Chapter 52: An Old Friend
The Griffin Kingdom stood east of Equestria, on the other side of the Celestial Sea. Its outer lands were ruled by the Griffin Lords, politicians that ran administrations of different territories that comprised the kingdom. However, it was a kingdom in name only, as Griffinstone, the heart of the nation, remained the same since its collapse – without a monarch, beaten and rundown, its populace lethargic and apathetic. But some time ago things started to change ever so little, as an Equestria embassy was being built, even if at a sluggish pace. Outsiders started to come every now and then, the streets were slowly cleared of refuse, and the despondent city was slowly starting to show little rejuvenation. That of course got some other residents thinking about improving the living conditions. Since houses were made of wood and bound to the tree, a certain griffin who sold scones had an idea to uproot a few abandoned structures and have them patched together into a single bigger one. That way, not only would visitors be able to taste her product, but also have a place to stay the night. She wasn’t prepared though, that the first customers that she would receive were from Twilight’s School of Friendship, and after explaining the ordeal that they had to go through, they spent the night here.
Even though the sun hasn’t shown its first sparks yet, the dawn was clearly coming to the city, and the griffon, who was hardly even a local at this point, was the first that woke up. He had almost forgotten how early the sun turns up in Griffinstone since it was on such a high elevation, and he got used to slow mornings in Ponyville. Regardless, he got up and decided to check up on others on how they were doing. He left his room and went down the hallway with many doorways, knocking on the closest one.
“Silverstream? You awake yet?” he asked, waiting for a bit, then pressing his head against the door to hear a low hum coming from the other side. “Silverstream?” he repeated, and still got no response, only hearing the humming.
He juggled the door handle to open it, not anticipating a giant pile of paper standing in its way that quickly collapsed on top of him, burying him. He quickly got back up and waded through, into the small room, spotting the hippogriff sitting by the table, turned away, holding a quill and writing something on a piece of paper, before tossing it to the side and beginning to write on a new one. Curious, he picked up one of the papers and read the content:
To Miss Bluefeather,
The Storm King has returned! Tell your neighbors, and have you, your family, and everybody else retreat into Seaquestria!
Love,
Silverstream
He picked another piece of paper, only to discover the message was the same, only the recipient was different. And after he went through a few more, he realized that was the same for all of them.
“Silverstream, how long have you been writing these? And why?” Gallus inquired.
“I dunno.” She slipped a new paper. “It’s been a few hours. And as a necessary precaution, I decided to send a message to every resident of Mount Aris. I mean who knows if any of them will get lost on the way. Except for Seaquestria, cuz, you know, water and ink don’t do well-“
“No, I mean, why are you writing at all?”
He heard the sound of scribbling stop, and a few moments later, the eccentric hippogriff lept off her chair, grabbed him by his feathers, and pulled him in, face to face, the griffon being disturbed by the restless, yet frightened look on her face. “THE STORM KING IS BACK, GALLUS! WEREN’T YOU PAYING ATTENTION?!” She quickly zipped back to the table and started scribbling. “And I still have about nine-tenths of the population still to address, and I just wasted five seconds to tell you that and now the list of names in my head slipped... No wait, I had it written all down on this paper…” Her head trailed to the pile of paper on the side. “Oh no! I lost it!”
She jumped into the pile and started frantically tossing them about, trying to find the right piece, only for the griffin to grab hold and restrain her from behind. “Silverstream, breathe!” Things slowed down as the two stood there motionless for a moment, enough for her to stop flailing about. “Silverstream, chill, okay? Everycreature’s still asleep, don’t wake them up.”
“But-!” she tried to speak.
“If you’re worried about your home getting attacked, I’m sure Princess Twilight’s already sent a message to Queen Novo about what’s happened; there’s no need for you to be so worked up about it. And if you’re worried that he might be coming here, why would he? There’s nothing here of value that he would want. This is probably one of the safest places in the world. Okay, Silverstream?”
Some time passed and the hippogriff finally calmed down. “Okay… You’re right, Gallus. I’m sorry about this, it’s just… you’ve no idea how it feels to hear that awful sound… For so many years, the crash of thunder marked the Storm King's presence on the surface above Seaquestria… To hear it again-“
KHR-KHR-KHR!
“AIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!” she screamed and jumped on top of him. “HE’S HERE! HE’S HERE!!!”
“S… Silver… stream… that’s… the door…” Gallus struggled to speak as she squeezed him in her embrace so tightly he was beginning the suffocate.
Suddenly, doors in the hallway could be heard creaking open, followed by the sound of multiple steps approaching.
“Silverstream, what is it?! Who’s-?!” the yellow, bearded unicorn with a cloak came to the door to inquire about what was happening, only to stop at the sight of an awkward situation.
Moments later, the blue mare joined, as well as four other members of the group to see the display. “Are… we interrupting something?” Ocellus asked.
The griffin finally managed to loosen her grip enough to gasp for air. “This isn’t what it looks like. The knock freaked her out.”
KHR-KHR-KHR!
The sound repeated.
“See?”
Suddenly the stomping sound could be heard from upstairs, as the loud knocking finally roused the owner from her slumber, and she couldn’t stand it anymore, she stomped downstairs with a frustrated sleepy look on her face.
“Okay, that’s it!” Gilda complained and walked over to the door that was rumbling, unlocking it. “You better have a dang good reason why you’re throwing me out of bed this early-!”
The moment she jiggled the doorknob, the door burst open and a grey griffin rushed in before she shut them closed again. She was completely wet.
“Gabby? What’s with you?” the owner inquired.
“Thanks for letting me in, Gilda,” she sighed in relief.
“Actually, you just let yourself in. Now tell me what is it.”
“There’s a storm fast approaching. I was halfway home after my mail delivery when I saw it coming from the west,” the spirited griffon explained. “It’s moving really fast. I just barely got away from it.
“It doesn’t look like you got away considering how drenched you are.” Gilda poked her plumage.
“Oh, that’s not rainwater. I just worked up a sweat.”
“EEEEEW!” the owner jumped back with a loud sound of disgust.
Gabby suddenly felt a gentle nudge on her head. She turned her head in its direction and saw a pink claw poking her. An avian creature stood before her; she looked almost like a griffin, but her rear end betrayed that illusion as it was that of an equine.
“Wow… you’re wetter than a seapony that just got beached,” she answered.
The grey griffin then noticed several other figures that were sticking their heads out the doorway of the room: A short lemon-furred horse, a large brown bovine, a winged orange lizard, an equine that resembled a bug, and last but not least, a familiar blue griffin.
“Oh, hey Gallus!” she greeted him. “I didn’t expect you and your friends to be here.”
He sighed. “It’s not like I’m here by choice… None of us are really.”
“What he’s trying to say is that we’ve come to Griffinstone on a field trip,” another voice said, as its owner, a blue unicorn went past the gathered crowd, followed by a yellow one. “Although truth be told, we did have some issues with… let’s just say “late departure”.”
After awkward laughter from the visitors, the house owner sniffed about and then shut her nose closed. “Gabby, do me a favor and go take a shower. I don’t need you to stink up my joint before the first customers arrive.” The grey griffin got up and walked off through one of the doors. “Okay, you guys go back to whatever you’ve been doing, I need to get-“ She halted thinking for a moment, before looking out the window on the top of the great tree’s branches where the towering fortress stood. “Ah drat. I completely forgot about Grandpa Gruff. At this time of day, he’ll likely be up there, brooding like a hen.” She turned to the group. “Gallus, you’ll have to go get him before the storm gets here.”
“Wait, what?! Why me?! Why don’t you go?!”
“I have to heat up the oven and get some baking done, so I can’t leave the house. And I’m pretty sure none of your friends or teachers know the way around the place. Besides, I’m sure it would be… what’s the word… Oh yeah, not appropriate to have my guests do menial tasks.”
“But Gilda, Grandpa Gruff hates me,” he moaned.
She rolled her eyes. “I think you should be asking yourself if there’s anyone he likes. Besides, he’s your guardian. Now get going before the rain gets here.”
He mumbled and then slowly walked through the main door and slammed it shut behind him.
“Gilda!” Gabby’s head suddenly popped up through the door that she just went through. “Where’s your bathroom even? I’ve never had the chance to be at your new place since you- Hey, where did Gallus go?”
“He had to go and fetch Mister “Selfish Grump who couldn’t give two rotten figs about him”,” Trixie answered. “I honestly do not get how that unpleasant old griffin ended up being that poor guy’s guardian.”
“It’s not like he put himself forward,” Gilda responded, “but when the Council of Griffin Lords makes a decree you don’t have an option to decline it. If anything, he’s doing it out of reluctance.”
“The council of… what now?” among the group of present students, Sandbar asked.
“That would technically be the rulers of Griffin Kingdom,” the unkempt unicorn explained. “They’re the ones making all the decisions while the king’s not present.”
“But vice-principal Sunburst,” the changeling inquired, “hasn’t the Griffon Kingdom lacked a king for… well, a very long time now?”
“That’s why they’re still in charge after all these years,” Gilda got ahead of the pony. “And that’s not gonna change… Ever.”
“Why?”
“Because-“ she suddenly stopped and sniffed about, quickly squeezing her nose shut. “PE-EEEW! Gabby, get going already!”
“But-“ the grey griffin tried to remind.
“It’s the fourth door on the left!” the white-brown one finished, making the other one disappear before taking a deep breath and resuming. “Anyway, as I was about to say, there’s not gonna be a king in Griffinstone again. Not without the Idol of Boreas.”
“Wasn’t that just a myth?” Smolder spoke up.
“You’d think, wouldn’t you? When the only one in Griffinstone who remembers it actually existing is an old grumpy half-blind shut-in who’d always come running when outsiders came asking about it in exchange for a few bits. He’s absolutely obsessed with it. Any griffin in this place would think he was just missing a few screws; I did too…” Gilda paused for a moment. “But I was wrong. Grandpa Gruff was right: I saw the Idol with my own eyes, like, inches away.”
“Wait, Yona don’t understand,” the yak finally jumped in. “If Idol real, why griffins not get it back?”
The baker sighed. “Because I’m the last one who saw it… Just before it slipped into the deep dark chasm where it was believed it disappeared a long time ago, and now it really did. And no griffin’s crazy enough to go into that dark bottomless windy ravine, bits or no bits.”
“Miss Gilda, I’m so sorry,” the hippogriff answered. “You were so close to being able to restore your kingdom to glory-“
“Whoa whoa whoa!” she halted her. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I may have lost the idol, but if I didn’t I’d likely hate myself for the rest of my life for losing a friend… And as unfortunate as it is, we did find a way to work around with the help of the said friends.” She walked over to one of the windows and pulled away the curtains, revealing the street. “Prior to that, I was trying to raise money so I could move out of the dump that was our town. Now, look at it. Sure, it's been a few years and it’s been a slow process, but the atmosphere’s not as uninviting and doldrum as it used to be. Most of the griffin population is finally trying to put some effort in restoring Griffinstone… well, save for one.”
“You mean the Rough-Gruff?” the school consular quipped.
“Trixie!” Sunburst tried to get her to recall that.
“He can’t help it, he’s the oldest resident of the town. Though it was only recently that I noticed him going out of his house early in the morning before the crack of dawn and moping around the abandoned fortress. I think the fact that he knew about the Idol in the first place and in how much detail he usually described the events, means he must’ve been there when the arimaspi stole it. That’s why I never told him about the idol; I don’t know what he would’ve done if he knew that I almost had it and I let it go on purpose-”
KRAKOOM!
The thunder suddenly roared outside, interrupting the discussion. Gabby was right; the storm moved with great speed and it was already here now. And the moment the sound echoed, the pink hippogriff lept and hid underneath the nearest sturdy object, namely the yak. The owner saw that and figured it would be best to try and keep her mind preoccupied and diverted away from the thoughts that seemed to be plaguing her.
“You know what, I think that’s enough doom and gloom for today,” Gilda changed the subject. “I have to get the first batch of the day done. So, how about you kids help me with baking? There are free scones in for you all if you do.”
“Wait, you mean the famous Griffinstone’s griffin scones?” Sandbar swiftly jumped ahead of them. “I’m totally in!”
“Are they made from actual stone?” Smolder inquired. “Cuz, you know: Stone – scone… I mean, I’m a dragon so that doesn’t bother me that much, but still…” The orange dragon noticed a frown on the owner’s face, which quickly made her go quiet.
“You know, had you asked me that a while back I might have actually said yes, so I’ll overlook that remark.” The griffin’s look soon mellowed down.
“Yona not too good at baking,” the yak answered. “Don’t have a gentle touch.”
“Don’t worry. A gentle touch is something you learn from experience. Now come on all of you, follow me.” Gilda proceeded to walk down the hallway.
“Hey, I’m not gonna say no to free breakfast,” the orange dragon shrugged and followed.
Sandbar was way ahead of her already as he pranced happily, and it didn’t take long for Yona to join them, moving from her spot and leaving the hippogriff exposed from the refuge she had taken, desperately trying to grab hold of her legs to pull her back, but she was already out of reach now.
“Silverstream,” Ocellus finally spoke, “you can’t keep hiding from the sound of thunder forever.”
“Can’t I?” She gave her a desperate look.
“Well… yes, you could, but you shouldn’t,” the bug rephrased it. “There could be a storm on the other side of the world and that still wouldn’t mean that the Storm King is there.”
“You can’t know that!”
“Maybe. But that still doesn’t mean you should abstain from things, especially if they can at least get you to think of something else instead of being in constant dread.”
The hippogriff thought for a moment and realized her little friend had a point. She was up for so long that the feedback was starting to show on her appetite after she stopped worrying even for a moment - she was starving. The changeling went ahead and went after her right away, leaving the two adult unicorns the only ones left.
“Time for the Great and Powerful Trixie to make her debut in the kitchen,” the blue mare declared.
“Trixie, after the last time you handled flour I don’t think that’s such a good idea,” Sunburst pointed out.
“Look, I already told both you and Starlight that happened because of Discord’s shenanigans,” she pointed out.
The scruffy stallion didn’t know how much truth was in that.
Gallus flew past the partly cleared, yet still shambled streets in no sense of hurry; he wanted to prolong getting to his destination as long as possible simply because he knew too well who was gonna be waiting for him at the end.
KRAKOOM!
Thunder roared above him. Gabby wasn’t kidding when she said the storm was approaching quickly; it moved so fast that by the time he was halfway to the location he already saw the dark clouds flying over him, past the tower-like structure that sat on the highest branch of the colossal tree. He wanted the trip to take as long as possible, but at this point, if he didn’t hurry he’ll end up getting soaking wet. And just as he said that he suddenly felt raindrops falling on his beak. Other griffins that were out on the street felt it too and decided to retreat back into their houses to avoid the incoming rain. He groaned under his breath; now he really didn’t have a choice but to hurry up. He picked up the speed and flew up the tree’s wide ancient trunk, to the highest point of Griffinstone, where the towering wooden fortress stood. He landed at the edge of a giant hole in the wall and gazed inside, and just as Gilda said, a greying wizen old griffon with the fez sat on the side, staring in the direction of a pedestal that sat in the middle of the room and the throne.
“Grandpa Gruff!” Gallus called out.
The old griffin flinched; he got caught off guard, and he seemed to be sure that nobody else was going to come here today.
“Oh, it’s you,” he said in a sour tone. “What do you want?”
“Rain’s about to start. Shouldn’t you be going back to town?” He motioned outside
“No. Nobody asked you to come and get me.”
“Actually, Gilda’s the one who sent me to fetch you before the rain starts.”
KRAKOOM!
And with the thunder striking outside, the sound of rain became increasingly loud.
“Oh, just lovely… And you couldn’t even get here fast enough before the downpour started. Ever since that pink and blue miniature horses appeared in Griffinstone all those years ago, everybody’s gotten noisier and noisier.”
“Noisier? Don’t you mean kinder and welcoming? Griffinstone’s been going better in the last few years.”
“Better?” the old griffin scoffed. “You wouldn’t know what “better” looks like. In any case, go back and leave me be.”
“Look, I’m not going back to town alone at this point, Grandpa Gruff,” the younger one insisted. “I already got here, I’m gonna get back soaking wet in the end, and I refuse to return emptyclawed. The descent is gonna be slippery from all the water and there’s no way we’re flying back in this weather.”
“Listen here, boy,” his voice turned stern. “You’re not MY keeper, I’m YOUR keeper. So do not even for a moment think about giving me the “frail old fowl” attitude. Second, you don’t…” He slowed down when he realized that his gaze was focused elsewhere. “Hey boy, are you listening to me?!”
He wasn’t that much was clear, but why? That’s when the elder noticed something odd. He saw shadows in the wall behind him. The fact that it just turned dark outside there shouldn’t be enough light for them to cast shadows, especially inside the fortress. That’s when he turned to look for the light source and his expression matched the younger one. Flying in the room, several feet off the ground was a large swirling mass of light, with darkness coalescing all around it and in the middle of it. They had no idea what that thing was. All of a sudden, a mountain of rock came crashing through and filled the room with dust, causing them to both finally get roused from the dumbfounded gaze.
The old sorcerer and his prisoner spent the whole day overlooking a seemingly bottomless chasm below, the only things preventing them from falling to their doom were a pair of ledges in the walls. The grizzled ram sat on the larger one where the dried-up remains of one of his creations rested, holding and gazing into the large yellow crystal ball, while the centaur lord sat on a much smaller one, much to his inconvenience, as he barely fit on, making his moment of respite rather difficult, as he was already uncomfortable with all the bondage on him; this just added it to the pile, but in the last few hours he finally managed to get in a position where he could finally rest for a bit before the big show began. And that time was now.
“Boy!” Grogar shouted.
The noise roused Tirek from his slumber, and it took him off balance, giving him only a split second to grab onto a ledge before he leaned over the edge uncontrollably. “You couldn’t have woken me a bit quieter?”
“I already did once before, and you didn’t register. It’s time, boy,” Grogar announced. “While you were dreaming I managed to find a secluded location where we won’t be disturbed. Now brace yourself, because you’re gonna have a nasty fall otherwise.”
Fear washed over the shackled centaur after looking over the edge, and hearing the grizzled ram’s warning. The depths below were already dark and beyond clear sight, and the sudden appearance of the storm only dimed the visibility.
He clenched onto the nearby large rock on the small ledge on which he was. “So to where are you going to lift us from the ravine?” he inquired.
“Lift us?” The sorcerer chuckled. “Who said anything about lifting us up?”
Tirek tilted his head in confusion. How else was he going to get them to open space if not outside the ravine? Suddenly, the ram’s horns began to glow, causing the prisoner to hold even tighter onto the rock, awaiting what would follow. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a glow. No, not from above, not even the side, but from below. A portal of dark light opened right under their hooves, and the rock that he was clinging on to instantly dragged the centaur through, causing him to scream until he finally hit the ground a few feet later. Unfortunately for him, the rock that was in his grasp tipped over upon impact and crushed him under its weight, and it took him some time to harness enough strength to push it off, and his shackles weren’t making it any easier. Meanwhile, Grogar landed nearby on his hooves, still holding his orb, and soon a collection of bones rained from the portal above them, in a giant horned single-socketed skull landed on top of a moldy, fungus-covered pedestal.
“I told you to brace for an impact, boy,” he told him. “And as a result, you just had a nasty fall.”
“How was I supposed to know you were going to drop us?” Tirek complained, still reeling from the fall. “Anyway, where are we?”
“It’s a safe place,” the Father of Monster explained. “It’s one of the last few places that he had seen before his demise. It’s out of anyone’s sight, where nobody will come snooping while I start the ritual.”
The centaur looked around. They ended up in an old wooden structure that seemed to have been abandoned and decayed with the passage of time. Whatever this place was must’ve belonged to a ruler, as there was a noticeable throne on the far end of the room. But as he continued to look about, his gaze quickly froze.
“Grogar…” he tried to beckon him. “I think you may have misjudged the part about not being in anyone’s sight.”
The grizzled ram heard him and quickly turned in his direction. He was correct. Out by the larger opening in the wooden structure, two figures stood: Both griffins - one, old greying half-blind with a fez, the other, young and blue-feathered. The looks on their faces had a clear sign of surprise.
“Oh dear… So I have.” He shrugged. “Oh well. At least we’ll have a captive audience.” He picked up a nearby rock, enveloped it in his magic, and drew a circle around the designated area, before beginning to inscribe runes upon it.
The elder and younger griffin were in the meantime standing still before the latter finally acted. “Grandpa Gruff,” Gallus calmly said and tugged on his hand, “we have to go and warn everybody below…”
“What? Nonsense!” the half-blind guardian protested. “There’s like only two of them, we can take them on!” He raised his claws, prepared for fisticuffs.
“Grandpa Gruff, that’s Lord Tirek! And that other one’s Grogar! We don’t stand a chance against them!” Gallus grabbed hold of his senior’s arm and tried to pull him away.
“How soft are you? Look at them! One of them is in no better physical health than me and the other one is in chains!”
A chuckle escaped the grizzled ram as he finished inscribing runes into the ground. “Such confidence. Clearly you carry yourself as a warrior. If only your hatchling was brimming with it as well. But I suppose his generation skipped it.”
“He’s not my hatchling, you old goat,” Gruff corrected him. “He’s just some kid that the council forced me to become a guardian of.”
“Thanks for a boost of confidence…” The younger one scowled at the older one.
“How about I test how much your resolution will hold, old warrior?” Grogar wondered. “The two of us have no intention of fighting you, but there is somebody who would be more than willing to take our place for that… One who has been sleeping for far too long.”
“Thanks, but I think we’ll take a raincheck on that offer,” Gallus tried to avoid conflict and drag them both out of danger.
“Oh, I really must insist,” Grogar said with a grin and levitated the giant yellow orb, gently placing it inside the socket of a skull that sat upon the pedestal.
No matter how much the schoolboy would struggle, Gruff would resist; he was determined to not flinch, and he had no fear of them. However, the sense of fear was slowly beginning to creep in, as he looked upon the pile of bones surrounding the pedestal the Idol of Boreas once stood, and in its place, a giant horned skull now sat… one that looked strangely familiar for some reason. And it was only when he looked at it as a whole, with the large yellow eye sitting in its single eye socket that it finally began to dawn on him what it looked like, but by then it was already too late.
The magical circle on the ground lit up and a veil of shadow was erected, obscuring the vision, but leaving the visible silhouette of the goings on inside. The bones began to levitate and slowly attach to one another until they created a frame for what looked like a giant body, and while this was happening, the giant skull began to levitate and lastly fastened itself on top of the frame. The skeleton began to twitch slightly, finally moving in the direction of the shadowy veil and pressing against it. It struggled, but the grizzled ram stepped aside, as did the centaur once he realized that the dark barrier began to bend to its force, eventually causing the skeleton to push past it and end up completely enveloped in the darkness behind which it was locked. It stumbled, landing on all fours, but it didn’t get up just yet. The shadow that was completely enveloping it shifted, little by little its color began to change and the form became more pronounced. Grey color finally began to emerge, a coat of thick hair and mane sprouting from its head, down to its toes. When the last vestiges of shadow disappeared, a large stocky goat-like creature towered over everybody. Finally, its single giant yellow eye opened, its iris zipping in all directions, but the creature didn’t move, and as such, the two figures standing by its side escaped its view… but the two griffins in front of him didn’t. The moment it spotted them, it rose on its short hind legs and let out a loud bellow.
MAAAAAAAA!
“IT’S THE ARIMASPI!!!” Gallus screamed.
He quickly lept and flew for the opening. He was about to fly past its threshold when he stopped on the edge. Something was off, something didn’t feel right, as if somebody’s presence was missing close by. And when he turned his head he understood why. He had expected the elder griffin to follow suit, but that wasn’t the case, as he noticed him still standing where he was before. However, it became clear he was no longer spoiling for a fight, he was quivering.
In disbelief and horror, he looked upon a creature that fell to its demise, the being that was plaguing his nightmare for many long years, getting revived before his very eyes. So many times he was thinking about how he would defeat it if he had a chance to encounter it again, and now that it was, he couldn’t do anything – he was simply too frightened. It finally moved, slowly lumbering in his direction. His thoughts were screaming to move, but his body wouldn’t respond – he was frozen in fear.
Gallus had to react and quickly think about the next move. He swooped in and grabbed hold of Grandpa Gruff, and with him not resisting now, the younger griffin had a much easier time pulling him away, and just in time too as the arimaspi reached from them and got away from his grasp at the last moment. He busted open the main gate of the fortress and dragged the elder through, before slamming them shut and lodging a nearby broken-off pole on it to make sure it wouldn’t open.
The thunderstorm and the downpour outside were relentless, and Gallus knew there was no way they would be able to fly away safely. “Come one, Grandpa Gruff! We have to go while he’s trying to get out!”
“That won’t hold him,” he said in a calm tone.
“You don’t know that!”
KRRHHHH!
Not just the door, but also a large section of the wall around it immediately broke away as the creature on the other side busted them down without breaking a sweat. The blue griffin was just left agape at the sight.
“Who do you think made that giant hole in the wall in the first place?” Gruff confirmed his statement from earlier.
“Never mind gloating about it right now! RUN!” Gallus screamed and they both ran off down the branch towards the town below.
The arimaspi made a grunting sound and then perused after them, leaving behind the large wooden enclosure, as well as completely ignoring the two people that were left behind, now walking through the new hole in the wall and looking below.
“Was that part of the plan, Grogar?” Tirek inquired.
“Let him be, boy. He’s been away for a long time and the spirit needs to settle properly into the new body. Let us follow.”
The grizzled ram slowly walked out into the heavy rain without a care, and as reluctant as the centaur was from going into it, he had little choice since he still held his chain.
“And… Voilà!” Trixie declared.
There was chaos in the kitchen. The owner went to preheat the oven and gave the students a run-through on how the recipe for the scones worked. Yet despite the clear instructions, to say that the results were mixed would be generous. The yak wasn’t kidding when she expressed her issues, as she was preparing the dough for the scones she ended up pressing too hard, kicking up a cloud of flour all around the preparation table, which caused Smolder to sneeze, burning almost half of the dough in the process with her fire, causing Sandbar to flinch and fall over backward on Ocellus as she was delivering the finished pastries to the oven, making her drop at least half on the floor. And of course, then there was Trixie, who amassed a huge amount of dough and sculpted it into the imagery of herself, posing dramatically with sparking stars erupting behind her.
“Real impressive, miss Flare,” Gilda commented in a sarcastic tone, “but this thing isn’t going to fit in my oven.”
“Oh, no problem,” the student consular said and her horn lit up, “I can cast a spell that will make your oven the right fit-“
SLAM!
The brown griffin smashed her fist on the dough statuette of the unicorn, causing her to yelp in shock. “No! You’re not playing with food, you hear?! If you wanna have breakfast, you make it the right way! Now go from the start.” And she walked away.
“Our host sure takes her baking almost as seriously as Pinkie Pie,” Sunburst compared as he sat nearby.
Trixie gave him a mean look. “I don’t see you helping out.”
“Hey, I’m not good at this cooking thing, I’ll likely only cause even more of a mess in the kitchen than it already is.”
Gilda meanwhile walked over to the over and set in a finished plate that the changeling had just brought over and put it into the oven, but before that she did notice that this batch was actually well done in comparison to others, and a moment later, Ocellus came back with another plate of equal quality. She placed the scones in the oven and watched where they were coming from, and saw her walk over to where the pink half-avian was sitting. She walked closer and saw the young hippogriff working quickly with the dough.
“You’re pretty good at this, kid,” the griffin commented.
“Well, with the amount of time we spent with professor Pinkie Pie, I picked up a thing or two,” she answered.
The baker rolled her eyes. “Of course, it’s her.”
“Also, these are very handy,” Silverstream said and wiggled her hand claws, to which Gilda herself wiggled her.
“No argument from me there.” She smiled.
KRAKOOM!
The clash of thunder outside echoed and everybody present went quiet, their sight locking on to the hippogriff. She went still, staring into nothingness for a few moments… and after that resumed working. She, however, soon realized the eyes were still upon her.
“Is… something wrong?”
“Silverstream, are you okay?” Sunburst asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” she gave a simple response. “Ocellus was right. I just need to keep my thoughts preoccupied and the rumblings outside don’t seem so threatening anymore.”
The whole room sighed in relief.
“That’s good to hear,” Sandbar commented. “Despite the rain outside, I honestly think things can only get better from here on.”
“Yeah,” Smolder added. “And assuming I don’t end up burning any more of our potential breakfast, once Gallus gets back we can-“
MAAAAAAAA!
The entire room went deathly silent. That sound just now…
“Yona don’t think that’s thunder…” the yak said.
“Then… what was it?” the changing wondered.
The ground suddenly began to quake under them. Considering that they were on top of a tree, the vibrations from the wood could be felt growing stronger.
“I dunno. But whatever it is, it’s outside.” Gilda ran out of the kitchen, and everybody else dropped whatever they were doing to join her.
They stepped outside of the house. It was raining cats and dogs, but even then, it didn’t take them long to see through the gloomy weather what was happening. In the distance, a large mass with a single yellow eye was charging down the main street of Griffinstone. The residents that were still outside quickly retreated into their houses, but unfortunately, two of them did not have that luxury as they were the beast’s primary target.
“EVERYCRATURE BACK INSIDE!” Trixie screamed, creating a line from her magic that wrapped around the group and pulled them back inside the house, then quickly shut the door. “Don’t make a sound!” she commanded.
Everybody remained quiet, feeling the rumblings going louder as the beast passed them in a loud huffing sound before I started to fade away in the distance. After enough time had passed they finally inhaled. But soon they heard another rumbling sound, but this one was coming from within the house. The grey griffin suddenly emerged from one of the doorways with a happy smile, completely oblivious as to what had just happened.
“What’s with all of you? Why are you all huddled up together by the entrance?”
“Gabby, haven’t you heard or felt any of what just happened?” Gilda inquired.
“Well, I did, but I just assumed it was a mishap in the kitchen.”
“Excuse me? When did you ever know me to have mishaps in the kit-“
“Never mind the kitchen right now! What the hay was that thing?!” the student consular asked the obvious question.
“I think that may have been an arimaspi, Trixie,” Sunburst answered.
“Wait, the monster that supposedly destroyed Griffinstone? Here?”
“Yeah, and it was chasing down two unlucky fellas, but I couldn’t see who they were,” Smolder added. “I wouldn’t want to be in their position, whoever they were.”
“Miss Trixie, Sunburst, are we in serious danger?” the changeling questioned.
“If the arimaspi is anything like from Grandpa Gruff’s story, then it’s likely here for the gold,” Gilda explained. “But even so it doesn’t make sense. Griffinstone doesn’t have anything flashy and noteworthy to steal. And the last arimaspi that did… well, let’s just say I saw what became of it.”
“Is Yona only one who feel somecreature’s missing?” the large student popped a random question.
And it dawned on the rest of them that may have been the case. Besides the blue griffin that was still outside, there was another student of the avian variety that was missing.
“SILVERSTREAM!” they screamed in unison.
Under heavy rain and in panic, the two griffins ran down the road, hearing the huffing and puffing of a monster they just saw come back to life right on their tail. They were too preoccupied thinking about just running for survival to think about what to do next. As they turned a corner they disappeared out of its sight, but the arimaspi was going to reach them a just a moment. Yet as it turned a corner, the creature was confused, because its target disappeared out of its sight, even though it towered quite a bit over the rooftops, it didn’t notice where they went. It bent over, closer to the ground, inspecting the side of the house, one of many that were small and narrow compared to others, and it started to look inside its broken windows. And right under the said window through which the beast was watching, three feathered characters were huddled together, surrounded by a pile of abandoned old mattresses and pillows, the middle avian one wrapping her arms around the other two, holding their beaks shut with her claws. There was a huff and a grunt, and the large glowing eye that was watching through the window moved away, followed by a stomping sound. Once it became clear that the beast was gone, the hippogriff finally let off the griffins.
“Silverstream? What are you doing here?” Gallus asked.
“Saving your feline rear ends, what else,” she answered. “I saw you two running down the road. What is that thing?”
“It’s him…” the quivering voice of the elder griffin answered. “The nightmare… the nightmare made itself manifest right before our eyes… The bleating, the roaring, the huffing, the breaking…”
“Grandpa Gruff?” She was confused. “Gallus, what’s with him?”
“Probably shell shock. He’s been telling the story of arimaspi destroying Griffinstone so many times to see him actually be brought back by Grogar probably got to him.”
The hippogriff had her attention grabbed. “Wait, what? Grogar? He’s here?”
“And so is Tirek… in chains, for some reason.”
“That’s all the more reason for us to get back and tell school consular Trixie about it. We need to get back to Gilda’s house, quick,” she ordered.
She went to the other side of the abandoned house and looked out the open window to see if the monster was anywhere in sight. The coast was clear so she climbed out, then quickly turned back inside.
“Now you two, quick,” she hurried them.
Gallus picked up the quivering elder griffin and walked him over to the opening, but on the way, he stumbled on the crooked old floor and ended up ramming him into the pile of busted-open feathered pillows. His nose twitched as he felt a tickle in his nostrils, and he couldn’t have helped but follow it up with a loud sneeze.
AT-CHOOO!
It echoed, so loud it was the sound, and everybody went quiet, watching and waiting for what would follow. There was nothing. It seemed that they were in luck and the sound slipped past the predator’s radar, Gallus could help himself but make a sigh of relief. A flash! From behind them, a bright light lit up outside the window, a large yellow eye was staring inside. The house began to shake and the hippogriff outside suddenly disappeared out of sight. The arimaspi grabbed the small house with his giant arms and lifted it from its foundations, leaving Silverstream helpless to watch from below. Inside, the two griffins were tossed about the small room while the monster stared in. The younger one decided to fight back and give him the run for his money, by grabbing the nearby piece of a broken plank and tossing it at the most exposed part of its body. That turned out to be a big mistake. The arimaspi let out a sound of irritation, and after shrugging off the sting, he started putting pressure on the building, and in a matter of moments its frame broke and it started to crush the structure in a small pile, squeezing both Gallus and Gruff into a small confined space where they could barely move. After the deed was done, it simply turned to the edge and threw the mangled-up remains of the house with two griffins inside, over it, and the wooden clump fell down and into the dark ravine beneath the colossal tree.
“GALLUS!!!” Silverstream screamed in absolute horror at what she just saw happen.
It heard her. The arimaspi’s ear twitched and it quickly turned in mortified hippogriff’s direction. It approached slowly, and when her instinct kicked in and she quickly made a run for it, the beast accelerated. She made a dash and quickly turned a corner, and hid in a narrow alleyway with several cluttered houses. She heard it. The creature saw her go in, but it couldn’t pass through, yet she could still see its gigantic muzzle sticking through the passage, if it could reach in with its hand it would’ve gotten her by now, but to see the horrifying expression of a giant glowing eye staring right at her, it was absolutely terrifying, so much that she was on the verge of tears as she saw no other way out.
It stopped. She saw the eye suddenly shift to the side and then the large head pulled back. Something else got the arimaspi’s attention, something more important than her. And she could hear it. The sound of hooves walking down the wooden street echoed, even in the heavy rain. And it left to follow the sound. With the passage unblocked, Silverstream slowly crawled out and peaked around the corner to see what was happening.
Down the street, the grizzled old ram and the bonded centaur marched, completely drenched, though one didn’t really care about it. He was far more interested in seeing somebody very special. And it seemed that the mere sound of his walk got its attention. The arimaspi stood on the street, motionless, staring. Then it started to walk slowly, with every passing moment picking up the pace until it was in full gallop, charging in their direction.
“Errr… Grogar, I don’t think he has any intention of being friendly with us,” Tirek said with reservation, based on the way things looked from his position.
“You don’t know that,” the old sheep responded, slowly lifting his right hoof in the air in the direction the beast was coming from.
“You know if you’re planning to use some magic, now would be a good time.”
“I don’t need to use magic on him,” he simply responded.
But the centaur was not convinced. The beast was going to crash into them at any moment now and he had to run out of its path. He failed, as the collar kept him from moving beyond a designated range. He panicked, he had no other choice but to huddle on the ground behind the old fool and use him as a shield, hoping he somehow survived the stomping. The beast was closing in, but soon its movement slowed down ever so little until it finally came in reach of Father of Monsters, where it came to a complete stop. It sniffed his hoof, then closed its eye, gently pressing its giant muzzle against it.
And the grizzled old ram gently rubbed him. “Hello again, Paramis… old friend.”
The centaur lord flinched; did he just hear that right? “Friend?” He lifted his head. “Did you just call this giant hulking mass of fur “a friend”?” His chain was yanked, pulling him back to the ground.
“I suggest you watch your tongue, boy,” Grogar scolded him.
The arimaspi rose and started to make incomprehensible noises as if it was trying to speak.
Grogar chuckled. “Yes, I know. Even draconequus wasn’t kept on such a short leash.”
Tirek lifted a frown. “Wait... you can understand what that thing is saying?”
“That THING, as you so tactfully called, is one of my oldest and closest confidants. And where he goes, I go.”
“Does that mean, we’re done here? Are we going to leave for Dragon Lands now?” the prisoner inquired.
He was about to speak, but the beast intervened; it was mumbling something, making noises. It was telling his maker something, but the centaur had no idea what it was.
After it finally went quiet, Grogar once again regarded him. “No,” he plainly said. “There is something that has just come to my attention right now that I was not aware of. There is one little task that we still have to perform. But first…” He raised his head to the thundering clouds above. “CONSTRUUUUUUUUCT!”
The thunder roared, and a few moments later the clouds parted, and a giant dark cloud forming the face of Storm King descended to the ground below, a short distance away from the source of the caller.
“SO, WHAT’S THE WORD, GRAMPS?” his voice boomed. “WE ALL SET TO GO NOW?”
“Not yet,” Grogar answered. “I’m going to need you to stay a while longer and keep things under lockdown. Make sure no creature leaves the premises in order to alert the outside world.”
“SOUNDS EASY ENOUGH. BUT HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KILL TIME IN THE MEANTIME?”
“Oh, I’m sure you have a way to flare up your spirit and entertain your audience at the same time.”
The giant face looked to the side, pondering for a moment, and then finally realized it. “OH, I GET IT.”
Silverstream simply couldn’t describe things she was feeling after what she saw earlier and what she was seeing right now from the cover. But whatever it was, it could all be described with one word: BAD. Nobody was paying attention to her right now and with the heavy rain, this was her only chance to get to safety while the figures were preoccupied. He ran as fast as she could to Gilda’s house and tried to open it, only to discover it was locked.
Panic took over, and she aggressively started to bang on the door, begging. “Let me in! Please somecreature, I beg you, open! I-!”
The doors quickly opened and an unseen force pulled her inside before closing them shut again.
“Silverstream!” Smolder said as she and the rest of her friends piled on her in an embrace.
But it soon became apparent something had gone wrong, as the hippogriff started to sob.
“Silverstream, what’s happened? What’s wrong?” Sunburst inquired.
“Ari… Gallus… Gruff… Ravine… Tirek… Grogar… The Storm King!” she blabbed words under the weight of all the stress she’s just been under, making no sense.
“Silverstream, calm down. Breathe,” Trixie suggested, giving her a few moments to calm down. “Now tell us slowly. What exactly happened out there when you just disappeared into the-“
There was a strange sound in the air that interrupted them. It roared like thunder, but it sounded like electric strings being plucked.
And soon another equally loud sound followed. “HELLO, GRIFFINSTONE!” a voice suddenly boomed outside. “THIS IS SL/SK COMING TO YOU LIVE ON-SITE! PREPARE YOURSELVES FOR A SHOW THE LIKES OF WHICH YOU’VE NEVER HEARD BEFORE!”
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Looks like everyone is in trouble now
11390707
Well, the first reference I thought was partially inspired by this moment. 🤔
and for the second one, I also expect Discord to do something similar. (At least I planned to parody this scene with Discord in a comic I'm working on.) 🙃
11390737
Ye, but for the 1st one, I was primarily thinking of Gruff just having a nightmare.
after the previous epic battle, this chapter feels like a respite and the calm before the storm :)
Now, after Grogar's constant phrases "boy", I can't get rid of the idea that he speaks in the voice of Kratos from "God of war 4"
11390779
That, my friend, is as it's intended.