Chapter 104 - A Sweet & Sour Trip
After arriving on the island of Trottingham, Barrier and his companions did a small bit of sight-seeing before they checked into their rooms in the Gilded Stable Hotel.
Later that night, Snow Sweeper felt something nudging his side, disturbing his sleep.
“Snow. Wake up.” The sound of Forge’s whispering voice reached the pegasus ear, quickly rousing him from his slumber.
“I’m up. What’s wrong, Forge?” the tired pegasus asked as he fumbled around for a lamp cord. With a brief flare of fiery orange, Forge’s horn glowed and the lamp turned on.
“Nothing’s wrong, my dear,” Forge said as he gently brushed the pegasus’ shoulder. “Remember how I said I wanted to show you something? Well it’s almost time, so we need to go now.”
“Forge,” Snow groggily said as he looked around the room until his eyes fell upon the wall clock. “It’s five in the morning. Do we really have to go now?”
“Yes, we do,” Forge replied as he leaned closer to his boyfriend. “Please, we need to go immediately.”
“Alright, alright,” Snow said as he yawned. “But can we get some coffee on the way?”
“Of course, now let’s go.” Forge patted Snow’s shoulder as a smile began to form.
In a matter of minutes, the pair were headed through the darkened streets of Trottingham, pausing only briefly to grab a pair of coffees from a local vendor.
Even in the near utter darkness, Snow Sweeper was surprised to see how easily Forge seemed to be able to navigate the cobblestone streets. While the unicorn’s horn glowed, it was only to act as a beacon for the grey-coated pegasus.
The two soon made their way onto a deserted beach. The only sounds were the crash of waves and the occasional squawk of gulls.
“We’re here,” Forge said as he sat down on the sands. “We’ve made it.”
“Made it for what exactly?” Snow came to a halt by Forge’s side before taking a sip of the piping hot drink and enjoying its contrast to the brisk chill in the air.
“For something I’ve not seen in over a thousand years,” Forge answered as he felt Snow draping his wing over his back. “Something I’ve wanted to share with somepony I deeply care about.”
As Snow opened his mouth to ask what the unicorn was talking about, he felt a bright light starting to strike his eyes.
“A Gallopfreyan sunrise,” Forge said as he widely grinned and tears formed in his eyes. “I’ve seen it many times before with my parents from this very spot on this beach. The last time I saw this was the day I shipped out… It was the last day I ever saw my father.”
“Oh…” Snow said as he turned his face towards the rising sun, seeing the beautiful collage of colors in the sky as the sun’s warming light sparkled off the surface of the water and washed over them.
“It’s… It’s beautiful, Forge.” Snow tightened his wing’s grip on the cobalt unicorn’s back before pulling him into a hug. While this was far from the first sunrise he’d witnessed, the way it shined over the water and sent the night away was something truly stunning to him.
“I know.” Forge sniffed and rubbed his snout. “I’ve missed this so much… After everything I lost, having you here with me… I feel like… I’m home.”
Snow Sweeper said nothing as he and Forge gazed out upon the ocean, simply savoring the moment.
After a few moments, Forge let out a contented sigh and wiped the tears from his eyes. “Thank you, Snow. This meant a great deal to me.”
“No sweat, Hot Stuff,” Snow replied before planting a gentle kiss on Forge’s two-toned silver mane. “I’m glad I was able to share this with you.”
“Me too,” Forge said as he rose up from the sands and offered a hoof to pull Snow back onto his. “So, what is it you wanted to show me?”
“Oh, you’re not gonna believe this,” Snow said as he held his coffee in one wing and reached into his saddlebags with the other. “I entered a raffle a while back, figuring at best I’d get a Timberwolves t-shirt or something, but what I got is a lot better.”
Snow Sweeper’s hoof retracted from the saddlebags, revealing a pair of tickets that read, “Timberwolves vs. Cragodiles”.
“I won tickets to the playoffs!” Snow nearly squealed with excitement as he showed Forge the tickets. “And not only did we score these tickets, but also travel and hotel expenses so we can see the game in Baltimare!”
“Snow, that’s wonderful!” Forge excitedly exclaimed as he pulled Snow into an energetic hug. As he pulled away, Forge’s eyes fell upon the date for the hockey game. “Once we get back, I’ll be sure to mark May twenty-fifth down in my planner for this.”
“This is gonna be amazing, Forge!” Snow said as he stuffed the tickets away. “I’ve never gotten to see a game as important as this!”
“Well, I’m sure this is going to be a most splendid game,” Forge said as he pulled away from Snow and started to trot towards the city. “Now come along. Let’s get some breakfast before we do some exploring.”
***
As the morning started to give way to the afternoon, Winter Gem and Hat Trick went about the island. The former took plenty of photographs while the latter did a fair bit of shopping.
“Who’d have thought there’d be so much great sci-fi stuff here?” Hatty said aloud as Gem took a photo of one of Trottingham’s famed double-decker carriages. His saddlebags were almost bursting with books and merchandise.
“It’s pretty neat, but I still say that one toy you got looks more fitting for a bedroom than a sci-fi collection,” Gem said as she lowered the camera strapped around her neck. “Seriously, it’s arm looks like a toilet plunger.”
“Eh, Trottingham film serials don’t really have the same sort of budget as ones made ‘across the pond’, as they say,” Hatty replied as the two of them started to trot along the street.
“Well, I’m glad we’re both having a good time. I just hope Forge is alright,” Gem said as she looked around, seeing a good number of ponies and griffins filling the streets. “After everything that happened here because of the war. It’s just—”
“Oi, you two!” The two former privates turned about and saw a large griffin as he quickly approached the pair. His feathers looked rather rough and he was wearing a pleather vest.
“What is it?” Hatty asked as he and Gem quickly shifted into defensive postures. While they had never done battle with a griffin, this was something they trained for years for and instinct was hard to override. They were ready for almost anything.
Something they didn’t expect was the tiercel reaching into his vest and pulling out a bag of bits. “You’ve got a tear in your saddlebags, mate! I’ve been lookin’ for ye for the last three blocks.”
“Oh.” Hatty looked back at his saddlebag, seeing there was indeed a small tear in it before accepting the bag from the griffin. “Thank you, sir.”
“Not a problem. You may want to either get that patched or just replaced. There’s a place just down this road on the left.” The large griffin replied before taking to the sky. “Have a good day, chaps.”
“Thanks again,” Hatty said as he and Gem waved at the griffin as he flew away. “Huh. Y’know, I’ve had dreams about encountering a griffin in Trottingham before, but they always turned out a lot less pleasant.”
“Well, let’s get this taken care of before we meet up with Verdant and Erica for lunch,” Gem said as she moved behind the purple pegasus. “I’ll make sure nothing else falls out.”
***
After quickly replacing the bag, the two stumbled upon Verdant and Erica sitting at a bench, having a merry little chat.
“Hey guys! Over here!” Gem exclaimed, drawing the two’s attention. Verdant and Erica waved them over as the pair approached. “How’s it going?”
“Pretty good,” Verdant replied as he pointed towards a nearby building. “Toil’s just checking out that dairy over there. She’s heard really good things about the milk and cheese there.”
“Well, hopefully she’s ri—”
“HOLY MASSIVE MAMMARIES, BAT-MARE!” Toil’s shout coming from the building made Verdant jump to his hooves and charge towards the building with Gem, Hatty and Erica quickly following behind.
As they drew closer, they saw Toil emerge from the shop with a massive blush on her face.
“Toil, are you alright?” Verdant asked as he skidded to a halt in front of her.
“Y-yeah, I’m fine,” Toil replied as the blush refused to leave her face. “It’s just… that one yellow mare in there… Wow… bigger than my damn head.”
“I would assume most ponies would be bigger than your head,” Hatty said before turning to Gem. “Say, wanna get a wheel of cheese while we’re here?”
“Sure thing,” Gem answered before she and Hatty headed to the door.
Once the two entered the building, Toil began to whisper.
“Five… Four… Three… Two… One…”
“OPPAI DEKKAI!” Hat Trick’s shout was heard from outside the shop as Toil slowly began to snicker.
A few moments later, the two exited the shop with a cheese wheel in Gem’s saddlebags and bright blushes on both of their faces.
“Thanks, Miss Milky. And sorry about the outbursts,” Gem said as she walked up to their companions. “So, where are we headed for lunch?”
“It’s a place called The Hunter’s Canteen. It’s a restaurant run by abyssinians that’s got all sorts of delicious griffin dishes,” Erica answered with a slight twinkle in her eyes. “Yesterday, I had a small platter for dinner, but now, I’m gonna order the Chef’s Choice Stratadon Platter! I swear, there’s so much, it’ll fill me up for at least the whole day!”
“Well, let’s get going!” Toil said as she teleported ahead of the others. “Last one there pays the bill!”
The four quickly followed after Toil, pushing as fast as their wings and legs could carry them.
In the end, Verdant ended up paying for the large and expensive meals.
***
Spearmint and Swiftsword were following behind a large group of ponies as they explored the large, marble building that was the Trottingham History Museum. The tour group had already seen some classical works of art when they arrived at a wing filled with a wide assortment of pony and griffin weapons.
“And here we have a collection of weapons from the Pony-Griffin wars which ended shortly after the era of Nightmare Moon,” the tour guide said as several ponies snapped photographs. While she was listening to the guide’s words, Swift’s eyes were firmly locked on the various swords adorning the walls.
“To your left, you can see a wide assortment of iron swords that were used by griffin forces. Due to economic issues and the lack of knowledge in metal refinery among them, steel was something available to only the very wealthiest or highest ranking members of the griffin military,” the guide mare said, drawing a loud “Ooohh” from the group. “Any questions?”
“Were any of these swords used by Grimhilde LeGrande?” a stallion asked as a lime green foreleg rose from the crowd.
“Actually, no,” the guide replied, drawing Swift’s attention away. “Grimhilde, due to her large size and combat skills, preferred to use her beak and talons to tear her enemies to pieces. Now, if you’ll please follow me, our next exhibit is the bones of Starscream, a pony that betrayed Equestria, but was later ‘reassigned to breakfast for his incompetence’ after his cover was blown, according to Grimhilde’s journal.” With practiced ease, the tour guide motioned them along.
“And here we have our exhibit on art pieces created after the liberation of Gallopfrey.” As the tour guide started to lead the crowd away, Swiftsword remained firmly rooted to the ground, looking down at her hooves.
“Swift?” Minty gently asked as she tried to look the light blue unicorn in her downcast eyes. “Swift, what’s wrong?”
With a sigh, Swiftsword slowly craned her head up to look at Spearmint’s concerned face.
“I’ve known Starscream was a traitor ever since Captain Barrier returned from his mission here,” Swiftsword said with a hint of sadness in her eyes as she motioned towards the exhibit. “Still, it hurts to hear somepony who was like an uncle to you was a filthy traitor.”
“You… you knew Starscream?” Spearmint asked as she placed a hoof on Swift’s shoulder.
“He was a squadmate of my father’s. Him and his sister, Slipstream, were in my father’s squad back when he was in the guard. They remained good friends even after he retired and frequently visited my family’s home… he even gave me a dagger he claimed off a fallen griffin for my birthday.” Swift sniffled before Minty pulled her into a comforting embrace.
“Oh, Swift…” Spearmint found herself at a loss for words as she patted Swift’s back.
“Of all the ponies out there, I never believed Starscream could betray us to the griffins…” Swift said as she pulled herself out of Minty’s embrace. The mint colored mare could hear her trying to keep the anger out of her voice.
As she wiped what little water was starting to form in her eyes, Swift’s face became as hard as steel. “I hope Grimhilde enjoyed her breakfast. He was rewarded as a traitor deserves.”
“Swift,” Minty cautiously looked the unicorn noblemare in the eye once more. “Do you want to continue the tour?”
“If it’s alright with you… not really. This place has brought up some upsetting memories for me,” Swift replied as her eyes drifted towards the weapons lining the walls. “Would it be alright if we went to do something more… fun?”
“Of course, Swift,” Spearmint said before giving Swiftsword a nuzzle. “I think I saw a karaoke bar on Lofty Lane. How about we head there?”
“That sounds lovely,” Swift replied before planting a kiss on Spearmint’s cheek.
Soon the two ponies departed the museum, though Swift had a nagging feeling that she’d missed something.
***
As Barrier looked out his hotel window and gazed out at the twinkling lights of the city contrasting against the night sky, he let loose a contented sigh.
“I must say, tonight’s been far more wonderful than I could have hoped,” Barrier stated, turning his attention towards Daring as she stretched out on the bed. “Delicious food, Windy had a blast souvenir shopping, Fleet snapping a million photos. It’s been amazing.”
“Well, it’d be hard to be worse than your last time here,” Daring replied as she slowly rolled over on the bed.
“I think the only pony I know to be inside a griffin this time is Verdant,” Barrier said with a smirk, making Daring cover her snout with her hooves to try to cover her laughter.
“Pfft… Oh dear Faust, that was awful,” Daring said before she slid off the bed. “Well, I’m gonna be hitting the shower. Wanna join in?”
“I think I’ll be a minute,” Barrier replied as he turned his attention back towards the window. “I’d like to take in this sight just a bit more.”
“Sure thing,” Daring replied as she trotted towards the bathroom. “I’ll try to save you some hot water.”
After a moment, Barrier heard the bathroom door clicking shut, followed by the sound of rushing water shortly after.
I wonder what Ember would think of this, Barrier thought as his eyes fell upon a pegasus mare happily nuzzling up against a griffin tiercel. Would she be happy that things are so peaceful, or would she be disgusted over how ponies and griffins here are acting together?
As his eyes drifted over the streets lit by highly decorative old fashioned looking lamps, he spotted something that made his blood turn cold.
Strolling along the now empty street was an unmistakable sight. It was a unicorn stallion with a lime green coat and messy blue-green mane. Even in the low light, there was no missing the image of a lemon on his flank.
Barrier’s icy blood began to boil as his horn flared. In a flash, Barrier vanished from the hotel room and reappeared onto the street a floor below.
Spotting the lemon stallion coming to a halt in front of a soda machine, Barrier grit his teeth as he rushed over to the mysterious unicorn as he put a coin into the machine.
“You…” Barrier growled as the stallion picked up a can of soda in his violet aura.
“Can I help you, sir?” The lime unicorn asked as he spun the soda can in his aura.
“Don’t pretend you don’t know me,” Barrier nearly spat at the stallion who merely smirked. “I know who you are. You’re the stallion that’s been hounding me for Faust knows how long. You’ve somehow been pretending to be Grimhilde after you stole her skull and you’re the one that murdered Spectral Image!”
As he spun the can faster, the unicorn chuckled. “My, my, my, Barrier. You have quite the active imagination.”
“If I’m imagining, how did you know my name?” Barrier’s horn began to flare. Instead of being scared, the lemon stallion chuckled once more.
“Oh, I know a great deal about you, Captain Barrier. You’re a centuries old war horse living with a collection of old soldiers and a treasure hunter who publishes stories about her exploits.” The stallion casually rolled his shoulders as he looked Barrier in the eyes. “But you don’t have the slightest clue about me.”
“I’m taking you with me,” Barrier stepped closer to the cocky green unicorn. “And you’re going to answer for what you’ve done.”
The stallion gave a dark laugh as he looked into the icy eyes of the charcoal unicorn. “Barrier, what I’m about to tell you is the absolute truth, no matter how hard it is to believe.”
The green unicorn leaned closer to Barrier’s ear and whispered into it.
“I’m not the one that stole the skull and I’ve never killed anypony.”
“You’re a filthy liar!” Barrier glared daggers as the lemon stallion pulled back.
“Oh, but it’s all true. Theft and murder are not my style,” the stallion flippantly replied. “Now, necromancy, on the other hoof…”
“Enough of this!” Barrier roared before slamming his hooves into the lemon-marked stallion’s chest, pinning him to the wall. “You’re coming with me!”
“Oh, I don’t think so!” the lime-colored stallion said before slammed his soda can in Barrier’s face, flooding his eyes with a stinging flood of citrus and sugar.
“GAH! Dammit!” Barrier winced before his prisoner pushed him down to the street. As he squinted to try to get the soda out of his eyes, he could make out the stallion rushing down an alley, ducking through an obstacle course of crates and rubbish bins.
Gritting his teeth as his vision started to return to him, Barrier scrambled to his hooves and rushed down the alleyway. He weaved through the obstacles, deciding not to teleport due to the darkness, his vision not being fully restored and the fact the city was so unfamiliar to him. After a matter of seconds, he spotted the silhouette of a pony round the corner at the end of the alley.
Forcing his legs to push as hard as he could, Barrier rounded the corner, only to smash into a vest clad pony, knocking them to the ground. Barrier looked down and saw the somewhat blurry, sprawled out form of Verdant as he pushed himself onto his hooves
“Gah, what the—? Barrier, what’s goin—”
“He’s here! The lemon stallion!” Barrier barked to the shamrock stallion. “He threw a soda at me and ran off! He was right here! Find him!”
“On it!” Verdant saluted before jumping up at a lamppost and kicking off of it to land on top of a news stand to scan for and try to spot Barrier’s target. “...Dammit, I’m not seeing him, sir.”
“Son of a…” Barrier growled before Verdant hopped down from the news stand’s roof.
“You should probably head back to the hotel, wash out your eyes and put on some disinfectant. It looks like you got some scrapes when he knocked you down,” Verdant said as he looked over the obsidian unicorn. “I’ll try to sweep the area and I’ll tell you if I find anything in the morning.”
“Thank you, Verdant.” Barrier sighed before he started to make his way down the alley. “Just be careful. We don’t know what this stallion’s truly capable of.”
“Don’t worry, Captain. I’ll be sure to keep safe,” Verdant replied before taking off, leaving Barrier to wander the alley.
Why is he doing all this? Did he want me to see and talk to him tonight? Barrier pondered before he sighed. Why the Tartarus is he doing all this? It’s just not adding up.
The next morning, Verdant didn’t say a word to Barrier about the lemon stallion. It was as if he’d simply vanished.
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I'm certain that the stallion is not lying since he did not do those things himself. He hired somecreature to those things for him. His statement about necromancy is not reassuring.
11623152
Because in the toyline, her full name is Daring Do Dazzle.
i5.walmartimages.com/asr/c0cba532-ceb4-4ab3-b554-cf9c94b97ad6_1.fb52e0771bcfb30034627c70e35b82e7.jpeg?odnWidth=612&odnHeight=612&odnBg=ffffff
I hope they get the Grimhilde situation sorted soon. It's getting annoying.
11623035
A good necromancer never does things himself, not when the dead can do it for him. If he did bring back Grimhidle she will clearly have come back very "wrong" and since normal for her was a psychotic murderous warrior "wrong" will be very very unpleasant.