Tinge of the Corruption
“You know, prior to this little game of yours, I’d have never imagined that Francois was so rich,” Trilychi commented idly as he lounged on the divan, which had now begun to hover a length or two off the ground. “More instances of hope extinguished than I’ve seen since dear little Rijii. Speaking of such, do you think if I returned the contents of Aqualinius’ vaults, Auric would let me have the body?”
Kaiya looked curiously at him. “You still have it?”
“I’ve been looking, but there’re very few places I can spend gold by the cubic yard,” he responded dryly. “Most mortals experience reactions markedly similar to severe trauma when you offer them a pile of valuables taller than they are.”
“So, like a magpie that’s spied a shiny object, you collected immense wealth on impulse and have no idea what to do with it?” Fronck-Kais smirked.
Instead of being offended, Trilychi snickered. “Wealth… oh, honestly, are you so limited that you think of a pile of gold and jewels as wealth?” He gestured to the wagers arranged alongside the game board. “Those are wealth, little minister. The significances, compiled and carefully spent.”
“Lord Trilychi, would you please stop taunting him?” Kaiya sighed. “It becomes very dull very swiftly, especially since he’s actually intelligent enough to realize he’s being mocked. It was enjoyable with Folly because you could sneer at him to his face and he’d be entirely unaware of it. Besides, my point wasn’t surprise that you hadn’t spent it—that would be absurd—but that it remained intact.”
“You’ve never met a gremlin before?”
“Actually, no,” she admitted. “Heard of them, just never met one.”
“Crazy, skilled, scary, and various combinations of the three,” Fronck-Kais supplied. “But there’s a good reason your friends shamelessly bribe them with hammers.”
“…hammers.”
He smirked at her. “Oh, dear, this is far too good. Don’t tell me the all-knowing, all-powerful Ninth Archangel is actually ignorant of something.”
Her eyes narrowed at him. “I’ll thank you not to sneer, especially when you’re in the position you are in our game.”
“And what position is that, pray tell?” He quashed his sudden twinge of uncertainty under a mocking grin. “Your one play is an inert one, dawdling in Equestria while my pieces do as they will elsewhere. You haven’t even increased your wagers or made any particular moves. I’m beginning to think your strategy is to bore me into submission.”
She simply smiled at him, the smile somehow all the more disturbing for the fact that it was genuine—and visibly amused. She turned to the hovering Trilychi. “Why would you bribe gremlins with hammers, Lord?”
“They measure wealth by tools,” he replied. “The more exotic the tool, the more valuable it is. I seem to recall that Amarra once outfitted an army with the finest gremlin-forged implements by offering a clan chief this ingenious wrench she’d found.”
“Surely you exaggerate.”
“Somewhat,” he admitted. “They drove a hard bargain for the odd war machine she’d found a prototype of. A curious device making use of a black sulfurous powder to propel a projectile.”
“Ah, the gremlin firesticks?”
He eyed her. “You don’t know anything about them, but you know of one of their inventions?”
“Sargeas gave me one of their variants as a display piece.” She gave Trilychi a sly grin. “A variant I’m sure you’re extremely familiar with.”
The amalgamation creature treated her to a sly grin in return. “Even if true, you know I wouldn’t admit it.”
Fronck-Kais for once was glad that the Dark and Light entities were ignoring him so they couldn’t see his complexion lighten a little. “Of course,” he growled to himself. “Of course they’d both be familiar with the various variants on those bizarre little creatures’ exotic weapon.”
“Beg pardon, minister?” Kaiya said politely, turning to him.
“I said, of course you’ve lapsed into ignoring me again,” he sighed. “I’m not sure why I even bother to think on it. I don’t suppose you plan to actually participate, Lady Aon?”
She looked steadily at him and he caught her lips compressing slightly. “You seem determined to provoke me into acting, Minister Fronck-Kais. This without having the slightest comprehension of what tools I could bring to bear, and what wagers I could make to my advantage. Are you truly so stupid that you can’t see the danger to you of me giving in?”
“You know, you keep assuring me that you have all sorts of incomprehensible tools just laying around waiting to be used. I’m beginning to be sorely tempted to call such claims a bluff.” He replied, folding his arms.
Kaiya gave him another steady look, visibly weighing, before she gave a slight nod of her head. “Perhaps you’re right. Perhaps a… demonstration.”
“Oh please…” Trilychi snorted. “You’re going to let him provoke you?”
“Of course not.” She snorted, fixing Fronck-Kais with a look that made him suddenly regret opening his big mouth. “He’s calling my bluff, correctly pointing out that I’ve been nothing but talk and a couple miniscule moves. A demonstration is in order, one of the few invocations only I can make.”
“And that is?” Fronck-Kais prompted her
In answer, Kaiya extended her palm upwards and milky white power flowed upwards and coalesced into a figurine of a tall, austere human in a long billowing robe that was held shut by a simple stole of ordinary-looking rope. Fronck-Kais could vaguely make out the shape of the Weaver’s woven cruciform around the humans neck and in a hand raised high above his cowl-covered head,, he held a lantern of intricate and frankly beautiful workmanship. In the other hand, he bore an intricate-looking misericorde-style dagger. “Inquisition,” she replied gravely.
He stared at her in disbelief for a moment before doing the only thing that was appropriate to the situation: tilted his head back and laughed uproariously.
“The Inquisition?” He repeated. “You… you’re not joking are you? That’s just precious... Inquisition indeed, what a…”He trailed off as he saw her expression: not offended or angry or even bemused but genuinely amazed.
“You… don’t know it, do you?” He found that he very much did not like the toothy and predatory grin that stretched over her vulpine muzzle. “Oh, this is going to be such fun.” The figuring melted back down into her palm and she grinned widely at him. “I think I shall permit you to continue thinking I’m bluffing, Fronck-Kais. In the meantime, let us see what your minions have been doing with their initiative.”
“So there is a… thing, wandering our kingdom, hurting our little ponies, and has outright killed one of them and gravely wounded another.”
Spite looked calmly up at the ivory-white alicorn, idly admiring the way her mane constantly flowed and shifted as if of its own accord. “Yes.”
“And the one she… it murdered… it… stole their body and goes around pretending that the body is its own.”
This time, she nodded to Luna with a grave expression.
The two Sisters stood quietly for a moment, looking at her without seeing her, contemplative expressions on their faces. Then Luna’s eyes turned cold and hard. “And you say that it may be also stalking griffins in this way. May have, in fact, killed and stolen the consul-general and is now trifling with us.”
“That’s what I’m saying, yes,” Spite confirmed.
“And this is all at someone’s orders?”
“Yes.”
Celestia looked worriedly at her sister. “Luna…”
Luna looked up at her sister, her face set in an expression of barely-contained fury. “Sister, We not as patient and benevolent as thee. Thou wouldst have Us be calm and patient and approach this… open insult to Our sovereignty, this violation of Our precious subjects coolly and thoughtfully? Nay! We say to thee, nay, dear Sister Ours! It hath been but six months past that the Guardian corrupted thee, made its… tools murder Our niece and thy daughter. That foul beast visited murder and evil upon Our little ponies and We were made to sit by and do nothing lest by haste, We endanger Our subjects further.” She shook her head. “Nay, Sister, We shall not stand idle a second time. We are the Princess of the Moon and of the Night! We cause the moon to dance and fill the skies with stars and shelter Our ponies in the gentle Night! What is this… this… Lashaal that it dares to harm Our subjects? By what right does it do such? How can thou ask that We do not rend it to pieces?”
“With respect, Your Majesty, you can’t rend an enemy that you cannot see,” Spite pointed out evenly. “We must find her first.”
Luna nodded once, her eyes actually smoldering with her anger. “It shall not hide from Our night. Wherever it goes, even into the very darkest places, there We shall rake for it.”
“My intention as well, Princess,” Spite assured her. “She has been my prey ever since she came here, and I fully intend to run her to ground and take her sins out of her miserable hide. It’ll be the deepest honor to have you at my side as I do. But Lashaal’s master has many tools and the pursuit that would most benefit him is to harm the Elements, especially Twilight.”
Luna’s burning anger almost instantly turned into fearful concern, an expression mirrored with even greater intensity in Celestia’s expression. “Why… especially Twilight?”
“Most valuable asset,” Spite replied. “Meaning no disrespect to the other Elements or her sister, but I imagine that there are very few ponies with an intellect, breadth of knowledge, and magical talent even remotely comparable to Twilight’s.”
“Hey, I’ve got the brains and the book smarts.” Dawn protested.
Spite blinked and looked at her. “You do?”
“Uh, yeah, duh.” The dark earth pony smirked. “I don’t look like her duplicate out of hero-worship or anything. Total copy, but without all the nice extras.”
Spite looked between Dawn and the sighing Twilight. “I’m tempted to ask, but I’m afraid my head will implode from the effort of understanding how the duplicate of a mild-mannered alicorn is a nymphomaniacal earth pony with a big mouth.”
Dawn laughed. “I knew I liked you. Learned some snark from that colleague, huh?”
“Naw, I just use the sounds that come out when you move your muzzle as inspiration.” Spite returned, smirking.
The earth pony eyed her. “You’re single, right?”
“…single?”
“Yeah, like, unattached.”
“I’m attached to my job…”
Dawn gave her a deadpan look. “Is there someone back home that you boink for fun and profit?”
Spite studied her for a moment, sorely tempted. Oh, buck it, this could be fun. “Not any one person, no.”
“…not any one…?”
Spite grinned fiercely at her. “I have a nice, long list.”
“A… long list, you say?”
“I’m thousands of years old, Dawn. I’ve had lots of time to… indulge.”
“…” Dawn turned to Twilight and pointed at Spite. “Take notes, Sis, because that dragon, right there, is the most awesome role model ever.”
“Spite, stop corrupting my sister,” Twilight sighed with a slight blush. “And aren’t we sort of getting off the point?”
“Twi, Ah don’t think it’s possible t’ corrupt ‘er any more than she is,” Applejack chuckled, giving Spite a surreptitious wink, letting her know she’d noticed the slight harmless untruth but apparently wasn’t going to say anything. “But yeah, Ah’m thinkin’ we need ta track Lashaal down an’ buck ‘er through a window or somethin’.”
“I agree, but how can we find somepony who can just grab a new body as she pleases?” Twilight asked, sweeping her gaze among everyone present.
“It’s not that simple,” Spite said. “It takes time and effort to do and a strong-willed being can make it hurt. It’s why only the strongest and most ancient of such spirits even attempt to seize a draconic body: the typical dragon has so much magical and will power that the spirit is horribly mauled even if they succeed. It’s why I suspect the consul-general: by their nature, ambassadors can choose to be alone for a very long time and servants are obligated to attend to their requests. He’d be the perfect target for her, especially since she now knows that she’s being hunted and who’s hunting her.”
“C… can she take an animal?” Fluttershy asked timidly. “It seems like it’d be the perfect disguise…”
“She could, but it’s… generally unwise,” Spite frowned. “I suppose it’d be safe if she was to take a wolf or some other creature with a greater physical size and spiritual weight but it’d require immense skill to immobilize your next host without harming them. I don’t see Lashaal doing so.”
“So examining the consul is our first step?” Pinkamena asked. “Make sure we’re not leaving Lashaal or something like her back here where they can do all sorts of bad things?”
“Sensible, although the fact that he didn’t react at all to me makes me a little doubtful.”
“Why?”
“Because spirits see the world around them very differently than mortals do and this ‘grave sight’ persists even when they’re in a body,” she explained. “Even a spirit that doesn’t know who I am would be extremely uncomfortable and at least somewhat fearful around me because to them, I’d be utterly terrifying-looking.”
“Why?” Twilight looked curiously at her. “What do they see?”
“I don’t know; I can’t exactly look into a mirror and see what they see.” She furrowed her brow. “I know it has something to do with pyramids, though. Apparently, spirits are terrified of mathematically-sophisticated architecture.”
“Pyramids.”
She shrugged. “I don’t make the rules and I certainly have nothing to do with the oddities of body-stealing spirits. Speaking of such, Pinkie makes an excellent point, even if I’m doubtful that the consul has been seized by one of Lashaal’s unsavory kind.”
“How would we be able to tell, though? You said that you can’t see spirits…”
“No, I said that I can’t see the way spirits do. I can see them, or more precisely sense them, with sustained physical contact. Figuring out Lashaal didn’t require it because she was so obvious.” She paused and gave Applejack and Twilight apologetic looks. “I mean, obvious to someone who knows what to look for.”
“S’okay, sugarcube,” Applejack assured her. “Shoulda seen it when she up an’ admitted that she wasn’t bein’ truthful with us. ‘Least when yer bein’ evasive, ya come right out an’ say that yer plannin’ on tellin’ us when ya think we trust ya enough t’ not overreact. An’ Ah dunno… yer evasion feels more like tellin’ us everything ya think ya safely can rather than only what ya need t’ say t’ get by and play us.”
“A cynic, and I’m uncomfortably well-acquainted with the best cynic in all existence, would say that I’m doling out the truth to you in measured doses to trick you into trusting me.” Spite smiled.
Applejack studied her. “Naw, it don’t fit,” she declared. “When ya said ya mauled somethin’ that can just eat souls, you were bein’ totally truthful an’ Ah can’t see someone with that kinda power an’ so little hesitation ta use it goin’ the route o’ trickery to do us harm. Waste of time, and ya’ll don’t seem the sort to waste yer time.”
“Which is somewhat ironic since I have more of it than I know what to do with,” Spite chuckled. “At any rate, Twilight, Princess Luna, would you be so good as to accompany me?”
“Pray tell, why us?” Luna asked with a curious expression.
“You’re a Princess, and thus have an excuse to see him. You’re also strongly aligned with the magic I use for examination, and thus wouldn’t interfere with me if you needed to magically restrain him,” the dragoness explained. “Twilight is magically gifted and highly intelligent, thus she’s most likely to be able to duplicate my method by observation.”
“And what should the rest of use be doing while you examine the consul?” Rarity asked.
“Determine the best way to get where Lashaal was going and where she was coming from,” Spite suggested. “I came out of the shadows and introduced myself to the Princesses because it’s no longer possible for me to fight Lashaal and fight her master’s plan at the same time. And frankly, I don’t think either one of them anticipate having to deal with the Elements and the Princesses both this early in the game. Speaking of such…” She looked at Fluttershy. “I think somepony should be standing vigil over Rainbow Dash until it’s safe to wake her up, and I can’t think of a better Element than Kindness.”
“M… m… me?” Fluttershy squeaked.
“Do you see any other soft-kind wingponies that fierce predators love and respect in the room?”
The pink-haired pegasus blinked a little and smiled shyly. “N..no…”
“Then you’re the perfect pony for the job.” Spite told her, gesturing with her head for Luna and Twilight to follow her as she pushed the throne room doors open. “Plus, if I remember correctly, you’ve known her longer than any other pony. I’m sure the familiar face of Kindness would be the best possible sight to wake up to.”
><><
“Yes, yes, what do you want?” The slightly reedy and very querulous voice of the consul-general answered from the other side of his office door. “I’m busy, so this had best be important.”
“Consul Halia, it’s Princess Luna,” Luna replied through the door, a slight tensing of her expression the only way Twilight could tell that her aunt was annoyed at the griffin’s rudeness. “May we speak?”
There was a long pause that practically radiated consternation. “Oh… I… I apologize for my manner, Your Majesty,” he said, sounding subdued and more than just a little embarrassed. “I’ll unbar the door, just a moment.”
“Unbar the door?” Twilight repeated lowly.
“Griffins and dragons both prefer a working space that can be locked,” Luna explained lowly in return. “Still… I don’t remember it involving a bar…”
There was the sound of a bolt being drawn back and wood scraping against wood before the door fell open, revealing the visage of Consul Halia with a mildly curious expression. “Good afternoon Princess Luna, Lady Sparkle…” He paused as his eyes took in Spite. “…um, madame dragoness. What may I do for you?”
“We listened carefully to thy conversation with Our sister, Consul-General,” Luna replied as she stepped smoothly into the office, forcing the griffin to retreat a few steps, temporarily off-balance enough that he didn’t seem to notice Twilight and Spite entering on the alicorn’s heels. “And it’s Our belief that thou art concealing something of great import from both Her and Ourself. Clearly, thou felt unable to speak of it in open court, so We have come to the privacy of thy office to hear the truth from thou.”
Twilight had to stop herself from looking confusedly at her aunt. When did anypony mention anything about the consul hiding something? But then she got it: having put the consul off-balanced by stepping into his personal space, Luna was keeping him wrongfooted by asking a question he’d feel obligated to answer. She noticed that while Luna was holding the consul’s attention, Spite was edging gradually out of his peripheral vision, moving closer as she drifted towards a position where she’d be less noticed.
The consult studied Luna for several long moments before nodding briskly. “Your insight is very impressive, Your Majesty,” he replied, inclining his head with visible and sincere respect. “It’s a complex matter, related to provincial and court politics.”
“This diplomatic mission and renewing a settled complaint is meant to prove strength in counterbalance to…?”
“The provinces,” he replied. “Specifically, the six coastal… what exactly are you doing?”
Somehow, he’d noticed that Spite had been circling around him stealthily but, based on her stance, Twilight surmised that he’d noticed her too late to prevent her from doing whatever she intended to do. She was proven right a moment later when the dragoness appeared to flow at him, grasping his face in one palm, the claws digging in with great care to threaten his eyes with their razor-sharp tips without actually doing any harm. The dragoness shifted he body close against the griffin’s, effectively neutralizing his talons and their wicked claws by giving him too little room to move them, before using the hand gripping his face to very carefully, very gently, turn his shocked eyes to meet hers.
“I regret this necessity, Consul, but there are evil things stirring and we must know that they’ve not gotten their claws into you and sent you here,” she said lowly. “I will not harm you unless you resist so please, be still.” She turned her eyes away from him and Twilight twitched a little, seeing that the dragoness’ irises and pupils had vanished, making her eyes look to be entirely white. “Twilight, come closer and observe. It may be necessary for you to administer this test on your own soon.”
Twilight found herself unable to move, staring at the all-white of the dragoness’ eyes. Spite sighed. “Twilight, please. The longer I have to hold him still, the more likely he’ll be injured accidentally and I don’t want to accidentally harm someone who’s done nothing wrong.”
Twilight took a breath and forced herself out of it. “OK. Alright. Um… what does the spell do?”
“It creates a veneer over your eyes that allows you to see non-mortal things,” Spite replied, turning her gaze back to the clearly-frightened consul. “Have you ever attempted to study the sun using your telescope?”
“A few times.”
“Then you use special filters that obscure some of the rays so you can see the sun itself without damaging your eyes.”
“Yes.”
“Same principle here,” Spite told her. “The veneer, which to someone looking at you makes your iris and pupil appear to vanish, obscures mortal things. Like a living body, bones, physical structures, things of that nature. Now, watch.”
With that firm but gentle grasp, she centered her gaze on the consul’s eyes and stared unblinkingly. A small shudder went through him but he seemed to be strangely entranced by the white, featureless eyes he was staring into. Spite’s brow furrowed and her eyes moved slightly, seeming to follow something down the griffin’s neck towards his chest, before her expression turned sour and she closed her eyes, releasing him and stepping back. The consul remained frozen in the same position for a moment longer before he, too, blinked and looked hard at Spite.
“Satisfied?”
“No,” Spite growled, turning around, taking a step, swinging back around. “In the last day or so, have the Provinces received a pony visitor? Thin, almost emaciated, dirty blonde hair, white coat, carrying a large number of saddlebags, has some very strange speech mannerisms?”
The anger that the consul had been working himself up to visibly dissipated at the question. “In fact… yes. I seem to recall such a pony appearing just shortly before trouble came.”
“So she definitely arrived,” Twilight stated. “But how’d she get there so fast? You can’t even get to the Provinces in a day or less when riding a train.”
“I can get from here to the Provinces in five minutes if I know where I’m going,” Spite shrugged. “I was pretty sure that the moment Lashaal smashed that orb to unleash the klesae, she immediately jumped ahead to wherever she was going. This confirms it.” She sighed. “It also confirms that she’s getting help, lots of help and some of it uncomfortably professional.”
“What are you talking about?” Halia asked, starting to look mildly frightened. “Who’s Lashaal? What do you mean, you just confirmed that she’s getting help? Help to do what?”
“To harm your people and ours, Consul,” Luna told him gravely. “I don’t know what Myrilandel means that her quarry is getting professional, but I assume that it’s not a good thing.”
“It’s not.” Spite sighed. “But the most important thing I’ve learned is that Consul Halia is himself, fully and completely.”
“You thought I wasn’t?” The look of fright increased.
“I’m hunting quarry that can kill and then seize the body of the one she killed,” Spite told him. “And there may be many more of her kind about. We came here to ensure that you weren’t one such victim before we left to hunt Lashaal herself. I’m sorry we couldn’t warn you but…”
“…giving me fair warning if it wasn’t actually me would have endangered you,” he finished, the frightened look fading, the griffin visibly accepting it, internalizing it, then filing it away. Twilight recognized the process because it was one she utilized often to great effect, putting things aside for the moment so more immediate problems could be ameliorated. “Is there a defense?”
“Symbols of belief, as cliché as that might seem,” Spite replied. “Magical and will power are the two weapons a mortal has against being seized in that fashion, and a symbol of belief helps because it gives you something to focus that willpower on. There is, however, a passive defense that has proven to be effective.” From the leather case that had contained her letter of introduction from Amarra Drae’thul, Spite drew an intricately woven cross-shaped symbol on a necklace and offered it to the griffin.
“Yes, it resembles one of the symbols of belief, not that I expect you’ve seen the symbol this one resembles, but it’s actually a highly complex magical construct that has been bound to a physical form,” she explained as he gingerly accepted it. “It channels the magical presence of a goddess known as The Weaver and inherently repels things of the Void, such as the malevolent spirits that seize mortal bodies forcibly. You need not wear it around your neck; just keep it somewhere on you and it’ll work to protect you.”
“Is there a reason it’s this particular shape?”
“The Weaver tells me that she did it as a joke. She’s never told me who she was pranking, but it was apparently memorable enough that she kept this as her personal symbol.” She rolled her eyes, albeit with a slight smile. “There’re days when I think she’s not quite right in the head but she has a personality like Pinkie Pie’s—the mature considerate side, not the insane party pony side—and it’s well worth it to tolerate her oddities.”
“You speak of her like she’s just another acquaintance…” Twilight said, curiously.
Spite laughed. “Twilight, you were just being hugged by a sun goddess an hour ago and standing beside you is a moon goddess who, I’m told, thinks very fondly of you. Is it really that odd that I occasionally have tea and muffins with one?”
“I’m not a goddess, Myrilandel,” Luna told her with an amused look.
“Unusually powerful, well-nigh immortal, a specific role in the natural order,” Spite countered. “I realize the term is vastly more consequential to you than it is to me—I know a few dozen deities personally and of roughly a thousand others—but from my perspective, you’re the goddess of the moon and your sister is the goddess of the sun. And to be perfectly frank, Luna, there’re goddesses I’ve known personally that aren’t even half as beautiful as a teal-eyed, blue-violet coated, winged pegasus with a rather cute horn. For my bits, there’re plenty of places you’d be instantly declared a goddess just by sipping a glass of cider you’re holding with levitation magic.”
Luna blushed in a cutely pretty way and smiled. “Thank you, Myri. But back to business.” She looked at the consul. “I wish we could offer you evidence you could take to your people, Consul Halia, and warn them of what Lashaal is and her evil intentions towards griffins.”
“I wish there was as well, Your Majesty,” he replied with an inclination of his head. “I’m certain that your personal testimony and a demonstration from… Miss Myrilandel would be of great help but I can’t think of any other way.”
Twilight eyed him. “Why do you seem so willing to just… believe?” She asked. “What Myrilandel is telling you is sort of… fantastic and if I didn’t have another reason to trust her, I wouldn’t believe it. So why do you?”
He looked blankly at her. “Uh… what?”
Twilight’s brow furrowed and she looked hard at Spite whose brow was also furrowing in thought, giving the distinct impression that the dragoness hadn’t thought that the griffin suddenly believing her unquestioningly was at all unusual. Twilight made a mental note to ask her about it later before turning back to the confused consul. “What Myrilandel is claiming—invisible spirits floating around stealing bodies, a pony being actually an evil creature wearing some poor pony as a skin, this being a threat to the Provinces—is actually sort of unlikely. So why do you believe her?”
He closed his eyes and grimaced. “B... because… I believe…” He replied in a strained way. “Head… tells me she’s… she’s right… ugh…”
“Spite, what’s happening to him?” Luna asked sharply.
“I… I have no idea. I mean, I sort of do but… I’ve only heard about this sort of work, never seen it,” the dragoness replied as the consul grasped his head in his talons.
“…hurts… must believe… hurts…” He groaned as he sank towards the ground.
“Spite, what is this?” Luna demanded, punching the stunned-looking dragoness on the shoulder to get her attention.
“I… I think it’s a memory compulsion…” She stared as blood started dripping from one of his nostrils and an ear. “…oh, Weaver, the tripwire!”
“The what?”
“One of you, get some healers!” Spite replied, suddenly snapping out of her reverie. “Healers, especially ones that have experience with the mind.”
“Me,” Luna replied. “Dreamgazing, illusion, all related to the mind.”
Spite looked at her a moment. “Not quite, but it’ll do. Twilight, go get help; your aunt and I will do what we can for him.”
Twilight stared as blood started coming from the other nostril. Suddenly, she felt a clawed hand grasp her muzzle firmly and forcibly turn her head to look into the crystalline irises of the black-scaled dragoness. “Twilight, go.”
Twilight nodded and Spite let her go, turning back to the stricken griffin who was starting to moan with pain. “Now Luna… the moment I induce sleep…”
Those were the last words Twilight heard before the lavender of her own magic blinded her and sent her hurtling towards the nearest hospital—and, hopefully, help.
><><
“I cannot say zat I know griffin physiology vell, vut it appears zat zee consul has been stabilized, at least for now.” The unicorn doctor with a suture needle and image of a stitched-together wound on his flank fixed Spite with a severe look. “Although I have little experience treating the physical effects of psychic trauma.”
“That’s why I have a Princess on hoof, doctor,” Spite told him with a touch of amusement. “The Princess who has experience, at the very least, with dreams and other mental phenomenon.” She turned and looked admiringly at Luna, standing on the other side of the room and talking quietly with the Elements and her sister. “Who is, I might add, one of the most impressive goddesses I’ve seen in decades when it comes to her place in the natural order. Saved this griffin’s life and mind just as much as your excellent staff and with the unhesitating obedience of an experienced soldier.” She smiled a little, unconsciously lapsing into the harsh hissing sound of her native tongue. <Magnificent creatures, these ponies. Had I a year and a hundred of them just like the Elements and their patron goddesses, I could make this a world upon which armies would break like water. A shame Ersari and Elena couldn’t accompany me… hell, I’d even take that gloriously gauche girl that put down Phlyaxis like a rabid beast.> She sighed and shook her head wistfully. <Ah, good friends… battle is so hard and harsh when you can’t have your friends draw sword with you…>
“I… don’t know what zat means, miss.”
“Hmm?”
“Vut vas zee last thing you said?”
She waved a hand. “Nothing, doctor, don’t concern yourself with it. Just… feeling nostalgic, being reminded of some dear friends and missing them a bit.”
The doctor gave her a small smile. “It seems to me zat you have friends enough in zis room. Perhaps you should make yourself less lonely?”
She chuckled and shook her head. “I’ve known them for all of two days, the Princesses for a few hours at best. It’s quite early to be calling our relationship ‘friendship’, especially since I’m a virtual unknown to them.”
“Why not correct zat?”
Spite eyed him. “Why do you care?”
He shrugged. “I spend my every vaking moment concerning myself vith ze health and happiness of total strangers. Vut’s one more?”
“Fair enough,” she conceded. “So, if you had to make the call, how would you characterize the consul’s prognosis?”
“Excellent,” he replied. “I don’t have much experience in zis area, the physical effects of psychic trauma, but ze combination of your guidance and ze power of our beloved Moon Princess seem to have limited ze harm. I estimate another week until he can awaken safely.”
“At least he’ll live and be able to provide information later.” She nodded to the stallion. “Thank you, Doctor. If there’s any change, I’ll be here at least a few more days and the Princesses, who are also concerned for his welfare as a matter of state at the very least, are a constant presence.”
“You’re welcome, miss…?”
“Myrilandel,” Spite replied with a smile and a slight polite inclination of her head. The doctor turned to check the monitors on another patient and Spite took the opportunity to slip away and pad over to where the Elements and two Princesses were conversing lowly.
“…trust her, without any question now, but I’m beginning to think we need to insist that she be more forthright,” Luna was saying as Spite got within earshot. “What was it she said to you, Twilight? That she…?”
“…felt unable to tell me things until a bond of trust and friendship had been established,” Twilight filled in. “She was willing to risk being turned away if it meant keeping her secrets.”
“And although the situation has become somewhat more serious, that remains the case,” Spite said, causing several of them to jump slightly. “I wish to correct something, however: what I’m concealing are not secrets so much as a mix of private matters and information that would have done nothing but frighten you earlier. Now, you have some context upon which to base what I can tell you.”
“We’re listening,” Luna prompted with a motion of her hoof.
“The hospital room of the griffin consul-general is probably not the best place for this discussion, Your Majesty,” Spite replied with a gently chiding tone. “And before I tell you anything, I would prefer to see if it’s possible for all the Elements to hear my explanation.”
“You want to see if Rainbow Dash can be awakened.”
“Yes,” Spite confirmed. “But more than that, I want to face the results of my greatest failure thus far before moving on to the next stage of this game.”
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Wow, Twilight picked up on that pretty quick. I don't think anyone else would have noticed it. I know I almost didn't
1384781 Since someone has commented to me here that they despise Game of Thrones... is this a good thing or a bad thing?
1385107 Sort of par for the course when you're using a character that has had her intelligence relentlessly highlighted in canon.
“The Weaver tells me that she did it as a joke. She’s never told me who she was pranking, but it was apparently memorable enough that she kept this as her personal symbol.”
1386088 Oh, good, someone got it. ^_^
1386273
That was rather amusing, if I do say so myself.
Great chapter, by the way. I'm enjoying the rising tension in the story.
1414993 I hope the next one keeps the tension flowing in a proper way.
Who's Luan?
Nor did I suspect they'd be made aware so quickly. It was a smart move, but a very unexpected one. It's certainly messing with Franky's head.
Do you meet a lot of non-winged pegasi?
How strange, an enemy would hardly want people to believe Spite, yet I doubt her allies would use such a dangerous charm lightly. I also wonder whether it was targeted at the consul, or whether it was a blanket effect he was caught up in?
1385452
There are a lot of people who love that show, and a lot who hate it. It's probably fine as long they don't call it season 8.
her
11675965
I actually laughed out loud when I read this point. I entirely missed that when I wrote it, and I don't think anyone else has noticed it before you.
Aaand, check, thank you. :)