Trickery Through Time

by Silvermyr

Idol Infamy

The following evening, eight ponies were standing ready by the thin wall that still separated the pool from their newly dug chute. Topsy listened happily to the winds in the cave, and the heartbeats of his friends. Wherever he directed his ears he heard the same, excitement. The world was waiting with bated breath, waiting for them to begin.

”Alright,” Flam said, looking over their work. Topsy saw that he cast a quick glance up in the ceiling, where the lanterns were hidden on a small ledge. All save for one, which Flam now held in his magic. ”That should be as good it is going to get.” He swallowed. ”Now… remove the last part when I tell you too, okay? Then, once the barrier is down, run to Arimaspi and climb onto him. He will have to get us up to the palace, and then out the city. Everypony understand?”

Flam himself shot a hesitant look towards Arimaspi’s stomach, now rigged with some stolen ropes from the quarry made into a coarse netting by Suri. Marmalade, Suri and Flam would sit there, along with their false idol, which had made it this far relatively unscathed. Gneiss would be at Arimaspi’s shoulder, directing the cyclops, and the other non-flyers would be at his head, trying to defend him. Topsy and Ditzy would stay airborne and guide them if needed.

”What are we going to the palace for?” Marmalade asked accusingly. ”We are already tempting fate with this plan, detours are the last thing we need.”

”We are going to the palace because, A, that is the very reason we even came to this Celestia-forsaken place, and B, because I say so,” Flam explained harshly. ”Any more questions?”

Marmalade looked sullen, but said nothing more. She grabbed a pickaxe in her mouth.

”In that case… my friends, don’t interfere with what happens now.” Before anypony even had processed his last sentence, Flam threw his lamp into the pool water and ignited his horn. Just as the glass broke on the bottom, he used the spell that normally ignited his magnesium powder. A violent, orange light blazed just under the surface, and a puff of steam left the pool. Topsy flapped his wings quickly and caught the rising steam in his fore hooves where, influenced by his natural pegasus magic, it condensed down into a thin, wispy cloud.

Topsy dragged the cloud over his own fur as well as on the ground to charge it with static electricity, and then threw his tiny thundercloud up in the roof.

”Now, break the barrier!” Flam called, just as the cloud left Topsy’s grip. Filthy, Suri and Flim reacted the fastest and bashed their pickaxes feverishly at the thin stone, soon aided by the rest.

An earthshaking explosion sounded from the roof, and a deluge of water splashed from above and into their chute. The ponies ran heads over hooves away from the sweeping water, and climbed up onto the wary cyclops.

Flam watched with pride and anxiety as the water flowed down into the hole. Now he had just to hope that there was indeed a cave down at the bottom, or everything would go south.

His plan was simple, really. All that water was falling with tremendous force down into the cave, driving air in front of it. That air would not have anywhere to go when forced down into the cave; it would instead compress and heat up immensely. The heat and pressure from the water would strike the very root of the mountain. And Gneiss had said that this mountain largely was marble, a very soft stone.

Flam had basically built the world’s largest pressure hammer, and the entire mountain was his nail. He was going to crack it in half.

”Brace yourse-”

BOOOOOOOOOOOOMM!!!

The force from the pressure clap resounded through the stone. Flam held onto Arimaspi’s belly netting for dear life as the ground beneath them shook like a drumhead. He looked down and saw cracks in the rock flowing like dark streams of water. Everywhere, the very ground began to break apart and fall into a bottomless abyss. There was something hypnotizing about the cracks and the way they moved over solid rock; tearing through it like paper.

It was not until that moment Flam really understood what forces he had set loose. Forces that could rip a mountain, a mountain, to pieces. He gasped and his pupils contracted to pinpricks in fear.

”Ball is with you now, brother,” he said, strangely clear-minded. ”I don’t… know anymore.”

The cracks continued up on the walls and roof as the ground began to shift under Arimaspi. With a confused grunt, the cyclops leaped away just before the ground he had been standing on sagged and collapsed. The cyclops landed and immediately grabbed hold of a small outcropping from the wall to prevent being swallowed by another hole that opened beneath him. Flam had a much better view than he would have liked of the pitch black abyss that spontaneously opened right underneath him.

”Leap there!” Gneiss called shrilly from above Flam. He tore his eyes away from the abyss to look around. He looked right into the former living room of the former house that had crashed down into the cave, golden roof and everything. With all the power in his hind legs, the cyclops launched himself from the floor, over another crack twice as wide as him and onto the rooftop. It began to splinter the moment he set his cloven hoof on it, but it was enough. With another powerful jump, he launched right upwards towards something Flam could not see.

For a moment he was hanging queerly in the air, but then he felt Arimaspi crawling upwards, up from the cave and out in pale moonlight. They were out.

*****

Flim looked about the street from his vantage point between Araimapi’s curved horns. Beside him sat Trixie and Filthy with his boomerang ready.

Panic reigned everywhere. Cracks were still running out from the hole behind them, undermining houses and streets alike. Griffons were calling to one another and flying up from their homes, holding their young and whatever possessions they could collect in the hurry. Above the white city, just in front of the moon, towered the Ironfeather Citadel. It seemed to be the only structure that still stood whole in the calamity. A lot of fleeing griffons were now making their way there.

”You sure you wanna go to the castle?” Gneiss called up to Flim quickly. ”We could probably get out easily now when all the guards are up there…”

”To the citadel,” Flam called from the belly netting. ”We are not going home empty hoofed.”

”If you had not blasted us out, I’d leave you here,” Gneiss called down irritably. ”Arimaspi, forward to the big house. And feel free to smash any building you see.”

”Wait, what?” Ditzy peeped in abject horror, her eyes gleaming with tears for all the destruction. ”But we can’t destroy Griffonstone any more! This is horrible!”

”MASBI SMASH!” A massive fist flew straight to through the nearest wall and tore off a piece of the roof. He threw it up the street, grazing the feather of a fleeing griffon. Before Ditzy could voice a complaint, Arimaspi let out challenging roar, bent his head down and charged up the street, toppling the ponies standing on his head. With herculean strength he broke everything that came within reach of his fists and horns and trampled the already crumbling road.

”BACK! BACK BEHIND HIS HEAD!” Filthy screamed while Flim was still trying to find his balance after the sudden burst of speed. He grabbed onto the twisted horns and managed to stabilize. Then he saw why Filthy had called out, and why both of his friends were now throwing themselves backwards.

Arimaspi had crossed through the city at breakneck speed and was about to ram his horned head straight into the citadel wall, never minding what Gneiss screamed into his ear. Flim jumped out from in between the horns into a gyrating swipe, picked Gneiss up and ducked in behind the monster’s powerful shoulders just at the same time Arimaspi reduced the citadel’s outer wall to gravel.

Flim, Trixie, Filthy and Gneiss looked up out between the horns. They were in a large, vaulted room filled with griffons being filed away into various other parts of the castle. To their left, farthest away from the main gate, stood a screen of heavily armed guards, blocking off a portion of the room. Just behind them, on a wooden podium stood their prize; the golden Idol of Boreas.

And further behind, on a flight of stairs, sat the largest, most regal griffon they had ever seen. His wings were bronze brown and gleamed as if made from metal, creating a stunning transition to his dark gold coat and the snow white ring of feathers around his eyes. On his head rested a slender gold crown, the shape of intwined holly leaves. The adornment further accented the blazing eyes of the griffon king. Even from where they were standing his eyes seemed to burn with a divine radiance.

Griffon civilians screamed in utter panic and raced for the door at The cyclops’s violent entry. The guards around the idol and king all raised their spears and shields. With the precision only a unified goal and decades of training could yield, they closed in together around the idol and formed a spiked circle. King Guto leaped from his throne and landed among his honor guard.

”Orders!” one of the guards called once the King was safe in their midst.

”Remove this beast from my court. To my side, Ironfeather Guard!” Guto commanded with a rich, filling voice that was at once inspiring and demanding. The guards immediately threw themselves into the air, their king front and center.

Arimaspi charged the formation with swinging arms, but only hit the air. These griffons were a lot more agile than they seemed, spinning and twisting around and about Arimaspi’s clumsy attacks, slashing with long spears when they got a chance.

”Trixie!” Flim called as he ducked from a brave griffon’s hack. ”Fireworks now!” He hopped over the following swipe and threw his rope onto the griffon and pulled, entangling his wings. The confused griffon fell right in front of Arimaspi’s eye.

”SMASH!” The cyclops rumbled and lifted one of his treelike arms while flailing at the remaining griffons with the other to keep them away. Three of said griffons disengaged the raging cyclops and dove for their comrade while the others closed in on their king. The fist fell, but the three griffons were faster. The snatched up their friend and flew between Arimaspi’s hind legs to escape his crushing hand. But in doing so, they had been forced to abandon their own attack, giving Trixie a moment to catch her breath.

”Watch and be dazzled!” she screamed and ignited her horn. From it flew a bright star right into the cluster of griffons where it exploded in a cascade of lights. The griffons immediately flew upwards and backwards, closing further around their King as they did so.

”Ditzy, the idol! We’ll cover you!” Filthy called and pointed at the idol. The griffons had indeed retreated so far upwards that one could now fly under them.

The cloud gray pegasus did not need to be asked twice. She had kept partially hidden behind the crushed wall, but now she flew forward as fast as she could towards the coveted idol.

The griffons recovered as they heard Filthy’s call. King Guto looked down and saw what was about to happen. Without waiting for his guard he tucked in his wings and fell, golden talons wide open to impale the cowardly vermin.

Ditzy squeaked when she saw the massive griffon fall. Then, like a bolt from a clear sky, a midnight blue blur appeared beside the griffon King and kicked him on the chin, sending him out of his course and straight into the flight of stairs. Topsy went into a half somersault in midair, tapped down on the ground and then launched himself upwards again, dodging a flurry of steel. Ditzy snapped her attention back to the matter at hoof, and nearly flew right into the idol. Instinctively she reached out and caught it, pressing it hard to her body with both her front legs. She was surprised how light it was.

”THE IDOL! THE KING!” the griffon guard screamed in abject horror and confusion. Almost half of the griffons went after Ditzy while others flew down to help their disoriented monarch. Some instead followed Topsy, screaming for vengeance.

”Five on one…! Is cheating!” Flim screamed and aimed two energy beams at the griffons chasing Ditzy, buying her another moment. Trixie and Flam both followed his example.

”Arimaspi, turn around and let’s get out of here!” Gneiss Pick shouted into Arimaspi’s ear. The cyclops looked about, grabbed a nearby statue and threw it into the cluster of griffons following Topsy. The ex-Wonderbolt slipped out of the way with a narrow turn. Two of the griffons followed, while the last one reacted a fraction of a second too late and caught the statue on the wing. He spun uncontrollably straight into the wall and hit the ground just as Arimaspi leaped out from the castle with Ditzy at his heels. Topsy flew after her alone, narrowly feinting the griffons behind him while trying to keep them from his precious friend.

One particular brave guard flew right at him, took a kick to the wing but powered through nonetheless, poking with his spear at Ditzy. Luckily for her, he had a hard time flying with his wing, so she still kept ahead.

Topsy snapped around, leaving the griffons to knock down the newest threat to Ditzy. He dashed forward, came up at the pursuer and struck him in the neck, knocking him out instantly.

”Topsy, out of the way!” Filthy screamed with a furious wave of his hooves. Topsy saw him and picked up his ears. His hearing should warn him of any danger. Then he realized his folly; with the sound of an entire city collapsing around him, he was not able to pick up the keener sounds around him; he could not listen for danger like he was used to. The realization came too late. He felt like somepony bucked his side, just under his wing. Filthy had thrown his boomerang at the griffon, and he had hit Topsy instead. He wobbled a little in his flight, and that was enough for one of the griffons.

Topsy screamed as he felt the blade slash over his hind legs. He felt the rush of air on his wound, but hardly any pain. Adrenaline and unfailing worry for Ditzy prevented such things. Still, he noted grimly that he had fallen a little behind and so allowed more griffons to snap at him.

With their biggest problem thus out of the way, the griffons dashed past him after Ditzy.

*****

”Marmalade, they need our help,” Flam said as the three ponies in the belly netting watched the battle unfurl. ”Topsy needs time to get away from those guards, else they will hack him to pieces.”

”What can we do from here?” Marmalade squeaked without taking her eyes away from Ditzy’s attempt to dodge the griffons. Despite Filthy, Flam and Trixie’s energy beams the griffins kept closing in. With Topsy falling behind, it was apparent that Ditzy would not be able to keep up with the relentless attacks forever.

”I need you to climb up there!” Flam called and pointed towards Arimaspi’s neck and back. ”Open this and throw it at them!” he hoofed her a small golden box with his cutie mark engraved onto. She clicked a small button and saw a small mirror with a fine powder right under it.

”Why me?!” Marmalade whispered. ”Aren’t you like your twin with the ropes? Can’t you climb?”

”No, I’m not like him. Besides, you are an earth pony; I couldn’t throw it far enough even if I got up!” Flam said urgently. ”And having lived in a quarry, you must be a better climber than Suri!”

Marmalade would never call herself a good climber, but she took the small box anyway. These ponies could easily have left her for dead that time in the quarry, but they didn’t. Instead they had gotten caught for her sake. Now they needed her help, and she was not about to let them down. If nothing else because she was just as dead as they should this escape fail. She swallowed and awkwardly made her way over to Suri and Arimaspi’s side.

There were a couple of thick ropes there that held the belly netting in place. She would have to climb with the help of them as Arimaspi ran through the city, narrowly avoiding house walls, trees and griffon guards, all that could easily make her fall.

She grabbed one of the ropes with her fore hooves and squeezed it as hard as she could against her body. It was not comfortable or safe, but it did prevent her from falling outright. She pulled up her hind legs too, and was now hanging upside down. Her whimper was muffled by the small box she held in her mouth as she started to slowly slide herself forward, pushing with minimal movements with her hind legs and wiggling her fore hooves forward in the same pace.

Once out from the relative protection of Arimaspi’s body, she immediately began to feel the wind ripping at her, making her grip even more tenuous. She closed her eyes to prevent her from looking at the ground or forward. If Arimaspi hit a wall she would be done for, but there was no way she could prevent it if she saw it either. Instead she focused her entire being on the minimal movements of her hooves. She was getting sweaty. It was harder and harder to hold on.

She opened her eyes in panic and began making bigger movements, as big as she dared. She slid downwards a little, but then stopped, standing on something. She looked down and saw Suri pushing her up by carefully balancing on the edge of the belly netting. Flam held her around her barrel for support.

”Hurry, I can’t stand like this!” Suri screamed up to her as she waggled a little, as Flam did his best to hold her still. Marmalade pushed off Suri’s hooves and was able to climb further up from that. Enough for her to be off the worst part of her climb. Now she could start crawling rather than climbing.

”COME BACK HERE, SLAVE!” she heard from right behind her. Marmalade had just enough time to grab onto the rope with all her might before she felt the talons of a griffon around her hind legs, trying to tear her away. She squeaked in terror and tried to kick the griffon behind her, but he was furiously strong.

Marmalade felt her hooves sliding along the rope. She whimpered in fear and instinctively tried to re-affix her grip. When she moved her hooves the griffon pumped his wings with a triumphant, eagle like scream. Marmalade lost her grip. For a split second, she did not know what to do, so she did the only thing she could. She spat out the golden box and bit the rope. It hurt a lot. She felt like somepony was trying to yank her teeth out with a wrench. Yet she bit down harder, feeling the woody taste on her tongue mix with the salt from her tears.

”Get lost!” Flim called angrily and rammed the attacking griffon. The griffon shrieked out in pain and let go of Marmalade with a nasty gash in his shoulder from Flim’s horn. ”What are you doing here?” Flim asked Marmalade as he went back to firing the pursuers.

”RRRAK!”

Marmalade folded her ears backwards in displeasure at the raspy sound. When she looked around she saw a rather large black bird dive past her and snatch up the box from the ground. For a moment she even forgot to be afraid. What kind of bird was that? She had never seen anything like it in Griffonstone before. She was even more surprised when the bird dropped the golden box in her hoof.

”Perfect Prankster! Thanks old friend!” Flim called as the bird disappeared in the night. ”I guess that’s why you are here then?”

Marmalade did not answer. She shoved all thoughts about the alien bird that apparently obeyed these ponies into the back of her mind and grabbed onto one of Arimaspi’s horns for stability. She spat out the small box into her hoof and looked to their opponents, readying her throw.

*****

Topsy was flying slower now. For all his resolve and anger, not even he could keep up for much longer. He could still, barely, shift himself away from the griffons, but his sight was blurred with pain and his wings ached like never before. His wound from the slash stung a lot by now, and he was faintly aware that his hooves felt sticky with both sweat and blood from multiple small wounds. It was hard to breathe, like the air never quite reached his lungs. The griffons kept flying about him, close enough to dart in and give him another stinging wound, but too far for him to strike back. He was too tired, too slow.

And he could not hear the winds at all. The only thing he heard was his own labored breathing and, for whatever reason, Ditzy’s heartbeat, as powerful as a drum in his ears.

”TOPSY!”

It sounded distant, like whoever it was had called to him through a very long tunnel. He instinctively looked up. Arimaspi seemed further away now, and it was impossible to make out any defining features. He saw only a large, black and gray blur.

There was a quick glint of gold in the air just above him, and then a flash of green magic.

A star blazed up behind him. Screams followed the blazing light and his tormentors were gone. With one last hissing breath, he stopped flying and fell, his last strength spent. The griffons were gone. Ditzy should be safe.

He fell. It felt wonderful, the winds around him ripping in his wings and coat without him having to fly.

Then he heard Ditzy’s powerful heartbeat closing in, and felt her hooves around his barrel.

*****

”Stop! Stop!” Flim called urgently to Gneiss. ”The griffons are gone for now, we need to get Topsy and Ditzy onto this walking earthquake!”

Gneiss shouted something to Arimaspi, who did not stop, but instead began to ravage the nearest hovel. As he did not move too much, Ditzy was able to fly onto him and collapse on his back, Topsy beneath her and the idol of Boreas in her mouth. Trixie took the idol from her mouth and put it under her hat, and Ditzy did not hesitate to draw a breath as deep as she could manage now that her mouth was free.

”They are here, now get us out before the bad guys come back!” Filthy shouted.

”I doubt they will,” Flam poked his head up from the side of the cyclops. ”Their eyes are much, much sharper than ours, so they should be blinded for quite some time, I hope. Pity on my box, but oh well…”

Flim nodded. ”Then let’s get out of here before they decide to prove you wrong.” Gneiss seemed to agree, for with a quick shout, Arimaspi was dashing out of the city, onto the slim stone walkway that connected the Griffonstone plateau to the rest of the mountains.

A sudden jerk of Arimaspi’s body caused them all to topple and grab one another for stability. ”NO!” Gneiss screamed shrilly. ”NO! NO! STEADY!”

But no matter how he screamed, Arimaspi lost his balance and was flailing after something to grab with little success. He swayed over the abyss. ”GET OFF HIM!” Flim and Flam both screamed. ”HE IS GOING TO FALL! GET OFF!”

Flam threw himself off the cyclops and onto the stone walkway and was quickly followed by Suri with their false idol in her teeth. She had no clue what they should do with it at this point, but it would not make anypony happy down in the abyss. Trixie leaped down with Ditzy, who had picked up Topsy on her back. Filthy helped Marmalade down in a similar way.

”Gneiss, we must leave!” Flim called to the colt.

”No, he will pull through, I know it,” Gneiss whispered. ”I won’t abandon my friend, and he won’t abandon us here. He will see us all the way through.”

Flim shook his head. ”No,” he said callously and levitated Gneiss up from his position just as Arimaspi toppled over the edge with a confused grunt. Flim dashed over the cyclops’s strapping back and jumped for the stone bridge with the foal in his magical grasp. He landed on the bridge, skidded in the gravel. Marmalade caught him not a hooflength away from the other edge.

The ponies looked down in the dark void. Nothing could be seen through the night. Nothing could be heard over the winds. It was like the gargantuan cyclops had just vanished in the depths.

”Something so big… so fast?” Suri mumbled to herself. It felt impossible for something as powerful and destructive as Arimaspi to disappear so quietly. Time seemed to slow down. She was suddenly very afraid.

Death. Even as mighty as the cyclops had been, he could not outrun death. The giant had fallen. Who was she then, to think she could live through the night? Just a little pony, lost in time and running for her life through a hostile city. How could she ever have imagined she could survive this? She sniffled a little, before she felt a hoof in hers. She looked up, and met Filthy’s frost blue eyes.

She managed a minuscule smile. At least she was not alone anymore. It was not everypony for themselves anymore.

Suddenly the queer serenity was gone. Gneiss Pick shrieked; an unearthly sound that no pony should be able to make. The sound of utter powerlessness and despair. Gneiss had lost the one real friend he had in this world. Arimaspi was gone because of this asinine plan. If they had only dashed for the exit directly this might not have happened. If only he had thrown the mustached unicorn from Arimaspi earlier, this would not have happened, but now it had happened. Arimaspi was dead. Gneiss Pick’s legs gave out. He laid on the stone and cried for his friend.

”Chicken hearted slave,” a disgusted voice came from ahead of them, from the end of the stone bridge. Even though the voice loathed them all more than could be put into words, there was still no mistaking the regality and magnificence of it. All ponies except for the crying Gneiss turned to the source, and in the gloom they could make out King Guto. ”To cry for a fallen beast like that. Never before have I borne witness to such a pitiful display. If not for your inherit inferiority, I might have pitied you.”

”Then you are better than me,” Flam, who was in the front of the pack, called savagely. ”For you can be assured that I would never pity you!”

”We griffons have always been better than you,” Guto pointed out casually. ”Which is why you will return our idol right this instant or I will throw you from this bridge as I threw him!”

”So you want this?” Flam called grimly and held up the idol. Guto looked at it with anxiety in his eyes, even though none of the ponies could see it.

That was the Idol of Boreas; the symbol of griffon pride and ambition. It had been theirs since times immemorial. That idol was the griffon identity, their very essence made manifest. He had been entrusted with its keeping as King. Ever since king Grover’s reign, the griffon kings had been standing vigil over the sacred idol.

He could not be the king to lose it. He just could not let it happen. Even this, that the filthy slaves had come this far, filled him with shame. He had shamed the griffon race by allowing this to happen.

The only way to save what little honor he had left was to get it back.

”Then come and get it!” Flam called and launched the idol as high up in the air as he could. Guto did not think for a moment; he leaped up in the air after it, wings beating strongly and shoving massive amounts of air backwards. He did not even care that the filthy slaves ran over the bridge; he could hunt them down and kill them later. Now, all that mattered was the idol. He came up under it and reached out a talon. He felt the lovely gold in his palm.

But there was something wrong. He felt it the moment he touched it. It felt clunky and cold. The idol, the true idol, was nothing like that; it was light and graceful and the pearl always burned with the same intensity as the griffon spirit. The idol radiated life and pride. This… abomination was nothing like that; it was but a cold, dead shell.

Guto dropped the idol as if he had burnt himself and looked downwards. He did not know how, but they had tricked him. They must still have the real one! He felt fury overcome him. Fury like that of a raging tornado. He let out a call like that of an eagle and dove at the ponies. He reached out both his forelegs, razor-sharp talons gleaming in the moonlight. He would fly right at them, slashing and clawing; He would mow them down like a scythe does wheat.

The ponies backed away, except for one. The mustached one who had shouted, he stood fast. Guto saw that he held the idol in his magic, but right now he did not care. He just wanted to kill them.

”FOR GRIFFONSTONE!” He shouted.

”For my brother,” the mustached one said and angled the idol forward like it was a spear and thrust it forward just as he jumped aside. Guto’s vision became blurry and he felt like the earth were spinning underneath him. He stumbled on the ground and whirled around to face his hated adversary. He met the glare of the mustached one and flapped his wings to launch at him. Then without a warning, his wings folded underneath his weight and he crashed on the ground, an ice cold feeling piercing his throat and his vision shifted from blurry to dark red. Faintly he scrambled one of his talons to the cold place.

It became wet.

A tear left Guto’s eye. He had failed. He was not a worthy king.

*****

Ditzy squeaked and flapped over to the shallowly breathing griffon and gently pushed the king’s head aside. She cupped her mouth with her hooves and whimpered at the nasty wound in his throat. Flam stood beside her, looking like he had just woken up from a nightmare. He still held the idol in his magic, the tip of the griffon wing now awash in blood.

”We must help him,” Ditzy said with a pleading look to Flam. ”Please this time. We can’t just let him die. He only did what he thought was best, right? Please let’s help him.” She took Flam’s hoof in hers and squeezed it while looking with gleaming eyes into his.

”Trixie, can you use your firework spell?” Flim interjected. He got a nod for answer. ”Then do that. After that we run like never before. The griffons will have to patch their King together on their own, but we will make sure he is found.”

Ditzy looked with a pained expression to the injured king. She could see the sense in the argument. They could not stay here for very long, lest the rest of the guard would return and lock them up again. Still, it felt wrong to leave anyone like this. What if the guard did not come? What if the griffons did not know first aid?

Ditzy was interrupted by the glow of Trixie’s horn. Before she had opened her mouth, the azure mare had made the choice for her by sending up her flare.

After that they could only run, run as fast as their legs or wings would carry them. Ditzy did not remember much of the nightmarish flight through the mountains. All her friends were pushed far beyond their limits, running only on adrenaline and fear at this point. The footing was uncertain with a deadly fall on one side and only an animal track to follow in the darkness. Add to that the nerve-wracking expectation of a griffon bursting out of the darkness every time a twig snapped under their hooves and one could understand why Marmalade and Trixie were both crying once they reached the coveted cave.

The ponies got a second wind when they saw the blue police-box standing there waiting inside the cave. They stumbled inside it, and collapsed in a pile once Trixie had closed the door. She had one hoof protectively over the bloody idol.

”Curtains…” Flam mumbled and took the handle in his magic. He strained himself but did not have enough power left to push it all the way down.

”Close,” Trixie helped him, and together they pushed the handle down.

VAPP!

*****

”My King? Can you hear me?”

Guto was far from sure he could, but he opened his eyes anyway. The red haze was still there, but when he drew breath he could clearly smell the salve on his wound. He blinked a few times to get the world back in focus. He looked up on the captain of his guard, anxiety written plainly on his face.

”My King?” the captain tried again. ”Griffon greatness?”

”Griffon glory,” Guto answered out of reflex. ”I… where is the idol?”

”Gone,” the captain said with a pained expression. ”Have no fear, my king. The guard is searching, though none of us can see very well yet due to their vile sorcery. Still, I am certain we will find the thieves. They can’t get out of these mountains before we have the entire guard mobilized.”

”The idol is… gone,” Guto said with a hollow voice. He did not know what to think. It felt impossible for something like that to be true; it was just unreal. Water flowed downwards, heat traveled from a warm place to a cold and the idol was in Griffonstone. Those were fundamental truths that made up the world. One such truth could not just… not be true any more. ”And Griffonstone? Our people?”

”Shaken, and the material damage is immeasurable,” the captain replied. ”I… I’m not sure how we will repair it. The very mountain… those ponies-”

”No,” Guto said as sharp as he was able. ”No. I forbid you to speak of it.” The king coughed, wincing in pain as he did so. ”Hear my orders, for what I say was said in heaven. None is to speak of the ponies. None is to mention them. Idol or no, we are the master race, and that must not be changed. My people must still believe in that.”

Guto laboriously pushed himself up. ”Hear my decree: forget the ponies, and make history forget them too. R-Round up all who can write in my kingdom and tell them. Tell them there were no ponies. It was just the cyclops. He took the idol with him, we killed him on the bridge and recovered the idol from his dead body.”

The captain nodded. ”I will see to it.”

”There were no ponies,” Guto mumbled as he began to walk back to his once grand city, the captain steadying him. ”No…p-ponies…”