Angels, Heard on High
"You said we'd let her go?!?" Ariel cackled.
As the mare's voice echoed across a grand cavern, Seraphimus went about her work undaunted. Utilizing chains, rope, and canvas material—she fashioned for herself a crude pack and salvaged a meager collection of supplies from the contents of the hoverwagon. There was deadpan grace to her actions, but also a purposeful swiftness. Her talons moved delicately, careful not to hoarde too much of the Herald's material.
Ariel was still waiting for an answer. She glared daggers at Big Show. She wasn't alone; Flynn was also gawking at the large stallion.
"Mrmmmfff..." Logan leaned against a stalagmite, keeping the wagon—and Seraphimus—constantly in his peripheral vision. "We were in a bind," he muttered. "Rainbow Dash's life was in danger. Also Wildcard's." He shifted the weight of his axe in the crook of his fetlock. "I couldn't be in two places at once. Even if I personally galloped out to meet that troll stampede head on, I'd only be a burden when making the run back to the wagon."
Flynn's bald brow furrowed. "So you thought it was okay to promise our most dogged enemy a ticket to freedom?!?"
"Well, it worked, didn't it?" Logan barked.
"Hell yeah, it worked!" Flynn nodded wildly. "Now she's won herself an opportunity to fly the coop—then come back around and ambush the Austraeoh from behind! Great going, genius!"
"I don't believe she will do that..." Logan said.
"You 'don't believe?!'" Flynn cracked a bitter grin. "Well, that just takes the cake! After all, it's totally cool to bank the entire Herald's fate on a feeling! Shit, why don't you go wish upon a star while you're at it, fat ass?!"
Logan snarled: "If she wanted to murder the Austraeoh, she's had her opportunity!" His teeth gnashed. "Twice!"
"Morre than once, we have allowed herr the frreedom to assist us," Kepler gently spoke up. "And on both occasions, she has not betrrayed ourr trrust, despite having shown herr multiple vulnerrabilities."
Flynn gave him a double-take. "You're taking Big Show's side in this mess?"
"A mess, my good frriend, has been avoided," Kepler said in a firm tone. "Thanks to the quick thinking of ourr companion Big Show—and the timely interrvention of the infamous grriffon of whom we speak. While we cannot forrget the trravesties she's committed in the past, we also cannot ignorre the fact that we owe herr ourr verry livelihood."
"But—Keps—honestly..." Flynn gestured dramatically. "With her free now, how are we to know—"
"Do you trruly think it has been chains keeping herr bound all this time?" Kepler's eyes narrowed behind his spectacles. "I have not been encumberred by the physical demands of the Darrk Side. Not in the same way as you, Wildcarrd, and the otherrs. I've had the good luxurry of sitting back and closely obserrving the cirrcumstances surrounding us. And I can say with full faith—as I am cerrtain Logan can as well—that ourr surrly companion has underrgone a drramatic change." His hairy brow furrowed. "If she wishes forr frreedom and to be rrid of us, then I suspect that she will make good use of it. Months ago—this would not be the same."
"But Kepler..." Flynn paced across the dimly-lit cavern between them. "...we have no assurance that she won't backstab us. No assurance whatsoever! None!" He turned to frown at the distant griffin rummaging through the cavern. "And to even give her some of our shit to take with her—"
"She's not taking much, baldy," Logan droned. "So calm your tits." He squinted at the unicorn. "It was part of the agreement."
"So farr, she seems to holding to that," Kepler remarked. "If you obserrve, you shall see she's prractically finished."
"I... I just can't believe we're going to let her go like this," Flynn stammered. "Does anyone remember the gondola?! Does anyone remember what happened to Axan?!?"
"I'm no idiot, Flynn," Logan said. "But I'm no sissy either. What are the odds any of us are going to see the Austraeoh to the Midnight Armory alive?" His nostrils fumed. "I wanna leave this mortal coil with my honor intact. What about you?"
"Dude... if we cared about honor..." Flynn narrowed his good eye at the large stallion. "...we'd never have ditched the Light Side to begin with. Not with all the crap that we've left stinkin' up the place."
Logan huffed. "Bard got his shit in order."
"You'll notice he's not alive anymore." Flynn clenched his jaw. "He paid his price. Are you nearly ready to pay yours?"
Logan was silent. He gazed forlornly in the direction of Seraphimus.
"My problem..." Ariel began.
Logan looked over at her.
"My problem is not with Seraphimus being set free..." She glared in Logan's direction. "...but rather the fact that you made such a huge important decision for all of us." She gulped. "Without asking Rainbow Dash."
"Baby girl," Logan rasped. "If I didn't make that decision, there would be no Rainbow Dash right now."
Ariel went silent. She trembled slightly.
Flynn stomped angrily around, glancing occasionally in Seraphimus' direction with a venomous expression.
Kepler scratched his hairy chin, sighing. Tiredly, he looked across the earthen chamber. "Wildcarrd... ourr good frriend... what is yourr assessment of this situation?"
This entire time, the Desperado had been perched on a stalagmite above the group—just a leap away from the former Talon Commander. Fresh bandages absorbed his glowing blood, and his feline tail flicked with quite contemplation. At long last, after stroking his beak with a metal talon, he hand-signed in the dim lanternlight.
The others "read" him, and it was Ariel who responded first.
"But Wildcard..." She paced across the way. "...there simply is no 'Commander you once knew.'" Her eyes narrowed. "Whoever that griffin was, she changed after Frostknife. What's left to store honor in all of that?"
Wildcard clenched his beak.
"There is room there," Logan declared. "I didn't once believe it, but Rainbow did." He stood up straight, lifting his axe in his hoof as well. "I was wrong for making the hasty decision for all of us... but if Rainbow was the one who made that decision instead of me... ... ...would we all still be bitching to each other about it right now?"
Silence.
Flynn folded his forelimbs and huffed. He avoided the large stallion's gaze.
"I believe we should allow herr to be frree," Kepler said. "Whetherr that means frreedom to help us... orr frreedom to leave us... that's up to herr."
Wildcard nodded in agreement.
Ariel looked at Flynn, then back at the rest. "I think you more than know where Flynn and I stand. Plus... all things considered..." She fidgeted, then murmured under her breath: "It isn't too late to get the jump on her and put her in chains again."
"Do you wish to be the firrst to leap, sisterr?" Kepler asked.
Wildcard winced.
Ariel remained locked in place. Her eyes darted nervously towards Seraphimus.
"Well... one thing's for damn sure..." Logan left that spot and trotted towards the furthest end of the cavern, to where a crook in the tunnels formed. "...only one pony gets the final word here. Only fitting I own up to her."
"Too late for that now..." Flynn looked bitterly over his shoulder. "Don't you think, fatso?"
Logan said nothing. He merely marched off.
Wildcard remained on his perch. He cast a cautious albeit melancholy glance in Seraphimus' direction.
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I think Sera's gonna pull a stunt like Roarke did at the beginning of Ofolrodi where she breaks away for fifty chapters, infiltrates an enemy faction offscreen, then saves the day when it's most needed.
I have a feeling Rainbow Dash is going to be ok with it.
Sera will be back. It'll happen, I guarantee it.
Kinda thought that Seraphimus forced Logan to an agreement about a duel to the death to satisfy her death wish, or something like that. But the reality was less drastic.
The only question is: What else can she do but following the Herald? As far as we know, there aren't many viable options for her on the dark side.
Sera is now Roarke, except without the 'wanting-to-fuck-Dash-silly' part
8537436
so far as we know
Where does Sera plan to go right now? They're trapped in a cave with half the Dark Side camped outside the collapsed entrance. We don't know if there even is another exit. And if there is, then they can't really split up until they find it.
Maybe she can retrace their steps, find the edge of the world and the corpse of Axan, and reconsider stuff.
Then why bother saving the world if none of that stuff matters any more? That aside I think Rainbow only had her tied up to save both themselves AND her. If she found out that it is no longer necessary she should be quite cool with it.
8537488 Also, every location in every direction appears to be the same, bleak wasteland and the only way back to Rohbredden is barred.
8537122 And of course by 'infiltrate' we mean 'annihilate'.
You don't split the party! Even if the best fighter hates the rest.
Rainbow will probably accept it, but she's still going to be miffed.
8537122
So, Sera comes back riding around in a giant crystal golem that fires laser beams?
Oooo this got tense.
8538803
She kicks open a door to a chaos chariot and shouts "Come with me if you want to live"
It's time to initiate "Going Deep Cover, Variant 2".
Logan really doesn't like the double standard that is being put before him, and I can't say I blame him.
11/17/2017
19:22 UTC
Really hope she stays. Her leaving means only bad things for the group, and for her.
Really wish Ariel and Flynn would stop being such complete dicks about Logan's decision. She ended up saving their lives, why does it matter if Logan didn't get Rainbow's permission first?
Logan has a point. The amount of mistrust and anger Flynn ( and more or less Ariel) have towards Sera is completely understandable but also blinding. You have to make haste decisions in life-threatening situations, and for the moment, our former Talon Commander was easily their only fighting chance to keep Rainbow alive. A chance Logan probably would not have taken if circumstances weren't any different than when the Herald first landed on the Dark Side.
Welp, there my answer.
Well, I have to say I am neutral, seeing both the good and the bad of what is being offered.
11/15/2019
03:46 UTC
I'm with Logan here. He made the right decision. Granted, it wasn't cool he made the decision he did on everyone's behalf, but it was kinda necessary. Plus, I think it's a good arrangement. Sera had plenty of opportunities to attack Rainbow, but she didn't, going so far as to help. I think her observations of everything that's happened up to now are gonna allow her to survive on her own, and then she'll make a reappearance when it's most necessary. Because plot reasons.
Ariel and Flynn are really pushing my buttons here.
No one is saying Sera is forever trustworthy. But she's had amble chance to attack everyone and bail at least twice now. And you don't think the former Commander of an elite military unit wouldn't take those chances?
Odds are Sera will be, at the very very least, neutral to amicable with us for a while. MAYBE. But the both of you need to cool it. Or this is gonna get really annoying really fast.