Fact or Fiction

by Mocha Star

18) Captured!

The Torrent camp was in an uproar. Healers rushed to their leader's tent to treat his wounds. Each healer was tending to a wound or humming some ancient charm to calm his nerves. They ranged from fellow centaurs to the brown pelted gargoyles that had lived symbiotically with centaurs for centuries. However Naditabirus was far from calmed. His hand had a thick bandage over where his thumb once was, his missing ear hole, another over the gash in his shoulder and over his missing eye. His free fist was clenched in rage and his blood boiled. Not only was he attacked by some 'assassin' but it was a pony. Among all of the disgraceful things to happen to one of his prestige, that was the worst.

Other warriors scoured the area where Naditabirus shot a beam of magic. Two found the paralyzed mare, her body was very cold and nearly frost bitten. Knowing that Naditabirus would want to punish her himself, they took her chilled body back. She slowly came back into consciousness, her body was still in too much shock to fight back. Upon arriving near the big tent the smell of incense filled the air.

When the two centaurs walked in with Pea Gravel, Naditabirus swung his arm knocking most of the healers away. Hoisting his mass up to a standing position, he pointed at the two centaurs with his injured hand. A furious scowl on his one eyed face, "What is that rabid beast doing back in my tent?!" He roared.

"F-forgive us your holiness..." One of the centaurs gulped, "We… we found her and… and thought that you'd want to punish her yourself..."

A twisted grin came across Naditabirus' wide face, “Ahhh… you two are very wise. Bring the little bitch here."

The two centaurs placed the still mare before Naditabirus. They quickly stepped back, as well as everyone else inside the tent. Naditabirus picked up Pea Gravel in his hands, his fingers easily wrapping around her. All the anger of being disfigured by such an insignificant creature funneled into his hands which constricted the mare. She cried out as the powerful hands cracked her ribs. A spittle of blood came out of her screaming mouth.

Naditabirus chuckled menacingly as he tried to squeeze the life out of her. Naditabirus threw her back to the ground. He rose to his full height and with an enraged growl, stomped on the mare with his fore hooves. The ground rumbled with the force he was pounding at the ground. He cursed with each stamp on the grey mare. It was such a sight it made his subordinates cringe as they watched.

Finally, he stepped back with his chest heaving. He looked down at his dirty work with a relieved laugh. Everyone else in the tent laughed too, though they were more frightened then relived. Naditabirus looked down at his dirty work. To his horror the mare was still breathing. He faltered when she slowly pulled her face out of the dirt. He gasped when she took in a shaking breath.

A bloody smile was on her face, "Is that all the fight ya got, fatty?"

Naditabirus shook his head in disbelief, "This is impossible! How could such a measly worm of a mammal survive that?

Pea Gravel rose to her feet, standing proud like a warhorse. Naditabirus rose up his hands, as if in defeat. To the mare's surprise, two orange beams of magic light cascaded onto her. This magic smothered her more so than the physical attacks from his heavy hooves. While holding up her twitching body with magic, Naditabirus called for a steel cage to encase the mare. While some of his subordinates went off to bring one and Naditabirus chuckled evilly seeing the mare finally in agony.

The cage was brought, it's sides layers of riveted steel plates and bars. It looked more like a barrel for demons then a cage for captives. The top was unlatched and Pea Gravel was placed inside. The only vents were grape sized holes on the lid. Naditabirus cackled hearing the sound of Pea Gravel pound against the sides of the cage like a wild animal. He picked up the barrel shaped cage in his hands and shook it around like a child shakes a present. Pea Gravel tossed and tumbled inside, banging her head and metal limbs against the steel.

Dropping it carelessly Naditabirus went back to sitting down, now a casual grin on his face. He yawned and waved the mages and healers to return, "Put this grey demon away. I expect it dead," The two centaurs nodded and quickly left the massive tent. Naditabirus leaned his neck back and sighed, "A pony doing this to me… the world must be turning upside down these days. Next people will tell me ponies are queens in castles," He spat at the thought.

The two centaurs who were carrying Pea Gravel's cage, held the cage as if it was a thing of evil. Not wanting to be near it any longer they dropped it off at the first gargoyle they passed. She was tanning a horse hide and to her surprise a metal cage almost as big as her fell in the snow next to her tent.

"Got some more leather for you," one of the centaurs said, "Watch out, she's a fighter."

They turned and left quickly, glad to be rid of the grey mare. The gargoyle who was already fluffy had a wool parka over her. She looked at the steel cage with a worried eye, hearing a low groan from inside it she threw her hands up in the air.

"This is ridiculous," she said, "I work my fingers to the bone to feed those brutes and they drop some monster in a cage to me. What am I supposed to do with it?"

"You could let me out," Pea Gravel said quietly.

"Ah, it speaks," the gargoyle chuckled, "And what did you do so horrible that they put you in such a cage?"

Pea Gravel’s laugh was a painful one, "I slashed up that Natibastard. I bet you heard him squeal."

"I heard a roar that hurt my ears," The gargoyle huffed. She went back to tanning the hide stretched out on it's rack before her, "If that was a squeal to you, no wonder they want you dead. You must be a demon sent to torment him."

"Oh yeah," Pea Gravel agreed, "I'm a furious demon. Since I've been satisfied from slashing up his 'holiness', you should let me go."

"Oh really?" The gargoyle pulled up her parka up over her neck,"They'd hang me if I let you go," She stepped back to look at her work. She stretched with a yawn, "Ahh… it's getting late. Tell you what, if you survive a winter night out here, demon, then I'll let you go in the morning. If you're dead, then I'll just thaw out your body for tomorrow."

Pea Gravel punched the side of the cage. The gargoyle chuckled and went inside her tent. Trapped inside the cold metal cage, Pea Gravel stared into space. She had no idea how many bone were broken on her, she didn't have too many to spare anyway. She sighed sadly, she knew there was no way she could break out of the cage in her condition. She didn't know if she'd die in there or not. She nodded her forehead against the cage in defeat, regretting the whole ordeal.

The equines that had been traveling with Pea Gravel were becoming restless. She had been gone for hours with no response besides loud noises and centaurs patrolling the space between them. Daring Do became restless. She was pacing back and forth while the other equines bundled up to keep warm. Making a fire would catch attention so they just buried themselves in the thick snow.

Night had fallen and the air became cold, even inside the snow shelter. Daring Do was bouncing her knee while she sat, Rainbow Dash kept her gaze outside. Dew Berry's family huddled together, the little mule Cardinal fast asleep between his parents. Like the Equestrians, the red mare too, was beginning to worry. Her friend never took this long to end a grudge. The unicorn saw the anxiousness in the equines around him and added to the fear, purely by accident.

"Do you think she was captured?" He mumbled.

Daring Do laughed nervously, "No way! That stubborn girl would never be caught by those guys… right?"

The others kept their gazes to the floor. None of them were as strong or a skilled as the missing member, a rescue mission may be suicide. Rainbow Dash sighed, looking back to the group she hugged herself with a chill, "I've got a bad feeling, like a gut feeling. I think something awful happened to her."

"She can't be dead," Wheat Biscuit said, "She's too much of a brute to die in a place like this. Right honey?"

Dew Berry nodded, "Did she ever tell you what happened to another infamous creature we had a grudge with, because of me?"

Daring Do wet her dry lips,"Black Berry?"

Dew Berry clenched her face as if the name physically bludgeoned her, "You know… what he did right?"

"He's Tuff Boulder's dad," Rainbow Dash said.

Dew Berry looked back to that event so long ago, at least twelve years ago. She told them the battle report one of the mercenaries gave her, Pea Gravel was too 'emotional' to recall. Rainbow Dash and Daring Do listened intently on the story, knowing well that it would be a gruesome one...

---

Pea Gravel and her hunting party combed the untamed woods. Each pony wearing some kind of padded leather armor and swords, accompanied by their griffon archers they were a formidable force. The second in command, a owl looking griffon, kept a sharp eye on his leader's back so she could focus on what's in front of her. The other mercenaries shuddered when catching a glance of Pea Gravel's mint colored eyes burning for revenge. When they found a set of hoof tracks, the size confirmed that it was him, Black Berry.

Deeper and deeper into the woods they went, the trees becoming taller and the light dimmer. Strange noises came from the darkness and treetops, whoops and calls that made one's skin crawl. Hunting any Carnahorse was deadly business since they had three dull claws instead of full hooves, but also simply how voracious they could be. The average pony stands around three or four feet tall at the shoulder, while mules and horses stand five. Stories of Carnahorses tell that they can swallow a pony in their jaws and bite the head off cows. Very few things interfere with these massive carnivores, save bigger ones. As with all brutish things the bigger they are, the more stupid they are.

Black Berry was a big Carnahorse.

The troupe's second clue was a mess of rib cages that belonged to dozens of deer and even cattle. They were picked clean, stark white framework of the creature's past victims. The Bevy tread carefully, not where the meat eating horse would emerge. Through the underbrush they heard the sound of a animal in pain. They took a hiding spot behind several bushes and looked to find their target...and an orc.

The primitive looking hominid had it's back to a tree, a club firmly gripped in its hands. Black Berry's size still looked massive, even to such a muscular humanoid. The great equine was snapping his jaws at his prey, playing with it like some demented cat. When his head was close it was whacked by the club. The thudding sound paused Black Berry. Who blinked in annoyance at the terrified orc. The orc took the opportunity to sprint to the side and run past Black Berry. He was heading away from the Bevy, thankfully not towards them.

A guttural laugh came from the massive equine as he turned his bulk around. His three toed hooves thudded against the ground as he rumbled up to the fleeing orc. His prey looked back once, but that was too much. Black Berry's jaws opened wide and snapped over most of the orc's torso. Skidding to a stop, Black Berry held his squirming prey up in his jaw like a prize. The muscles on the sides of his head flexed and the orc began flailing around, a wicked crunching sound and wailing came from it. Black Berry shook his head violently, breaking any of the bones that were still in one piece. Once the orc stopped moving, he dropped the carcass. It landed wetly on the forest floor with a flop. Black Berry didn't eat it though, he simply walked away from it. He lay down on a large pile of leaves and moss and closed his dark red eyes.

Pea Gravel gave a silent signal to her dazed archers. Snapping out of what they had witnessed, the griffons attached rope to their arrows and tied the other end to a tree near by. They were set up in a semi circle around him. They waited for their signal with their grappling arrows notched and aimed. The rest pulled out their swords ready for the fight. Pea Gravel looked to each of her fellow mercenaries and motioned forward. The arrows flew to their target, digging deep with their barbs. Black Berry woke with a start, looking around at the ropes stuck to him. He pushed his mass up to it's feet with a dull growl.

Pea Gravel and her Bevy members sprinted to the dark colored equine, all shouting, "For Dew Berry!"
Black Berry turned to look, tugging at a grappling arrow in his neck. The ponies rushed towards him and more arrows pelted his sides. He bucked his back legs, kicking a pony high up in the air. He tugged at the arrows that tied him to the trees around him to get free while the ponies circled around him, not sure where to strike. Pea Gravel was at the rear, running fast she leaped up onto Black Berry's back. She drove her sword deep in his neck, with nothing else to hold onto, she kept the handle in her mouth while the dark equine stomped and bucked wildly.

Another Bevy member threw his sword to Pea Gravel, who just barely caught it. Holding onto her own sword with her hooves and the new one in her mouth, she slashed at the top of his neck madly, carving chunks out of his hide. Black Berry rose to his full height, kicking up at the air with growls of pain. The arrows that anchored him to trees either snapped or were ripped out. He thundered deeper into the woods, stomping on the mercenaries in his way. Pea Gravel held on as the mighty equine thundered away.

As he ran, he smashed into trees to get Pea Gravel off. Her leg was caught between one or two but she still held on and still cut away at his neck and back. Dark red shone out against his deep purple fur. He wasn't showing any signs of stopping. Pea Gravel thought fast, she remembered something she had bought recently; a jade cactus fruit. They were apparently some of the best depressant drug in the area. She took up one in a hoof and the other gripped around the sword hilt. Black Berry's mouth was agape, funneling air into his lungs. Though the ride was bumpy she managed to throw it into the back of his mouth.

He did a strange side step and his body stopped running and went into the air. He landed heavily on his side with Pea's back legs stuck under him. She pawed at the ground to get out from under him but his bulk was to much to move.With a growl he quickly rose to his feet. Now freed, Pea reached for the sword she had been slashing. Though the mercenary was fast, Black Berry's mouth was faster. His jaws snapped above her back knees and he hoisted her into the air.

"Whaf thid you phut in my mouf?" He asked with a venomous voice, mouth full of legs.

"Why should I tell you?" Pea spat as she dangled from his jaw.

Black Berry threw his neck down to whack her against the ground, "Thell me!"

Pea Gravel smiled wickedly, "It's an evil poison, given to me by a witch! If you kill me now you'll never be cured!"

The carnahorse growled, not sure if he should believe the small grey mare. His head became light, the drug's effects tickling his small cranium. Black Berry stomped at the ground in denial. He bit down hard on her legs and dropped her. Huge tooth marks were left in her legs. She wouldn't be walking a while after this, some of her tendons were severed. Oza would have his work cut out for him when she got back.

"Fix it or I'll step on you," He growled.

Pea Gravel his her pain with a smirk, "You'll have to come here, big boy."

Black Berry grimaced with his shark teeth then knelt down. His body a horse shaped mountain compared to Pea Gravel. His breathing was affected by the drug too, his little brain was just a vulnerable as Pea Gravel's. Body weight didn't matter to the jade cactus fruit. Pea Gravel forced herself into a sitting position and glared at the carnahorse.

"If you want me to get it, I have to get into your mouth," She blinked away a pained tear, "If you bite me I'll put more in and you'll be cursed."

"What kind of curse?" Black Berry snorted.

"You'll become a normal horse," Pea smiled grimly, "You'll eat grass and shrink. I think you may even end up in a farm..."

Black Berry growled viciously, "You're lying!"

Pea Gravel shook her head, "Nope. If you want to be a farm horse, kill me. If you don't let me in your mouth so I can get it."

Black Berry growled at her, dishonored to be ordered around by something like her. He reluctantly lay his head to the ground and opened his toothy maw wide. To Pea's luck she was now in a blind spot. She carefully picked up her sword and tenderly went up the the beast's maw. Her knees were on his tongue, his jaw flinched at the taste of the blood coming from them.

"Hey now!" She said almost sweetly, "You promised."

She had the sword in one of her hooves while the other helped hold her up. She positioned the sword tip so it would slide into the base of his skull. She smiled, "Aaalmost....just a little further..."

Putting the other hoof at the pummel she drove the sword into the back of the carnahorse's throat. The sword pushed through flesh until it became stuck in the base of his neck. His jaws snapped down on Pea's back legs, on the same spot as before, and thrashed his head around. Pea Gravel was tossed and turned inside his mouth but still kept pushing the sword forward. Black Berry's body thrashed and twitched, it's connection severed to his tiny brain. His jaws became locked on biting her legs and even though he stopped thrashing, his jaw was still shut. With a final gurgle his body stopped moving.

---

Dew Berry sighed. The memory was still a prideful one, how her friend killed who wronged her. She looked back at the Equestrians, "And you know how the Bevy found her?"

"Did they help her out of his jaws?" Daring Do asked.

Dew Berry laughed, "By the time they had tracked Black Berry's body down, she was already on her way back. No one really knows if she cut her way out or pushed his mouth open. Either way sounds likely to me."

Rainbow Dash grunted, "That's a great story, but Black Berry was one guy. There's Celestia knows how many centaurs in that camp."

"Fine, fine," Dew Berry groaned, "What would you do?"

Rainbow Dash folded her forearms, "I don't know! Something else besides this!"

Daring Do looked over to Rainbow Dash with a calming smile, "Rainbow Dash, the only pony in our party who could pull off a rescue like this would be her. She's fine, don't worry. She's probably going incognito or had a tussle with a guard or two."

"Why can't you save her?" Rainbow Dash barked, "You’re Daring Do, you can do anything! We flew in and save that unicorn, why can't we do the same here?"

"I'm not what she is," Daring Do said with a twinge of sorrow in her voice, "I can't pull off what she can. The unicorn was in a little fort of little people. This is completely different," She sat over next to the cyan mare and put a comforting arm over her shoulder, "We can't do anything else but hope. Hope and believe she's fine."