if the tan stallion would like it if she nuzzled him from time to time.
“Anyway, we agreed from then on that T would make the first move. So all I have to do is tilt my head up like this.” Anthea looked up at Turquoise and closed her eyes, although it wasn’t necessary, it set the mood. “And then I wait for T to kiss me.”
The dragon-pony looked around the room nervously, wondering if this was Annie’s way of demonstrating their technique or something. As much as he liked Star and Candy, he wasn’t so sure if he was comfortable kissing his fillyfriend right in front of their best friends. Annie didn’t seem to move, Candy was eagerly awaiting their kiss, while Starburst looked away, only glancing a few times to see if they had done the deed yet. Turquoise then looked back down to Anthea and gulped, thinking that it was time to dragon up, he had kissed his fillyfriend plenty of times in public, what was so different about now! Turquoise then moved down to kiss her, slowly closing his eyes.
Candy’s eyes steadily grew wider as she watched, like an excited student learning something new. Starburst couldn’t deny that she wanted to see this, if anything it would provide her with some idea of how she was supposed to kiss her potential coltfriend.
As T drew closer, Annie suddenly turned towards the two mares and smiled happily. “See, this way I don’t hurt T and I get to –”
*Poke*
“EEEEEEEEEEEEEEYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!”
Starburst and Candy watched as Turquoise’s right eye made contact with Anthea’s horn, causing him to wail in pain and fall to the floor, thrashing about as he cupped his injured eye and roared with pain. Annie suddenly felt the loss of her coltfriend’s presence; she then heard the painful wails of T and looked down to see a green splotch rolling around.
“What happened, T are you alright!?” asked Annie.
“I – Ugh – Fine Annie – Sweet Celestia that hurts!!!”
“Girls what happened to T, tell me!?”
Candy looked to Star, Star looked to Candy, Star and Candy then looked to T who, even though in a lot of pain, shot them a pleading look. The two mares then came to a unanimous decision before looking at Annie.
“He just bit his tongue,” said Candy.
“Really bad,” added Star.
“…………I just stabbed him in the eye again, didn’t I?”
“Yep,” they said in unison.
Anthea face hoofed herself, “Oh T, I am so sorry!”
“No, no, no! I’m fine, I’m fine! It’s not as bad as last – is this blood?!”
Meanwhile, Far From The Equestrian Homeland…
Twilight was standing on the bridge of her personal airship, the Avalon. It was a large warship, fitted with cannons that used pre-loaded magical canisters to fire beams of concentrated energy blasts at enemy targets. It was also armed with numerous rockets, each one ready to fire at moment’s notice. On the balloon was the Equestrian flag, and on the side of the hull was painted the cutie mark of High Princess Twilight right alongside the ship’s name.
The Avalon had been flying for the last four days, traveling to Maretonia. This would be Twilight’s first stop, and hopefully, after this was over, her only stop. Her plan was simple, display how powerful her magic was, incapacitate, killing was a last resort. Yes she knew that these were there enemies. Enemies who took delight in killing her subjects, violating, and murdering them without remorse, but, in her mind, they were soldiers, much like the many Royal Guards surrounding her. They were only fighting for what they thought was right, and many of them were somepony’s mother, father, little brother, big brother, little sister, big sister, aunt, or uncle. The thought of taking someone’s family away from them, and that it was done by her own hoof, Twilight wasn’t sure if she was strong enough to carry that weight on her shoulders.
I have to, I must be strong enough. If Starburst could do what needed to be done in that Tartarus that was Stalliongrad, then how can I do any less, she thought.
It was then that Twilight heard the hoofsteps of an approaching pony. She glanced over her shoulder and saw that it was Valiant Heart, garbed in his battle armor and sporting his dual swords.
“High Princess Twilight, we’ll be arriving at the battle line in just a few minutes.”
“Thank you, and Captain, for now, let’s dispense with the formalities and titles. I could really use my nephew right now,” said Twilight with a sheepish grin.
Valiant Heart smiled back at his aunt, “Sure Aunty Twi. How you holding up?”
“To be honest Lance, not so good…I’ve never had to go to a battlefield nor have I ever had to turn my magic on others like this. Sure, my friends and I have faced a lot of monsters, evil spirits, and demented villains that wanted to rule Equestria, destroy it, or whatever, and used my magic on all of them, either to help my friends or to keep that enemy from hurting others. But now though…”
“Now you’re going to use it against an enemy that’s not exactly any of those things, just a bunch of soldiers following the orders of a whacked out Emperor, right?”
Twilight nodded. “I guess you’ve been through this too?”
“First time was a while back when I graduated and became a grunt in the Royal Guard, fought against the Changelings during that time that Chrysalis went mad and tried to invade the Crystal Empire. I…I cut down a lot of those soldiers and drones; sometimes I still can’t stop seeing their terrified faces when I killed them. They were just desperate and needed food, and I killed them.”
Twilight remembered that day a while back, a treaty was made with the Changelings, though they were the enemies of Equestria, they didn’t deserve to starve to death, so her brother and sister-in-law made a deal with Queen Chrysalis. They would send them a large supply of love energy from the Crystal Heart at least once a month, until their race was no longer on the brink of extinction. It was a shaky alliance but the Queen had little options. Twilight was called to play arbitrator to the treaty signing. She was almost sorry that that treaty didn’t have an addendum that made it so that they could call upon the Changelings during times of war, the Changelings would’ve been helpful during this crisis. But it wasn’t a treaty over who would help who, it was just to make sure that the Changelings wouldn’t have need to attack the ponies of Equestria for a food source so long as they received a steady supply from the Crystal Heart.
“I know you don’t want to do this Aunty, you should’ve just had me do it.”
Twilight smiled and nuzzled her nephew, “Thank you, Lance. But this isn’t something that we should put on you, any of you. You’re our children, and as your parents we protect you from harm, not put you in it.”
Valiant lowered his head, frowning. “I wish Star understood that…”
“It may not be too late. We could always allow her reentry into the RG, when she’s older maybe?”
“I…” Lance sighed, “…Maybe. But right now, she needs to learn that her actions have consequences. Besides, Aunty, I know you feel better now knowing that she won’t be in this war.”
A look of guilt fell upon Twilight’s face. “I’d be lying if I wasn’t. She’s my daughter, Lance, I can’t…I can’t lose her on some far away battlefield, fearing the worst of what the griffons could do to her. Maybe once the war is over…?”
“Yeah…maybe then. So let’s make sure to end it here.”
“Right.”
It didn’t take long for the Avalon to reach Maretonia. The airship may’ve been large, but did not lack speed. They arrived at the capital city of the territory, Bucephalus, named after the great conqueror earth pony stallion who road into battle and claimed this land as his own, after some time had passed, his descendants made an alliance with the Equestrian homeland and were now and always allies. But now the city had fallen. Gone were the proud flags of Maretonia and Equestria, now replaced with the black flags and golden crest of the Griffon Empire.
“Set the airship just outside the city; do not engage unless either Captain Valiant Heart or I give the single. We’re here to drive off the enemy, not to endanger the ponies we came to save.”
“YES, YOUR MAJESTY!”
I’m never going to get used to that.
Twilight made her way to her personal quarters and prepared for battle. She sighed; she really didn’t like this next part. Inside this room were two Royal Guard mares, both bowed before the High Princess. With a wave of her hoof, Twilight bid them to rise. She then stood at the designated spot and allowed the two mares to start. The two Guardsmares brought forth her armor from a trunk that had her cutie mark emblazoned onto it.
Twilight stood still for this next part, she would’ve rather done it herself with her magic, but this was part of the what she needed to do, it put her in the mindset of the kind of mare she needed to be right now. Not just a High Ruler of a Kingdom, she needed to be a beacon of hope, a light in the darkness, the savior that her subjects prayed for. When the two mares opened the chest, Twilight almost let out a gasp. She had never seen her armor till now, it was made after her coronation in secret. Of course, Celestia never intended for Twilight to enter the battlefield, but thought it best to have such armor just in case.
The armor itself was a dark lavender color, polished and gleaming in the light, and trimmed with gold lining only adding to its brilliance. The chest plate bore her star cutie mark, along with the bracers and greaves. Next to it was a helm, with a long slit on the back of the neck to allow her mane to flow through, and to keep her bangs from getting in her eyes. With a nod to the soldiers, they began to dress their princess for battle
The first mare, blond in color, carefully slipped Twilight’s forelegs into the bracers, latching them on and making sure that it wasn’t too tight but not too lose either. The second mare, blue in color, did the same with her greaves on her hind legs. Twilight shivered from the touch of the cool metal against her fur and skin, running up her legs. The two mares then brought forth her chest plate, being very mindful of her beautiful wings as they adjusted it. The coolness washed over Twilight’s body now. Finally, the blond mare placed Twilight’s helmet onto her head, while the blue mare fixed her mane so that it all came out through the specially made slit. The two mares stepped back and brought forth a mirror so that she may look upon herself. Twilight was speechless.
Gone was the studious mare and educated scholar. What stood before her was a warrior, a goddess of war. The armor sheened with the slightest movement, her cutie mark symbols seemed to resonate with her magic, giving off an iridescent pinkish glow. Twilight never knew she could look like this. It was a stark contrast to her image of herself, both as a mother and a princess. The thing about it now, was that she possessed the power to match this new image. It was strange; the armor itself was made of special metals that were extremely durable and resistant, but at the same time light as a feather.
So why does it feel so heavy…?
“Your Majesty, are you alright?” asked the blond mare.
“Did we tie it too tight?” asked the blue mare.
Twilight shook her head and gave the two Guardsmares a small smile. “No, you two did great. I just…This is the first time I’ve worn my armor, and it’s really strange to see myself like this.”
“Forgive me, High Princess Twilight, may I speak freely?” asked the blond mare.
“Of course.”
“You look quite beautiful, like a goddess from ancient times.”
“Or a hero from a fairytale,” added the blue mare.
“Thank you both. You may return to your duties.”
“Yes ma’am!”
Twilight made her way to the Bombay doors. Waiting for her at the platform was Valiant Heart, along with a contingent of Royal Guards, thirteen in all. The Guards and Guard Captain quickly stood at attention, saluting their High Princess. Valiant Heart took a moment to look over his Aunt, noticing just how much the air around her changed. Maybe it was the armor that made her look different, or maybe it was her unlocked magical power bleeding out from her body, whatever it was, it was clear that his Aunt Twilight was ready for battle.
“At ease,” she ordered.
“Your Highness, we’re ready for deployment,” said Lance.
“Excuse me your Highness.” One of the Guards, a brown unicorn stallion with gray mane stepped forward.
“Yes, Pinpoint?”
“I was wondering. Would it not be wiser to bring the rest of the troops onboard? If we are to retake Maretonia, I would think a larger force would be more effective.”
“Normally you are right Pinpoint,” said Valiant, “But this isn’t a normal occasion.”
“So the rumors are true then, you are going to attack the griffons, aren’t you your Highness?”
Twilight nodded. “I will unleash my power upon the griffon soldiers. You fourteen are to stay behind me while we are engaged in the coming battle. I want to free the city. My hope is that the griffons will leave the territory once they realize just how far we are willing to go to protect our subjects. Hopefully, we can win this with as little bloodshed as possible.”
The other RGs glanced to each other and then back to Pinpoint, nodding as if agreeing with Twilight’s plan. “Very well, we await your orders.”
{Alert: We have movement from Bucephalus, griffon forces are amassing outside the city and are preparing to attack.}
Valiant Heart made his way to one of the callboxes and pushed the button below the speaker. “Make sure the Avalon is ready to counterattack. They may not have anti-air cannons, but we can’t take the risk of the griffons already having a contingency plan to knock out this airship.”
“Let’s go,” said Twilight.
The doors opened and a gust of wind blew through the room. Once the platform hit the ground Twilight flared her wings and flew out of the airship. Valiant Heart spread his wings as well and followed close behind his aunt. The two alicorns landed a few yards away from the Avalon, shortly after landing, a light-yellow magical flash appeared behind them, revealing the thirteen Royal Guards. Pinpoint’s horn was glowing, showing his special talent in accurate teleportation magic.
Twilight saw the horde of griffons heading towards them, she then took in a calming breath, and exhaled it. With a fierce and determined look, Twilight called upon her magic, her wings flared out, horn aglow, mane flowing and turning into a cosmos of stars, and her eyes shined with a brilliant white light.
“HEAR ME, I AM HIGH PRINCESS TWILIGHT SPARKLE!” roared Twilight in the Royal Canterlot voice.
The force and power of her the Voice made the horde stop in their tracks, buffeting them with the sheer power of sound.
“I HAVE COME TO LIBERATE THIS CITY, THIS TERRITORY, AND ITS CITIZENS! TO YOU, SOLDIERS OF THE GRIFFON EMPIRE, I OFFER THIS ULTIMATUM: SURRENDER AND LEAVE MARETONIA, OR FACE THE WRATH OF THE EQUESTRIAN CROWN! THE CHOICE IS YOURS!”
Twilight, Valiant, and the thirteen Guards all waited for a response from the occupying force. The lavender alicorn hoped that that was enough to scare them into retreating. Maybe not the territory, but at least the city, she could work on the rest after that. After a minute passed there was a whistling sound that echoed in the air, a dozen or more whistling sounds as a matter of fact.
The fifteen ponies looked up into the air as the sun was blotted out with a flood of arrows. Twilight sighed sadly, she had hoped that they would retreat, but now she was left with no choice. With a flash of her horn, they were surrounded by a barrier of magical energy. The myriad of arrows rained down on the shield, snapping like twigs the moment they made impact. Some of the Guards flinched, seeing and hearing so many arrows coming down on them and yet none of them hit. It took all of thirty seconds before the arrow storm was concluded.
The griffon horde charged straight for them, brandishing their spears, swords, and talons as they prepared to take down their opponents. Twilight rose into the air, horn aglow as it built up energy. She then whipped her head up, the discharge from her horn created a wave of purple energy that sped right to the horde. The griffons stopped in their tracks as they tried to retreat or get out of the way, but it was too late.
The wave struck them like a steel wall, knocking those flying out of the sky, and others on the ground to their backs. A force of five-hundred, all taken down with one spell, this was the power of an alicorn. Twilight softly landed back onto the ground and nodded for them to proceed further. Pinpoint teleported the group behind the downed griffons, putting them just near the city entrance. Valiant Heart looked back at one of the griffons and noticed that he was still breathing.
“What was that spell?” asked Lance.
“I Concussion Spell Wave, it’s different from a Stun Spell since that one requires a simple disruption of electrical signals in the brain to cause temporary paralysis. The spell I used strikes with force and hardened mana particles, buffeting, and slamming against them like a speeding train. I basically beat them down with magic, they’ll be out for a good long while, and even if they do wake up, they won’t be much for fighting with how they’ll feel when they do.”
Valiant was impressed, it would’ve been easy for his aunt to simply kill them all with a blast of pure magical energy, but instead she found another way. She was determined to make killing a last resort. Let’s just hope that it doesn’t come to that.
The group walked into the city, tall modern buildings interlaced with the ancient structures of their heritage, a way for them to connect to the past while still looking forward. Suddenly they were ambushed from the taller structures, griffons flying right at them. Lance drew his swords in preparation for close combat, but Twilight was quicker. She released a pulse of magic that froze each of the griffons in place. The soldiers tried to free themselves of her magical grasp, but were ineffective.
Twilight’s eyes then shined once again, and all at once the griffons were slammed into the ground, creating massive craters as they were pushed further and further down into the asphalt.
“Gravity Spell,” she stated. Twilight then cleared her throat. “CITIZENS OF BUCEPHALUS, WE HAVE COME TO FREE YOU OF YOUR OPPRESSORS! GRIFFONS THAT LURK ABOUT, EITHER FACE ME OR FLEE NOW WITH YOUR LIVES! THE CHOICE IS STILL YOURS TO MAKE!”
That was more of a rallying cry for the griffons; they attacked in droves now, launching spears and arrows, explosive crystals, and even brought in a fire-spitter mounted on the backs of a five griffons to drown them in flames. But through it all, Twilight protected her contingent. Showing no signs of strain or fatigue from the use of her power, it scared her, just how powerful was she? Usually, casting this many high level spells would’ve already knocked me out. But now…I feel like I could go on for weeks without rest, casting left and right!
And cast she did. Twilight fired a ball of magical energy into the air; it then unleashed rapid fire energy blasts in every direction possible. The griffons were hit from behind, the side, the front, on the wings, in the face, dropping like flies before her might. Twilight ceased her attack and the group pressed on towards the palace of the Duke and Duchess, thinking that the leader or leaders of this occupation would most likely be there.
As they approached the palace Twilight couldn’t help but take in the architecture. A large ivory stone building, with giant columns and stairs leading up to the palace, but that’s as far as Twilight’s mind got before her eyes went wide and tears threatened to fall.
“Oh good Faust…”
Hanging from the large archway at the front of the palace were two bodies. One was a stallion, dressed in the royal garb of the Duke, and the other a mare, also dressed as the Duchess. They had nooses around their necks, leading up to two crudely implanted hooks.
Their garments were torn and their bodies were emaciated, flies buzzing about them as if having been left in the open sun for days on end. But the worst part was their faces. Their final expressions forever frozen upon them, mouths agape, eyes bulging and red, their necks and hooves stained with their blood from constant struggling to free themselves. They were placed facing each other, forced to watch the other die right in front of them. Twilight saw that the fall from where they were was a least one-hundred if not a hundred and fifty feet, being earth ponies, the fall would’ve surly killed them if they got free, and really, a quick death was better than what was before them.
How…How could any creature…Any living being be so cruel…!
“It’s a scare tactic, meant to demoralize and strike fear into the citizens. A way of telling them that this was the fate of those who defied them,” said Lance in a solemn tone.
Twilight blinked the tears from her eyes. With a flash of her horn, she sliced the ropes and caught the two bodies in her magical grasp. Twilight then used more of her power, collecting the marble and stone debris around them. Using her magic, she reformed the debris into two coffins, each etched with the name of the Duke and Duchess in ancient Maretonian. She wasn’t fully familiar with the burial rights of Maretonia, and promised herself to give them a proper send off when her business was over.
“Thank you very much your highness.”
Twilight and the group of warriors all turned to one of the columns. The silver, mechanical winged griffon stared down upon them. Twilight and Valiant Heart immediately recognized this griffon from their meeting months back, the veteran of the Wing Commanders, Steel Wing.
“Those corpses were starting to smell, better you touch them. I didn’t feel like sullying my talons with such filth.”
Twilight scowled at Steel Wing. “You show respect for the dead, enemy or not. I have heard of the horrors you and the Empire’s soldiers have committed, but I had really hoped that they were just rumors, the talk of ponies who were frightened and scared after going through such a traumatizing event. But now I know the truth, you haven’t just committed war crimes; these are crimes against life itself!”
Steel Wing unfurled his wings, the metallic avian appendages making a familiar sound of swords being drawn from their scabbards. He then landed down on the ground a few yards away, walking slowly towards his enemies.
“I do not recognize you ponies as equals, I thought that be clear from our Emperors message to you all. This is the fate of those of you who defy us. Your only option is subjugation or death.”
Twilight snorted angrily. She glanced over to Lance and saw the burning fury within his eyes, but he kept it in check, not wanting to get in the way of his aunt. The other soldiers stood steadfast, though there was a look of trepidation in Pinpoint’s eyes, despite his calm demeanor.
“Commander Steel Wing, the actions of the Griffon Empire can no longer be tolerated; we wish to end this war and are willing to end it peacefully. Withdraw your forces from Maretonia, and the other territories and I will assure you that the Griffon Empire will be heard and given a fair trial at the Court of Nations. Or, you and your Emperor can continue fighting, and force me to bring down the full wrath of the crown of Equestria upon your soldiers and your homeland. The choice is yours.”
“Hmm, let me respond to that in the following way.”
Steel Wing flared his wings out, the metal panels that made up the feathers shot forth, but they didn’t fly away. They hovered around him as his wings quickly replaced the panels he released. The panels then twirled around him, obscuring their view of him. Twilight, Lance, and the Guards readied themselves for whatever Steel Wing had up his sleeves.
There was bright, dark violet light that shined from within the tornado of metal, causing the panels to shine as well and shoot right at the source. When the light died down, Steel Wing had changed completely. His body was covered head to paw in silver armor. His wings seemed larger, as did the armor, bulky, and ordained with light-gray trimming. His piercing eyes stared back through the slits in his helmet, smiling at his enemy from behind the faceplate.
“Behold, High Princess Twilight, the power of my Iron Defender Armor.” Steel Wing took one step, and immediately the ground caved under its weight, sending a thudding resonance through the ground itself. “You can be assured, whatever power you think you possess, godly or otherwise, will not penetrate this armor.”
“Captain, you and your Guards stay back.” Twilight ordered.
“But –!”
“That’s an order, Captain.”
Lance did as he was told, and had his Guards take a few steps back, giving Twilight room to work. The alicorn mare made the first move, firing her Concussive Wave Spell right at Steel Wing! The griffon commander didn’t even try to avoid the attack. Instead, he released his talons and back claws and anchored himself to the ground. The wave struck him hard, washing over him like a tidal wave. When it was over, Twilight was shocked to see that Steel Wing still stood.
The armored griffon retracted his claws and shook his body, “Is that all you got? I was expecting more from a High Princess of Equestria!”
Twilight’s horn flared and bore down on him with a Gravity Spell, hitting the griffon with a force five times that of Equus’ gravity. The tank-like griffon, once again, stood there and took it. A crater formed around him from the increased gravitational force, but he didn’t seem fazed by it in the least. Twilight then increased the power, to ten times the norm. The spell released a thundering, whooshing sound as the force was increased further, the crater doubling in size. Steel Wing began to lift one foreleg and bring it down with a thunderous thud, slowing inching his way towards her.
That’s impossible! Even at five time’s normal gravity, he shouldn’t even be able to stand, let alone move at ten! His bones should’ve broken in multiple places with that one step!
Twilight wasn’t liking this, not at all. Whether it was pure willpower, resolve, or just stubborn pride, she didn’t know, but something was giving this griffon the strength to withstand her spells. To be honest, she was holding back, using at least twenty percent of her full power. Now, she realized that this was the kind of opponent that needed her full strength, at least ninety percent! Twilight spread her wings and took off into the air, but not before casting a shield spell over her Royal Guards and nephew.
She was at least two hundred feet in the air, continuing the Gravity Spell to keep Steel Wing’s movements down to a minimum. He was dangerous, he had to be stopped. Twilight summoned her magical power, coalescing into an orb of condensed energy at the tip of her horn. With blazing white eyes, and a starry, flowing mane, Twilight fired her pent up power. The result was a beam of pure energy, aimed directly at Steel Wing.
The beam engulfed Steel Wing, bearing down on him with such power that it forced him to the ground. Twilight then upped her power to ninety-five percent and gave it one last burst, doubling the size of the attack. With that second burst, the area around Steel Wing exploded magnificently. With a quick casting of another spell, Twilight was able to contain the blast to just around Steel Wing, doubling its destructive power and ensuring that the surrounding structures would not be damaged.
Twilight floated back down to her original position, her mane and eyes returning to normal as she swayed from the use of such destructive energy. Lance went slack jawed at the sight of his aunt unleashing her unlocked powers upon Steel Wing, making him wonder just how powerful he would be if the same was done for him.
“Looks like you got him,” said Lance.
Twilight, even though knowing he was a monster, the taking of another life left a bad taste her mouth, and made her feel ill. But she pushed that down; there would be time to deal with that later.
“Alright, Lance, call the Avalon and have them bring the ship over Bucephalus, we’ll drop in Guards and start a cleanup of the city and get medical attention to those who need it.”
“Don’t you think you’re being a bit premature?”
Twilight’s eyes, as well the others, went wide with shock and horror at the sound of that voice. Clawing himself from out of the crater, and still wearing the bulky armor, was Steel Wing, his silver armor was hissing and glowing orange from the heat of the powerful energy blast from earlier.
“That’s impossible…! You couldn’t have survived that!”
“My armor is, how shall I say, ‘special’. Speaking of, I think it’s time you saw the full extent of its abilities!” The air around Steel Wing shifted, his wings flared out and hummed with a power deep within.
Twilight and Lance prepared to face down whatever kind of power this griffon had, but something stopped them. Before Twilight or Lance could even figure out what was happening, Pinpoint’s horn flashed once. Around Twilight’s and Valiant’s necks were metal collars, etched with runic markings. And lastly, a metal ring was slipped over both their horns. Twilight yelped from the sudden, painful shock that racked her body, and once more from when she felt the loss of her magic.
Valiant Heart was in much the same boat, his swords dropping to the ground, useless. Pinpoint flashed his horn once again and brought the alicorn stallion to them. Before he knew it, Lance was dogpiled by his own Guards, restraining him and holding him down against the ground, Pinpoint then teleported them behind Steel Wing, leaving Twilight right in the griffon’s sights.
“Metal…Reaver!”
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Very emotionally intense chapter. The griffins need to burn for thiS! Please have everything turn out OK!
4704758 Well, there's okay.
And then there's okay...
Oy.
A) I'm really starting to hate both Twilight and Sunny. "It'd hurt our feelings if you were in danger, so you can only do what we let you do. Who cares if that means a whole lot of other ponies die and that we're demonstrating a complete lack of respect for you while demanding you respect us? Oh, and fuck any consideration for your own desires or right to self determination."
B) Was Twilight high when she heard the broadcast?
C) Was Twilight high and stupid when she decided to essentially ignore the reports about Gryphon brutality?
D) Was Twilight high, stupid and insane when she decided to waste time and energy with non lethal attacks against an opponent that'd demonstrated both an eagerness to kill and that they considered her species to be animals that rightfully belonged to them?
I know, Princess of Friendship, but DAMN. She deserves the ass beating she's about to get. Three times over. They should've sent a Princess who knew a single damn thing about combat. Sun Tzu and Clauswitz are rolling in their graves. Perhaps they should hire a minotaur or dragon military advisor? Or consider hiring the Changelings as mercenaries.
Also, Star needs a Fear Cave where she can do her Fear Lantern stuff in privacy. And I do hope everything explodes violently and she flees Ponyville.
Okay, now we know the griffons have been planning this.
4704850
Somebodies gonna geta hurt real bad
4704798
I'm a big "happy ending" guy, so guess.
So, I'm just going to put it out there as a guess. But
-puts on my guessing hat-
Twilight get's captured, Star hears about it, disappears, leaves Del hanging on their date, someone dies, Star reveals herself to her mother, shit gets emotional, star saves twilight and kills Steel, or at least sends him packing again where in then the emperor kills him for being such a fail. Twilight wants star to stop being the fear lantern. but they make up and she alows her to continue. And finally Star has to deal with deal being left high and dry for their date.
-takes of mah guessing hat-
Yeah I got bored Lol.
4708000 I aim to please.
And thank you for your support, much love. 
Wow. So they were betrayed. Why? I don't know. I hope Star comes and save Twilight. Maybe that can help things. Also Twilight can't exactly say you can't do these things. I can't wait for the next chapter. Good luck.
4704850 4708951 4708000 4706900 4706205 4705091
Now my friends...
i.qkme.me/35z21f.jpg
Awww shit man there is some elephant sized shit about to hit the industrial sized fan, cant wait to see star goig all berserk when she finds out the next chapter. Also, do you have an editor or do you write this alone because I couldn't help but notice many errors in this chapter, I would've pointed them out but since the chapter is so big and i'm using my phone I couldn't do anything.
4709398 No...no editor, totally alone, doing the best I can.
FYI I right most of this, along with Entities and Hello Big Brother, during my weekend job, not supposed to, but I do it, can't stop a writer baby!
That's why you're probably seeing errors. I comb through it the best I can though.
4709157 Oooooo. I like shit storms -starts popcorn in anticipation-
4709416 you do all this alone wow hats off to you my friend with how good this is I was thinking there was somebody else who was helping you out with the story. If you want I could help you out so that you don't need to worry about the errors and just focus on the story and your job
4709629 Job's easy as hell, which is why I can find the time to write during work not supposed to, but I do.
Hmmm.
Your offer intrigues me.
I'll give you a shot for the upcoming chapter, and we'll see from there.
4709771 Thank you for the chance I assure you I will not disappoint. What do you use to write your chapters, Gdocs or do you write them directly in fimfiction?
4709917 I just copy paste from my Word doc. But I'll put a password lock on it so that you can view it after I've set it up.
4709157 Enraged Starburst gonna kick some griffon ass? Sounds like my kind of party!
I'm really going to anticipate the moment the griffons suddenly understand their predicament and have a big "Oh shit!" moment.
media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7qn5vHPZz1qdow1r.gif
I just realized something while reading this chapter, If they have a giant magical engine that keeps an entire city from falling. why do they still need balloons to keep their airships fly?
"Just following orders" is a poor excuse to let people off of what they did, and a poorer excuse to actually do those horrible things. They were given an order, and then they chose to follow it. Of their own free will. They could have disobeyed it - whatever the consequences of that may be - but they did not. And from the way you've been describing the griffons, they don't seem to have much of a tendency to want to disobey orders at this point. At the very least, Twilight is not going to let them off without a trial in a nationally neutral court.
Those RG's, on the other hoof...
4704815 Blame Celestia for breeding such a mentality.
some ponies see us a goddesses
has to recharge or your dead
sometimes, yes,
sheStar’s stature did sometimeseven you’re family supports you
Yes she knew that these were there enemies
earth pony stallion who road into battle
unless either Captain Valiant Heart or I give the single
wasn’t too tight but not too lose either
Twilight made her way to the Bombay doors
I Concussion Spell Wave, it’s different from
the fall would’ve surly killed them if they
1. As.
2. Extra She.
3. Your.
4. Their.
5. Rode.
6. Signal.
7. Loose.
8. Bomb bay.
9. A.
10. Surely.