Trickery Through Time

by Silvermyr

An Ancient Ally

”Any latht words?” Gamon sneered evilly. The seven ponies of The Circus plus Marmalade were gradually being forced backward, towards a hole in the mountain.

After Trixie had been caught, it had taken approximately eight seconds before every griffon who had been watching Flim swept down in the quarry and arrested them all. When they discovered the sniffing and hyperventilating Marmalade, any explanation was useless. With little ceremony, the ponies had been marched away from the quarry and through the city, Topsy and Ditzy with their wings bound to their sides with leather straps. After a short walk, filled with spitting, jeering griffons, they arrived at a barred chasm in the ground, just by the large birdbath they had seen when they were first marched into Griffonstone. Two griffons were working with golden cranks to open it as they arrived.

Gamon had, though it was hard to understand with his pronounced lisp, explained that they were to die in some horrific way or the other and now they were slowly being forced backwards into the waiting maw. Ten thousand escape plans flashed through Flim’s mind every second, each more insane than the last. Not even he could come up with a witty reply now, not when he could hear his closest friends quiver behind him. His brother seemed to be in a daze and his own legs were shaking.

”Water behind-d us,” Topsy whispered. Flim’s ears peaked up. If there was water down in the abyss, then it might be a better idea to get down there instead of making a dash for it now. They had at least ten spear wielding griffons in front of them, all who did not seem too hesitant to just straight up impale them then and there.

Gamon clicked with his beak, and the guards began to advance, forcing the ponies backwards. The eight were forced closer together, somepony’s hooves scraped at the edge of the abyss. One of the griffons jabbed with his spear, causing Ditzy to flinch backwards.

That was all it took. With a terrified squeak Suri’s hooves scrambled at the edge before falling. Filthy threw himself to her and managed to grab her fore hooves, holding on to her for dear life. Another griffon jabbed from the side, forcing Trixie to jerk backwards. The force of the motion made her hat fall away and float down the chasm.

”My hat…?” Trixie mumbled. Her pupils were like pinpricks and one of her hooves were stretched as if to grab it.

Gamon clicked again with sadistic glee, and all the griffons took a step forward. Marmalade, who had been hiding behind the others, was forced back, stumbled over Filthy and fell with a scream, followed soon by Filthy and Suri. Just as Topsy had said, three splashes was heard after a few seconds.

”We are alright!” Filthy called back up. Flim and the others gave a relieved exhale.

”Well, if we are going to go, let’s do it with style. Right, brother of mine?” Flim asked with a wavering smile. Flam managed a terrified kind of laugh.

”Next town, brother?” Flim asked, several octaves above his normal pitch.

”Next town,” Flam nodded. Together they backed, took each others hooves and jumped. Flim tried to give Ditzy a reassuring smile, though based on the pegasus’ tear-filled eyes he did not quite succeed. Then he was falling.

One moment later he was submerged in ice cold water. Flim and Flam sputtered and kicked to get above the surface. None of them had any actual swim training, having grown up in a place with little water and no money or time to learn it. As such, they kept floating through a floppy, hardly dignified thrashing.

”Here!” Suri called from a little while away. Both the brothers looked, but the darkness beyond the open chasm made it impossible to see anything before their eyes had adjusted. Nonetheless, they followed her voice and soon felt slippery chips of stone under their hooves. Flam yelped when he felt something brush against his leg, and all but dashed out of the water; quite an accomplishment, since Flim continued to slide back on the stone chips.

Another set of splashes, followed by the groaning of the grated door, told them that the last of their friends finally had succumbed to the inevitable and fallen down as well. Flim reached a hoof forward, and Suri took it and pulled him out of the water.

”Are you alright?” Flim asked her. She nodded, but was visibly shaken. Flim nodded and turned around to the center of the small lake and saw Ditzy paddle easily towards them. Topsy and Trixie had it harder, especially the latter, who was holding her hat in her mouth at the same time, but they managed. Flim looked about the cave.

The room was surprisingly bright for being a cave. Most of the walls were composed of the same marble that most of Griffonstone rested on, interrupted by gleaming metal ore. The pool behind them was cool and clear. The bottom was made up by a lot of small stone chips, and in between them grew long strands of waterweed. A circle of light fell down from the grated gateway.

There was also a large cave entrance on the other side of the underground pond, but from his position he could not see very well into it.

All in all, this was a million times better than the volcanic crater he had expected them to be thrown into. In fact, this did not look to bad at all; with them together they could certainly figure out a way to escape.

A heavy, ponderous rumble from the back of the room made all the ponies freeze. Slowly did they turn to the darkest part of the cave, to the one part of the cave wall not clad in marble.

A single eye the size of Ditzy Doo stared back.

Something large as half the mountain wall rose up from its sleep and placed itself on two gargantuan forelegs, each one thicker than the largest tree trunks. A wide mouth could be seen on the horned head. The eye scanned the room for a moment before stopping on them. The creature moved, each step sending tremors through the ground.

”Masbi smash!” The whatever-it-was rumbled. It heightened one of its fists and brought it down towards Topsy. With a squeak, Marmalade threw herself at his side and tackled him out of the way. The massive fist fell down and cracked the stone where Topsy had been the moment before.

The thunderclap from the punch seemed to awaken all the ponies from the trance of terrified awe. ”Filthy!” a Covering and Panicked Trixie yelled and threw a boomerang to the earth pony.

”Thanks,” Filthy mumbled, caught the weapon and threw. The boomerang soared through the air and hit the monster’s side without as much as a reaction. It fell down without coming back; Filthy could just as well have town it at a wall.

Only now did the monster seem to understand that it had missed its target. With a confused rumble it turned around, searching for his enemies. He saw some of them still by the beach.

”Hey, ugly!” Trixie let her horn flare. A bright, dazzling star left her horn and exploded in a beautiful golden cascade mere hoof lengths from the monster’s single eye. The monster roared and staggered backwards, holding his hands before the eye. As a cave dweller, he was not very well off against the light.

Filthy darted up to the monster while it was still blinded, snatched his boomerang and galloped away. Once at a relatively safe distance he threw again with as little effect as before.

”No no, the eye!” Flam called from behind a few rocks. ”Aim for the eye!” A boulder sized fist lashed out in Flam’s direction, but thankfully missed. The unicorn however, still ducked in behind the rocks and remained frozen while fragments of the wall fell down on his back.

Masbi opened the eye again, even if the ponies could see a tear forming in it. He peered from one side of the room to another before it settled in Flim’s direction. With a roar the monster heaved himself at the unicorn.

Flim saw the living rock-slide coming at him and swallowed; it was like a part of the wall hurled itself at him. Just before he got mowed down he leaped as high as he could and landed on the muscular arm. Masbi must have felt it, because he stood up and flailed violently to shake the annoying pony off. Flim only managed to hold on for a moment before he was sent flying in a high arch, hit the roof and landed in the pond. With him out of the way, Masbi instead shifted his focus to the purple one.

Suri stood petrified and watched the terrifying creature rear up on the back legs with his fists lifted high in the air to crush her. She stared, paralyzed in fear.

It was amazing how many memories could race through her mind in such a short time.

The birthday when she got her trademark scarf; when her interest for sewing had ben born.

The time she helped a classmate mend a torn-off button for her jacket; when she earned her cutie mark.

The day she was accepted as seamstress for a small store in Manehattan; her first real job.

And her brightest moment, still etched onto her cornea. When she stood at the ramp during fashion week, cameras flashing, ponies cheering for her creations. She was at the top of the world then, happier than ever a pony had been.

Her vision disappeared. Instead she saw only the monster beneath ancient Griffonstone.

Looking back at it, she realized that it all must have happened very fast. But in the moment, everything seemed to be slowed down. It was like she was watching the individual paintings, the very frames that made up her sense of sight.

The cyclops towered over her.

New frame.

His herculean fist began to fall.

New frame.

Filthy Rich beside her.

New frame.

Boomerang cleaving the air.

New frame.

This frame was slanted. She and Filthy both were airborne and the boomerang was no longer in sight.

New frame.

Fist even closer, casting its shadow over half her body.

New frame.

Filthy smiled apologetically at her.

New frame.

Blackness and a dull pain in her legs from the bad landing.

New sound.

”NOO! WAIT!”

And then an ear scattering scream.

The world sped up again. Her heart hammered as if to break out of her ribcage. Her vision was a narrow tunnel. In her mouth she could taste something metallic. Every muscle in her body trembled like a leaf.

Suri flopped over on her back to see what had happened. The Cyclops’s held both his forelegs against his eye and his mouth was wide open in a scream. Suri, however, only heard a muffled, drawn out beep. Ditzy was flying just in front of the cyclops with both of her hooves cupped over her mouth. She spotted Flam dash up behind the monster and buck it in the knee joint. He leaped aside just as the monster toppled backwards and hit its head in the cave wall.

Through the omnipresent beep, Suri might have heard somepony calling out to Topsy. In the next moment, Topsy was indeed flying right above her, up above the Cyclops’s face, went into a loop combined with a flip and bucked the monster’s chin with all his speed and strength behind him.

The Cyclops gave a meek roar and, much to everypony’s surprise, curled up with both his giant hands over his eye. Suri stared, every moment expecting the monster to get back up and squash her. She sobbed choppily, only now understanding what had happened, how close it had been.

She could have died.

The only reason she was still here, thinking these thoughts, was through pure luck. She could just as easily have died. Died here in ancient Griffonstone, leaving nothing behind for anypony to remember her by. The only ponies who would even miss her were the six others of The Circus.

Just a few years, and she could have been forgotten. A nameless, faceless pony who nobody would ever mourn. Not even a tombstone to mark her passage.

Literarily just a split second away from oblivion.

Suri cried.

She did not know for how long, but eventually she realized that somepony was sitting just by her, gently stroking her back. She was also suddenly aware that she could hear again, albeit not very well. She heard pieces of a conversation and her ears subconsciously flicked forward to pick it up.

”…Boomerang?”

”Just in front of me, I tried to catch it,” Ditzy explained. ”But the poor thing got hit right in the eye instead.” Suri absently thought that Ditzy must be completely daft if she called that monster ”poor thing.”

”He does not seem to aggressive right now.” Suri recognized the voice as Flam’s. ”Ditzy, would you object to see if you could get him to notice you?”

”NO!” Suri screamed and looked up from her crying. ”NO, HE WILL KILL US ALL!” Flim, Flam, Topsy and Ditzy all looked over at her. Maybe they had not realized she was conscious.

”Shh, it’s all right, Suri. It’s all right,” Filthy mumbled beside her. She startled, twirled around and hyperventilated. Filthy was still visibly jumpy himself, but he managed a wavering smile. ”Calm down. All is fine. The monster is down.”

”B-but h-he…” Suri stammered and pointed lamely. She did not say anything else. She knew her voice would not carry.

”Then we should get out of here before he does anything,” Filthy pointed out. ”We should see if the others have any ideas.” Gently, Filthy coaxed Suri up on her hooves and helped her over to their friends and a very uncertain Marmalade, who sat slightly at the side. She did not seem to know if she could join the others and did not dare to get any closer to the monster. She was stuck where she was.

Suri felt better moving, even if she still shook so violently every step was awkward. Dull pain still throbbed in her knees and legs. Looking down, she saw that she had scraped them pretty badly. She and Filthy subtly made their way into the small circle their friends had formed by the pool’s shore.

”We have to find out,” Flam said insistently. ”Now that he is not doing anything, we have a golden opportunity to see where we have him. Ditzy, you up to it?”

”I w-will fol-low then,” Topsy hissed. Flam took no notice, but instead looked at Ditzy.

The cloud gray pegasus threw a dubious look at the huddled cyclops and swallowed, but nodded nonetheless. She and Topsy flew up, near the roof of the cave and slowly made their way closer. When they hovered just above the monster, Topsy pulled away a small rock from the ceiling and threw it.

With a grunt, the monster shifted and opened a red eye that oozed tears. When he spotted the two pegasi he roared sadly and curled up even harder. Both Ditzy and Topsy stared. The monster seemed as terrified of them as Suri was of him. The two ponies returned to their friends.

”I thought so,” Flam said with a bemused expression. ”The last thing the overgrown goat saw before he felt pain like never before was probably not the boomerang, but you, Ditzy. He think you made his eye hurt like that.” Flam chuckled. ”So congratulations, Ditzy. You have managed to scare that beast into submission.”

”I have?” Ditzy’s tilted her head. ”But I didn’t want that. I tried to stop the boomerang.”

”Don’t let him know that,” Flim mumbled with an anxious look to the monster. ”Better like this. I imagine that was how the griffons imagined us to die, so as long as he is not hurting us we should be out of danger.”

”Well… that’s good,” Ditzy mumbled. ”Okay, I will try to keep him calm.”

”Perfect, now Trixie would very much like some thanks for her amazing wit that brought that boomerang here in the fist place,” Trixie pointed out.

”That’s only fair, I imagine,” Filthy said, still holding a hoof with Suri. ”Thanks Trixie. You probably saved all of our hides in bringing the boomerang. How did you even do it?”

”Trixie took it from Gamon’s place and hid it under her cape. She assumed, quite correctly, that the griffons would not search her.”

”That was a great risk you took then,” Flam pointed out. ”How could you be so sure they would not search you?”

Trixie shrugged. ”Why would they conceive us lowly ponies as a threat? Of course creatures such as us could not smuggle anything with us down here, we are too dumb to think of it.”

”You seem to know the griffons surprisingly well for somepony who have never met them before,” Flam pointed out.

Trixie gave a hapless smile. ”Let’s just say that Trixie understands what hubris can cost you better than most ponies.” The bitterness in her voice was palpable. ”And she also wants to know how any of you propose we are supposed to survive down here even with that beast out of the way. We have no food.”

”Waterweed is edible,” Marmalade called from outside their little circle.

”Right, you are still here, aren’t you?” Flim exclaimed. ”I forgot. Why are you sitting there, all by yourself? Come over and socialize a bit.”

Marmalade looked like Flim had just asked her to fly around the cave. ”M-me? But… I tried to have you guys killed like… three times over, and I am the reason you were even down here! Why would you even let me near?”

”Because we have somepony among us who is too kind for her own good,” Flam answered with a sidelong glance to Ditzy. ”And because we will need your help to get out of here.”

”Get out?” Marmalade mumbled. ”You will… actually try to escape?”

”What else?” Flim asked innocently. ”Wanna join?” He held out a hoof. Marmalade looked at it, evidently wanting to hope that Flim was sincere, but not quite daring to. Cautiously, like a shy animal, she edged closer, still limping slightly. Flim disengaged from the circle and approached her alone, still with his hoof extended.

Marmalade swallowed and extended her injured hoof, as she could not stand on it, and bumped it carefully with Flim’s, sealing their agreement.

With a practiced movement, Flim caught her hoof by the fetlock and twisted it. A startled squeak sounded from Marmalade as Flim looked over the injury. He winced. Her hoof was split right through, as if some depraved soul had struck it with a chisel. ”You should place that in the water,” he said, ”and pray to Celestia that it has not already been infected. What happened to you anyway?”

”Gamon,” Marmalade mumbled.

”Why am I not surprised?” Flim asked silently. ”Anyway, we need to get out of Griffonstone and then a little while down the mountain. If we do that, we will be safe. Do you know anything that can help us with that.”

”We will not be safe,” Marmalade said sadly. ”They will find us within the day as long as we are still in these mountains.”

”No, we will just use the time machine again and escape,” Ditzy explained to Marmalade.

The orange earth pony looked at her and got the somewhat confused look that everypony gets when they really saw Ditzy for the first time. Flam took the opportunity to prevent any more questions that Marmalade likely would not believe any time soon.

”Just trust us on that. If we can get to that cave, we will be out of danger.” Flam paused. ”But if we want to get that far, we will have to figure out a way to get out of here, first and foremost.”

”That cave over there seems like our best candidate,” Filthy said and pointed to the large opening at the other side of the pool. ”Or, maybe we could get the grating open somehow?” He shot a longing look at the golden door in the roof, near fifty ponylengths up.

”That will be our last ditch possibility,” Flam said. ”If the griffons see us playing with it, we are done for.”

”So what do you propose then, brother?” Flim asked.

The unicorn shrugged. ”For now, let’s just see what we have to work with. Get exploring everypony!” He managed a semi-happy tone at the end. He rose from the floor and cast a worried look at the cyclops, who in turn was keeping his eyes steadily at them, especially at Ditzy and Topsy, who flew up to explore the cave roof.

Filthy and Suri made nonverbal agreement to stick close together and started to make their way around the pool and to the cave behind it.

”How are you?” Suri asked silently, even if the echo in the cave made whispers a rather moot point. When she looked at her companion as they went by the water edge. He seemed relatively calm. His legs were still shook a little and his pace was faster than normal, but he had spoken to her clearly, without any noticeable anxiety.

Filthy drew a deep breath. ”Been better, I guess…” he shuddered. ”It was a little too close for comfort there.”

”A little too…?” Suri mumbled. ”W-we could have died, and all you have to say is ’a little too close for comfort’?”

”Sorry,” Filthy said with a sigh. ”I know I… well, I know it’s silly, but I have lived all my life never letting anypony know when I’m afraid. Can’t let anypony see any emotion at a negotiating table. Anxiety and stress are both feelings I guard closely. It just comes naturally to me at this point.”

”So you are afraid too?” Suri asked, a little shyly. It was not exactly a question she had ever imagined herself asking.

”Like a lost colt,” Filthy mumbled. ”I-I… I’m just so worried about my little diamond,” Filthy’s voice wavered at the last word. He sniffled a little, but his eyes remained dry. He drew a breath, and when he continued his voice was calm and composed as usual. ”I can’t die here. She needs me. I can’t let her grow up without me, she needs ponies she trusts.”

”I’m afraid too,” Suri admitted. She came to a little stream running out of the wall and crossed it gingerly. ”Like… I have no pony left in Equestria, no pony who will ever miss me, m’kay.” She bent her head, feeling ashamed. She spoke silently. ”I’m afraid to be forgotten. I… just want somepony to think of me, once in a while when I’m gone, m’kay.” The words tasted bitter in her mouth as she said them. Filthy did not seem to be afraid at all for his own sake; only for his daughters. Her own fears sounded so petty, so selfish beside his.

”I understand,” he said as he hopped over the stream.

The two of them continued in silence until they stood just before the pitch black cave. Up close one could see that it did not seem to continue very far into the mountain. Rather, after just a few ponylengths beyond the pool, it quickly narrowed and became a sharp drop. Suri gingerly slid forward on her belly and peeked down. The hole was scarcely large enough for an adult pony and the blackness was absolute. Climbing down should be possible, Suri imagined, but the risk of getting stuck or simply coming to a dead end with no way turn around also seemed much too plausible for her liking. Also there was a stifling stench rising from the pit.

”No,” Filthy Rich said as he scooted up beside her. ”I’m not going down there; I’d rather hack my way straight through the cavern wall with my bare hooves.” Suri could only agree. She carefully began scooting backwards, away from the pitch black maw. She took it slow. If she slipped she might very well fall down into the abyss. She felt a fresh pang of fear piercing her heart and was forced to stop for a moment, just to breathe and gather her bearings. Slowly did she make her way back onto more stabile ground.

”Suri,” Filthy said lowly, still by the edge, ”Perhaps you would be so kind as to pull me back? I… d-don’t know if I can move…” Suri thought she might hear a small sliver of fear in his voice. She reached forward and pulled Filthy backwards by his hind legs.

”Thank you,” Filthy mumbled once he too was on stable ground. ”Really, thanks a lot.” Suri could not help but to smile a little at his bashfulness. The contrast to the composed, easygoing Filthy Rich she knew was staggering. And just a little bit cute.

Suri’s breath caught in her throat. She had just thought Filthy Rich cute. That was undeniably a trait one would only attribute to somepony one was attracted to- attracted in the most pure sense of the world. She would not use that description for just a friend or colleague. ”Cute” meant something deeper to her, something more.

And she had used it to describe Filthy Rich, a married stallion and a father too. To court a pony like him was unimaginable both morally and practically. He was one of the richest ponies in Equestria, handsome and kind. She had pretty much nothing she could call solely her own; not a home, not much money and no items worth mentioning. A more improbable match than she and Filthy was hardly imaginable, even putting aside that she would never again be able to look into a mirror with self-respect if she engaged in an affair with a married stallion.

”Suri? What is it?”

Suri startled at her name, and caught Filthy looking at her quizzically. ”No, nothing, what would it be?” she replied, faster than she had intended. ”Come on, m’kay. Let’s see if the others have found something.” She quickly made her way over to the small stream. A little too quick, as she slipped and fell face first right in the ice cold water.

She thrashed wildly and got her head up after just a second, her mane now a wet mess. She looked around, and so unwittingly stared into the small opening from where the stream welled out from.

A highly surprised Gneiss Pick stared back with wide eyes.

The two ponies stared at one another, none quite understanding the fact that there was another pony in front of them in a place where both of them knew there should not be another pony.

”COME’ERE!” Suri screamed and lunged for the foal. If he got away and tattled on them to the griffons they were all dead. Gneiss snapped out of his paralysis and tried to back away, but he could only slowly crawl backwards; the opening was not wide enough for him to turn. Suri grabbed him by the mane and proceeded to drag him out, aided by Filthy Rich who had picked up on her call.

”Let me go you bastards! What have you done with Arimaspi?” Gneiss called, kicking Filthy and Suri with a surprising strength for his small body. ”Let me go!”

”Gnss?” The Cyclops rumbled and looked towards Suri and Filthy. ”NO HURT GNSS!”

The Cyclops rose up from his covering and lumbered towards Suri.

”Sssstop!” Topsy hissed from the roof, went into an artistic loop and struck the cyclops right in the neck. Arimaspi looked around and his eye fell on a Ditzy, who seemed to be contemplating whether to fly away and hide or try to put on a scolding glare. Arimaspi slowed down and looked alternately at Ditzy and at Gneiss.

”Hello!” Flim came rushing from the other side of the cave. ”What is happening?” He caught a look on the still struggling Gneiss Pick, even if he had been thoroughly wrestled to the ground by the two adult earth ponies. ”And who is this?”

”I’m Gneiss Pick, and Arimaspi’s friend. Let me go or I’ll have him crush you all!” the colt yelled angrily.

”The taskmaster in our mineshaft?” Trixie said when she saw Gneiss. ”So that’s what you were doing when you crawled into the hole? You weren’t looking for hard-to-reach ore, you came here.”

”Yea I did! And the griffons have no clue about it!” Gneiss yelled. ”I’m gonna get out of this stinking city with Arimaspi’s help, just you wait and see! And I’m not going to let you filthy fools hurt my friend!”

”Mr. Rich,” Filthy corrected, still struggling to keep the foal pressed to the ground.

”So you too are trying to escape.” Flam pointed out. ”Perfect, then we want the same thing. Why don’t we sit down and talk this over like gentlecolts?”