Burning Bridges
Not far from the city, Ember and Thorax managed to find a spot to land and brought Molly down safely. While they were relieved that they were safe from the chase, they were worried about Capper who was arrested by the police.
“This is perfect,” Ember growled. “It’s becoming FULL-ON CHAOS!”
“Ember, calm down,” Thorax pleaded.
“How am I supposed to, Thorax? We were hunted down, too far from home to fly, and the only ones who can get us back are captured! They arrested Capper for crying out loud, he had it!”
Molly, hidden behind Thorax’s legs, looked up at the changeling. “Are all dragons that angry?” the kitten asked.
“Most of the time,” Thorax answered. He glanced down at the lanes, seeing another police engine on patrol before he turned towards the Dragon Lord. “Why did you break into the coach like that?”
“Because I didn’t know what they were going to do to you, so I panicked! I just want to go home!”
“So do I, but we still need to fix the problem. We cannot leave this place unless we accomplish it.”
“I think they’re too far gone from saving.” Ember held her fingers between her eyes with anxiety.
“Well, you’re not helping with dragon stereotypes,” Molly proclaimed.
“Quiet, you little!” The kitten and dragon stared at each other and quarreled. Thorax had enough of the conflict and chose to break them up.
“Break it up!” the changeling ordered with fury. “We’re not gonna get anything done if we can’t solve what the big problem is. You can’t keep quarreling all the time, that’s not gonna help!” Molly and Ember fell in silence as Thorax breathed in and out after releasing his irritation. “Anyways. Ember, did you find anything that we haven’t known yet?”
“Well, I think I know what happened to Capper’s friends,” the dragoness explained. “One of them I think is the rich one, while the other is one of those cops with an eyepatch for some reason.”
“Officer Chummer?” Molly asked.
“Yeah, that’s the name Capper said was one of his friends,” Thorax noted. “I wondered what happened to his eye.”
“I’m more curious about what pulled us back to the ground,” Ember wondered. “There weren’t any airships around us, or any kind of cables or such.”
“Have you seen anything glowing?” Molly asked.
“I’m sorry?” Thorax asked.
“I thought there was something pink glowing around the king when you two crashed.”
“That sounds like a pony using…”. Ember paused as she and Thorax thought about what that glow could’ve been. “Hang on a minute, do you think it was his staff?”
“It was the same color,” Thorax said.
“If it helps, I haven’t seen anyone else hold it,” Molly noted. “I even assume some cats think it’s illegal, and magic is considered illegal here according to him.”
“Then I’m guessing that we need to get that staff,” Ember proclaimed. “Sounds like we’re about to expose the hypocrite.” She then glimpsed behind Thorax and Molly, seeing a figure leaping across the rooftops in the distance. “What’s that?”
Thorax and Molly turned around and saw the figure leaping from one building to another. Their eyes were glued to it as it leaped. As their eyes followed, they noticed another police engine rolling in the lane. It is the one that’s carrying Capper. The shadowy figure they saw was stealthily going after it. They were baffled.
“Where is it going?” Molly asked. “Why is it going after that cart?”
“I don’t know, but we must follow it,” Thorax declared. “Still, we have to be careful.” Seeing that they had no other leads, they decided to follow the figure. Molly hopped onto Thorax’s back and left together with Ember.
The police engine that carried Capper came to a stop at the train station. The con man was locked in a cell with officers Chummer and Max keeping a close eye on him. The chubby cat could tell something was up with his colleague. “You know this guy, right?” Max asked.
“…You could say that,” Chummer spoke. He was trying to keep his expression serious as they saw the coach being pushed into a shed.
“I gotta go and check if there’s a spare engine. If you have anything to say to him, do it now, I suggest.” Max left the damaged coach as Chummer glanced at his old friend, now behind bars.
“You couldn’t even at least make an effort to defend me?” Capper questioned, holding onto the iron bars.
“How? How should I?” Chummer asked, approaching Capper. “You were assaulted by the highest-ranked in the kingdom. I’m just a police officer, I can only do much.”
“Including apologizing to your best friend… who has never been seen by you in years… SO WHAT!?” They stood in silence. Capper’s expression altered and knelt while still holding onto the bars. As silence filled the air, they heard something light land on the roof of the coach.
Chummer sighed as he peeked out the window up to the roof. “I know you’re up there. Get inside.” A figure wrapped in black bandages with only its eyes and fluffy collar exposed leaped through the window joining the men inside of the coach.
“...Shadow, is that you?” Capper asked. The figure removed the bandages from her face to reveal she was their old friend.
“This isn’t how I expect us to be together,” Shadow sighed. Chummer then pulled out a seat for her to sit on, and Shadow sat down.”
“How did we… get to this point?” Chummer questioned.
“I kind of feel responsible for the incident,” Capper sighed.
“Cap, you can’t put yourself down like that,” Shadow noted. The three would sit in awkward silence for a moment until somebody stepped into the coach.
“Well, care to share with the rest of us?” asked the dragon. Shadow and Chummer looked back to see Ember, Thorax, and Molly had snuck inside.
“I feel like I should ask you all how you got past the police,” Capper commented.
“I… had to make a distraction,” Thorax admitted.
Outside, one of the police engines was rolling away with its crew chasing after it. “I told you to put the brakes on!” one cried.
“I swore I did,” the other cried, “I always forgot to take it off!”
Chummer chuckled at this as he remembered the first time he and Capper snuck out of the orphanage. “Oh, so you can smile,” Capper commented. Chummer rubbed the back of his head as this was likely the nicest thing that they had both said to each other.
“Alright, cut to the chase,” Ember proclaimed. “We’re being hunted down, we have no way of getting home by ourselves, and now your kind is super paranoid about us that they’re not hesitating to hurt a kitten.”
“I know, it’s a catastrophe,” Chummer admitted.
“What we want to know is what happened with all of you three,” Thorax noted. “How did you all fall out with each other?” The three cats glanced at each other before Chummer took off his hat and sighed.
“I… Uhh… I feel like some of us crossed the line more than others.”
Years ago when Capper, Chummer, and Shadow were in their late teens, they were forming a plan to get themselves free fish. At the outdoor market, they peeked through the corner and checked out a fish stand, where a vendor was arguing with a few customers. The three friends hid back and huddled up to go over their plan one more time.
“Okay, you know what to do, right?” Capper asked.
“Yep,” Shadow responded, “I’ll grab one of the crates while Chummer distracts the vendor.”
“And what will you do, Capper?” asked Chummer, who still had both of his eyes at this time.
“I spent all day yesterday making this plan,” Capper explained. “Besides, I could only figure out how to fit two of us into the plan and make it work.” Chummer turned over to Shadow, who shrugged in response. “Come on, let’s do this.”
“Right,” Shadow nodded as she hopped off their spot to get into her position. Capper went into hiding and Chummer approached the stand to begin their plan.
“Sorry, sir,” the male vendor said to a customer, “this ain’t going to convince me to give you this fish. Now go!”
“Excuse me, sir.” The vendor looked down and saw the young Chummer standing in front of him. “Could you tell me about some of your best fish?”
“Of course,” the owner responded. He took a minute to look at his newest customer, a little puzzled by his appearance. “Aren’t you… a little young to ask about my best?”
“Do you want any money?” The owner didn’t like the tone he was given but carried on with explaining the quality of his fish.
“Anyways, here I have this nice freshly caught tuna, straight right out of the sea. Costs 4 bits per kilo. Yes, sir! And here we have what they called a milkfish, which I have no idea why except it is as white as milk. 6 bits per 3. And… we got a bunch of anchovies…”
As he speaks, Shadow, wrapped in black bandages, snuck around the stand and looked towards one of the crates he had behind him. She tiptoed stealthily and carefully as there was melted ice surrounding it. Cold and slippery. It’s common sense that ice is a way to make fish fresh. She was about to grab it, until she accidentally stepped on a chunk of ice, making an audible crunching sound. The vendor heard it and was about to turn around, making both Chummer and Shadow worry until something broke the leg of the stand, knocking most of the fish on display onto the ground. “Who did that!?”
“Don’t look at me, I’m standing right here,” Chummer responded. He began to help clean up the mess while Shadow took one of the crates without the vendor noticing. She snuck away as Chummer helped to push the leg back into place.
“As if I don’t have to worry about any con cats already.”
“You’ve dealt with them before?” Chummer asked.
“Ah yes. I’ve seen most working in groups. More often than not the low-tier ones always backstab each other.”
Chummer was a little nervous about hearing that. “How often does that happen?”
“It’s usually cats thinking they know better than their leader or the latter gets too greedy and throws his or her team under the rock.”
Chummer was feeling like he might’ve been in this situation though after hearing about his experience. He glanced back to Capper, who gave a thumbs up to signal that the job was complete. “Um… I think I need to go now, sir. Sorry about your stand.” The teenage Chummer ran off, leaving the salesman to salvage what he could of his stand.
After getting a few blocks away for their safety, the trio met up again to look at their reward for the fresh fish in the crate. The three were looking at their reward. “Alright! We’re having a feast tonight, guys,” Capper proclaimed.
“Okay, that was a simple job,” Shadow admitted, “But you should pull your weight, Cap.”
“It was a simple job, Shadow. I feel that I’d get in the way other than the leg I knocked out.”
“Yeah… You sure I couldn’t just kick it out of place?” Chummer questioned.
“We had to make it look like an accident.”
“Like with that coffee pot that just happens to have a broken coupling?”
“Yeah. I told you the file would work.”
“You nearly got us caught.”
“I can’t fit a chain cutter in my pockets, Chummer. We’ve got to use what we’ve got.”
“You both have points,” Shadow noted, “But you still have to be careful, Cap.”
“I know.” By the tone of his voice, Chummer wasn’t sure he truly meant what he said. “Let’s get this somewhere we can cook it.” The three cats took their new fish to get it cooked as Chummer thought about what the salesman said.
Further away from the scene, as they carried the crate of fish, they had to pause for a while to regain their energy since it was a bit heavy. Chummer broke out of his trance when he noticed a group of strange things in the sky. His eyes narrowed. “Guys…” he raised his voice. “Look!” He swiftly pointed his finger up, and Capper and Shadow turned in the direction where he was pointing. Their jaws dropped as they saw those huge objects Chummer was glancing at. Swarms of dark-colored airships hover up the atmosphere, with dark clouds turning the sky from light aqua blue to dark gray. They don’t appear to be the royal airship because their colors were supposed to be vibrant blue and golden yellow.
“Is the king having a special event?” Shadow asked.
“I don’t know,” Capper said, “Don’t these ships look… intimidating?” He wouldn’t be too far off as multiple huge cannons appeared out of the side of the ship. In a short moment, it began shooting cannonballs straight toward Panthera. It was so loud that they had to cover their ears. One after another, each cannonball destroyed every structure in sight causing chaos in every corner. Petrified screams were heard from afar.
The trio became horrified seeing the disaster unfold throughout the city. They soon saw humongous creatures with spears jumping down from the ships, 4 of them landed in front of the trio with a big strike on the ground sending waves of vibrations colliding with the teens’ bodies, almost making them collapse. They saw them up close, towering over them with their metal armor and sharp deadly spears, with their creepy blue glowing eyes staring right at the cats.
Capper, Chummer, and Shadow shivered in fear.
“R… R…. R……” Caper stuttered. “RUUUUUN!” The three screamed and sprinted away from the yetis, which quickly gave chase.
Panthera quickly dove into disarray as explosions ignited and destroyed several buildings, including the ones Shadow and the boys ran past. They saw burning coaches, fallen debris, and bodies of horribly-injured young and adult cats pleading for help. It’s getting worse.
“Watch out!” Chummer cried. He and Capper dragged their paws to a stop as giant rubble and debris collapsed in front of them. Shadow didn’t have much trouble as she simply parkoured over the debris and continued onwards. However, this action and their panic got her and the boys separated when they were forced to run in different directions.
“Great, where’s she?” Capper questioned. “GAH!” The yetis were still jumping down from the ships and creating havoc. Capper and Chummer barely managed to get away from them as they ran toward the train station.
“Wait, what about Shadow!?” Chummer exclaimed.
“She’s smart, so she’s assumably getting a ride to escape too!” The residents were running away to escape or for cover. Trains were filled to the brim trying to escape. One train was so full, they needed another engine to help push it out of the station just as the boys arrived.
“Dang it! It’s full!” Chummer groaned as the train drove away at full capacity. They both looked up and saw something fall from one of the ships. Capper and Chummer ran away just in time as an explosion ignited, wiping out all of the stations, buildings, platforms, and even the tracks were torn up from the blast. The passengers who were left at the station were even wiped out as well, becoming either seriously injured or completely dead. Both boys had their ears ringing from the deafening blast as they didn’t have a way of getting out of the city “What do we do? There are too many of them!”
Capper frighteningly and panicky searched for some kind of escape. Thankfully, he saw one of the medium-sized ships landing where the station used to be. It looked like everyone was abandoning the ship for some reason, which was just what Capper was looking for.
“Follow me! Quickly!” Capper cried. He ran towards the ship with an uncertain Chummer trying to keep up.
“What about Shadow?” he asked.
“She has to worry about luck. We need to get out of here if we need to stay alive and find her!” The boys’ luck would be in their favor as the ship was abandoned. They quickly entered the ship and headed towards the deck. It took a while for them to search for it since it was enormous compared with their height. They arrived, and not wasting a second to question it, they began fiddling buttons and levers to make it go up. None of them seemed to function.
“Which one starts!?” Chummer panicked.
Capper then headed towards the steering wheel and randomly pushed a lever beside it. Soon, they heard the engine running and noticed that they were elevated into the air. “I got it!” he cheered, with another distant explosion ignited.
As the ship elevated, Chummer and Capper peeked out of the window and saw the tremendous destruction of Panthera caused by the unknown enemy. The skies turned dark red from the flames, thick ashes rose, lots and lots of explosions were seen, and the sounds of faint cries of the victims were heard. Chummer could’ve sworn he heard them.
“We’re… We’re leaving?”
“We’re flying. Maybe we should start buying lottery tickets.” They quickly made their way back, and Chummer accidentally tripped over a small chest, making it tumble and open by itself. Fortunately, he didn’t collapse completely. Out of the chest are arbitrary clothes, including a red trench coat.
Gripping the steering wheel, despite his age and not knowing how to drive. Capper began sailing away from the devastation. Chummer watched as his friend tried to steer their way away from Panthera. He looked back as they were slowly leaving the city as he was getting worried about Shadow.
“Capper, we can’t leave Shadow behind!”
“But there’s no way we can help her with all of those monsters attacking. They blew up the station for crying out loud! It’s survival of the fittest right now.” As Capper spun the wheel to steer them away, Chummer clenched his fist in anger and charged toward his friend with a holler, and decked him in the face.
“No! We’re going back!”
“OW! Chummer, what are you…?”
“What kind of friend are you if you leave Shadow behind!?” The two fought over the steering wheel before Capper was given a kick in the gut, making him recoil before he stumbled over the chest, the one where the teach coat was.
“How on earth are we supposed to fight them? We’re better if we flee to get help and…”
“Stop saying WE!” Chummer violently steered the ship, making it rock side to side. Capper struggled to keep his balance as the chest and clothes slid along.
“Look, buddy, why are you doing this?”
“Why? You’re always making us do the dirty work! You do not care if we don’t get caught as long as you get what you want!”
“Chummer, please! Think about the fun we had. Exploring Panthera, and tricking other cats…”
“By stealing from them? What happens if we get older and are put into jail? How will we live? I’m not going to wait until you throw me under the rock!”
“Chummer, you’re not making any…”
“GET OFF!” With one mighty swing, Chummer spun the wheel all the way to the right, knocking Capper overboard with the clothes and chest following right behind him. Luckily, for him, he landed on a lifeboat, which activated its small balloon and heater when he landed in it. Unfortunately, the chest knocked Capper out, leaving the lifeboat with no one steering it.
Chummer wouldn’t have that much luck either as he collided with another ship flying into Panthera. The crew on the ship he hit jumped clear with their parachutes, but Chummer wouldn’t be so lucky. His ship would start plummeting and crash to the ground, just entering the city’s borders, knocking out Chummer, which would be buried in the remains of the ship, and making a scar right on his eye.
Capper and Chummer felt terrible as they explained that part of their story. The visitors were just as speechless. “No! You were seriously going to leave Shadow behind?” Thorax asked.
“Yes,” Capper admitted. “Until now, it was one of the worst decisions I made in my life and it cost me everything. The next thing I remember, after falling into that small boat, was that I woke up in Kludgetown. I swore I broke my tailbone, but… It was terrible. I had to trick others all the time there to pay rent.”
“...Kludgetown?” Shadow asked. “Was that a thing?”
“It’s a run-down town in the middle of the desert. It’s every creature for themselves out there. …The same method I was planning during that attack…”
“...Of the Storm King.” Thorax finished.
The Abyssinians turned towards the changeling and dragon in surprise. “You’ve heard about him?” Chummer asked.
“Our friend, Novo, knows too much about him,” Ember said. “She would know how you feel about losing someone you love.”
“I… guess he affects more lives than us,” Capper sighed.
“You don’t know the half of it, Capper,” Chummer said. “We managed to fight off the Storm King before he could fully take over Abyssinia, but he left his mark. Cities had to be rebuilt from the ground up, and several kittens were left without their parents.”
Thorax glanced down at Molly, who looked a little concerned. “So… does that include… mine?” she asked.
Chummer sighed as the others looked away in awkwardness. “Sorry, kid. You were only a few months old when he attacked and…” Chummer couldn’t even finish his sentence as he was feeling at his lowest point. Molly’s ears drooped as she didn’t know what to think. Thorax simply sat down and gently hugged her to give them some comfort.
“I’m sorry you all had to go through with everything,” Thorax said. “Now I understand why you’d be paranoid about us.”
“We’re just afraid of things we don’t understand,” Chummer sighed.
The mood of the room felt very depressing until Ember had to point something out. “Uhh… Not to make things worse here,” the Dragon Lord noted, “but I feel that history is repeating itself.”
“What do you mean, Ember?” Thorax asked.
“Think about it. The Storm King attacks with no mercy and doesn’t do what you have to say in the matter. Now, think about this, who has this city under a tight curfew? Who has all of the weapons? Who is attacking us without letting them explain themselves?”
The cats in the coach thought about this as they could see some things were pretty similar to the Storm King’s strategy. “She’s not entirely wrong,” Shadow commented. “They are… pretty similar.”
“But the forces aren’t blowing up buildings and ruining lives.”
“The building part, maybe not. But why would one need someone, especially for taking down dragons like you?”
“Who are you talking about?”
“Someone said somebody about Shiela?”
Capper was just as confused as Ember, but Chummer was a little worried. “Oh no… You three need to leave Panthera. Like… right now!”
“What do you think we’ve been trying to do?” Ember blurted.
“Care to catch us up to speed?” Capper requested.
“Shiela isn’t really an Abyssinian. Capper might be fine, but you two have to beat it.”
Before either dragon or changeling could give their input, they heard someone call out, “What are they doing here!?” More police had shown up, not pleased to see Ember or Thorax.
“Welp, if you say so,” Thorax remarked to Chummer’s warning. He and Ember took off, breaking through the glass at the end of the coach with the police getting to their engines to follow them. Once they were gone, Chummer faced his locked-up friend and revealed his keys.
“I might regret this later,” he sighed, “But I have a feeling things are going to get ugly real quick.”
Ember and Thorax flew across Panthera as fast as they could. “How are we supposed to get out of here without an airship?” the dragon asked.
“Who knows,” Thorax admitted, “I’m more worried about what they were saying about Shiela. If she’s not like them, who is she?” On cue, a giant bullet missed them by an inch and stopped. Looking down to see where it came from, they saw a big cannon on wheels being pushed by a big tank engine.
The canon and engine were being piloted by the three guards Ember met earlier. The cobalt one was in the cab shoveling coal into the furnace, the aqua one was controlling the engine with a special system inside of the cannon car, and the indigo one was the one aiming at the unwanted so-called beasts. “Let’s go, Shiela!” the indigo cat howled, “the only good magic is the type that is a vanishing trick!”
They fired another shell at the., who dodged it and started flying around to make themselves harder to hit. “Looks like we now know what Shiela is,” Thorax cried.
“Very good, Thorax,” Ember said sarcastically. “How do we deal with that thing without killing anyone?” She glanced down at where the three guards would be. “Despite how tempting it is.”
Thorax thought quickly for a moment. Immediately, he had an idea. “I got it! What if we fly down to street level? They wouldn’t dare hurt any citizens, would they?”
“Do your plan, I’ll follow.” The two flew down to the streets with the railgun still following them.
“Aw, great, they’re too close to the buildings,” the cobalt guard groaned. “We can’t fi…”
“Fire in the hole!” the indigo guard cried. Despite the dangers, the aqua and indigo guards didn’t let up on Ember and Thorax. They kept shooting and shooting to get them but failed.
“Come on, punch it,” the indigo guard cried.
“It’s on full throttle!” the aqua guard stated. “Keep your aim steady, we got one shot.”
The cobalt guard didn’t feel them slowing down at all. “What the heck are they doing? We need to stop.” He tried to brake the train to a stop, but the aqua guard kept opening the throttle.
The indigo guard would have a harder time keeping his aim until he finally thought he had a good shot. “Fire in the hole!” he proclaimed. He fired one more shell at Ember and Thorax. Fortunately, they dodged it, only scraping their feet. However, it found a new target and obliterated two of the pillars holding up the bridge at the Pantherian Station.
There was a large moment of silence as they all stared at what had happened to the bridge.
“Oh no…”
A few moments later, a few police engines showed up, including one containing Max and King Meowmeow. “What is the meaning of this?” the king gasped.
The guards got out of the engine and looked toward the police. “Not my fault,” the indigo guard proclaimed, “Somebody put a bridge in my way.”
“You destroyed a bridge!” Max proclaimed. “If there was anybody on it, who knows how many would get killed.” A bit of argument started with Ember and Thorax watching from above.
“Should we tell them we’re still here?” Ember asked.
“Nope,” he replied. “Best to wait for them to settle.” This would be the least of their worries. With the two pillars, the bridge began to crumble. Everyone soon knew what was going to happen next. This included Capper, Chummer, Shadow, and Molly, who had just shown up in one of the spare engines.
“That’s not good,” Capper said. “Good thing all trains have been canceled, right?” He’d be proven wrong by the sound of a whistle, one that seemed to be getting closer.
“Oh no!” Shadow gasped. “The Sunset Service!”
A few miles away from the city, a passenger train filled to the brim was bucketing down the line. It passed by the last signal before the station, meaning there was no chance of it stopping in time. Everyone at the disaster knew what would happen if the train tried crossing the bridge.
Thorax could see what was going to happen and dove into action. “What are you doing?!” Ember cried.
“They’re at stake now!” Thorax cried. Without hesitation, he flew under the bridge, changed his form into a dragon, and held up what remained of the bridge. The Abyssinians were surprised by what he was doing. Max, however, could see that he was trying to help save the train, so he jumped in to help keep the bridge up, but it wasn’t easy. Ember rolled her eyes as she flew down to hold up the crumbling bridge as Capper and his gang were making their own plans.
“Is there anything we can do to help?” Capper asked.
“If they’re keeping the bridge supported, we can catch up with the train and warn the driver to speed up,” Chummer said.
“Won’t that cause the bridge to collapse?” Molly asked.
“Not if they pass over it faster,” Capper noted. “Shadow, do you think you can hop on the train and warn the crew?”
“As long as you two can get this engine moving,” Shadow proclaimed. “I’m in!”
“Perfect,” Chummer commented, “Capper, you scoop the coal to the furnace. Shadow, you do your thing. Molly…” He paused as he picked the kitten up and placed her on the sidewalk. “Stay put, understand?” She just simply nodded. “Okay, let’s roll!” The trio hopped back on their tank engine and took off.
Capper struggled a bit to shove the coal into the furnace as Chummer gave a quick explanation of how to keep the boiler filled with water. Shadow pulled herself onto the cab’s roof and kept herself steady as they were entering the main line. “I see the express!” she called pointing to the Sunset Service.
Chummer slammed on the breaks, nearly making Shadow lose her footing. They started backing the engine up just as the express started to approach them. While they weren’t at matching speed, Shadow took the risk and leaped onto one of the coaches, sticking the perfect landing.
“Alright, it’s up to fate now,” Chummer noted.
“We’re not done yet,” Capper said. “Keep this engine rolling to the bottom of the bridge. There’s one thing I have to be sure about.” A little bit confused, Chummer listened to his old friend and headed back to the town tracks.
Shadow ran to the front of the train and jumped onto the tender and slid into the cab, surprising the crew. “How did you get in here?” the fireman questioned.
“No time to explain,” Shadow stated, “You need to speed up. The bridge you’re about to pass is about to fall. It’ll take this train out if we’re on it.” The driver understood the severity of the situation and set the accelerator to full speed. “Warn the passengers as well.”
“On it!”
Back at the bridge, Max, Ember, and Thorax were struggling to keep the bridge up. It was more than just strength, since more cracks showed up, meaning there were places they had to keep supported. Max would’ve asked them queries if he didn’t have to put all of his focus on the bridge. Then they heard the train approaching. “Brace yourselves!” he cried.
The Sunset Service came rocking towards the bridge. As it raced across, the three creatures could feel the weight doubling. It was hurting their muscles. Once the last coach was off, Thorax swiftly pushed Max out of the way as Ember held the bridge. This allowed him and Thorax enough time to get out of the way before the bridge finally collapsed. Huge clouds of dust came out rising.
Everyone saw the remnants of the bridge. Just then, Ember climbed out of the rubble. “Just a reminder, this was on your guys,” the dragon stated.
Thorax changed back to his base form to help check on Max. “Are you okay, sir?” the changeling asked.
“I think so,” Max responded, dusting himself off. “Th… Thanks.”
Chummer and Capper soon returned with the engine just as the king stepped forward. “Gentlemen, take those creatures away.”
“Excuse me!?” Ember yelled. “How many cats did we save?”
“Hard to say depending on the coaches,” Max noted. “Did anyone count how many there were?”
“Fifteen,” answered Shadow. She had just run back after the train came to a stop. She hopped down onto the street to stand with Ember and Thorax. “These two have saved hundreds of lives. And you’re just gonna throw them in jail for their heroism?”
The king was going to speak up if it wasn’t for the fact he felt something bite him on the tail. Looking back, he could see Molly sinking her teeth into him. “What gives you little twat!?” he exclaimed.
“Leave my friend alone!” Molly proclaimed. She quickly ran over to Thorax and hugged his leg.
“You dare bite your king and befriend a…”
“It’s one thing to attack creatures you know nothing about,” Thorax raised, “But if you even think about hurting your own kind, let alone a child like Molly, I’ll show you what a changeling can do.” He looked down at Molly, both of them smiling at each other.
Chummer and Capper were watching from the engine’s cab, not impressed with the king’s attitude. “I’m starting to believe he and the Storm King might not be too different,” Chummer admitted.
Capper didn’t respond, instead, he was looking at the gem on the tip of the staff. “I’m going to do something stupid, but I hope it works out for me,” Capper explained. He sprinted out of the cab towards the king. Before anyone could react, Capper tackled Meowmeow and snatched the staff out of his claw.
“Guards! Officers! Arrest…” Before he could say anything else, Capper held the staff high which had the pink gem glow. Meowmeow suddenly started floating into the air, and so did the guard and police.
Everyone just stopped and stared at what was going on. Chummer decided to walk forward and break the silence by proclaiming, “You hypocrite! The first time you showed me the staff, I knew that you broke your own rule.”
“Have you had the magic staff the entire time?” Max questioned.
“I don’t have a hard time believing it,” Shadow admitted.
Ember leaned closer to Thorax. “Didn’t the Storm King have a staff like that?” she whispered.
“Yeah, one that stole the magic from the alicorns,” Thorax answered.
“What’s an alicorn?” Molly asked.
King Meowmeow could see all eyes were on him. He gave a nervous chuckle as he tried to explain himself. “I was trying to fight…. Fire with fire?” he said, not too confident. Capper then brought King Meowmeow closer face-to-face with the magic from the staff.
“And that’s not the only thing I want to know about,” Capper noted. “I haven’t been back here in Abyssinia for years. I know for a fact that there are laws you’ve implemented that weren’t there during my early days. Have you enforced any restrictions that were extreme like the 10:00 pm curfew?”
“I…. Any suspicious activities related or similar to magic would be integrated.”
“9 times out of 10 subspecies were innocent,” Chummer spoke, and he turned to Ember and Thorax giving them a wink
“What about those of the ten?” Ember asked.
“They were guilty of something else!” the king shouted.
“Which means it’s a useless regulation that constantly makes creatures like you mad with power,” Capper guessed.
“You don’t know half of it.”
“And I’m guessing there’s a trainload of other regulations that make things worse but keep Your Highness in control.”
“I swear, my goal is to keep this country safe from any domestic threats and terrorism!” King Meowmeow proclaimed. “You all saw the horrors that the Storm King did. Millions of lives were claimed, including children! I cannot let it happen within my reign!”
“You didn’t have to go so far, Your Majesty,” Thorax noted.
“He’s not wrong,” Shadow commented. “He went overboard a bit but…. did have a good reason to be terrified.”
“Exactly, thank you,” Meowmeow noted. “Now, please put me down?” Capper just rolled his eyes as he lowered the king, guards, and the police back to the ground safely.
“Oh my gosh that was awesome!” the indigo cat cheered. “I want to do it again!”
King Meowmeow stood up and reached for his staff, but Capper pulled it back as he wasn’t done. “Hold on, I know this would complete your look,” Capper proclaimed, “but we have a couple of demands.”
“What do you want?”
“For starters, we’d like you to release all of the ponies you arrested, so my friends can get home.”
“I’m guessing you want the ship too?”
“Well duh, of course. Not only that, we should tell everyone else the truth about foreign creatures. Right?”
“Yep,” Ember and Thorax agreed.
“I’m sure they can also give more details about ponies and others too. Not to mention… could you give my old pals some solids too?”
“Are you kidding me?” Meowmeow questioned.
“I’m with him on this,” Chummer said.
“I’m holding onto mine,” Shadow added. “...just in case.”
“…Fine,” King Meowmeow groaned. “You two can name… whatever favor you want.”
“Much obliged,” Capper said. “And…. are we missing anything else?”
“Nope, we’re good,” Ember responded. Capper smiled as he handed the annoyed king back his staff.
A little later, the lockdown was lifted and a team had been sent to help tidy up the broken bridge. The guards were also there since they were responsible for the incident.
Not too far away, Ember, Thorax, and the Abyssinians were watching the scene unfold. “I keep wondering how those guards get hired,” Chummer admitted.
“I think they went too far with quantity over quality,” Capper guessed.
“So, what happens now?” Ember questioned.
“There’s going to be some major delays given that the bridge is out,” Shadow noted.
“Not that, I was talking about our mission.”
“Usually, some parts of our bodies will start glowing again, like our friend Spike did,” Thorax explained.
“I feel like it might be about me,” Capper said. This was a little perplexing to his old friends.
“Cap, you already made up for the mistakes you made,” Chummer said. “If anything, I’m the one who ruined everything. I crashed the ship which caused you to get lost, and a scar on my eye, and…. I deserved everything Shadow said.”
The said cat then faced her friends before looking at Molly. “I’d… rather not say around her,” Shadow noted, “but I was furious when I heard about it.”
“I can’t say I didn’t deserve it,” Chummer admitted with his eyes filled with tears. “I wish we had a redo of that event, Capper. We would’ve still been able to grow up together… happily.”
Capper simply nodded as the past still left a pretty big scar. “It could’ve been a blessing in disguise,” Capper noted, “I helped make a plan that took out the Storm King.”
“No!”
“Oh yeah. One of his best soldiers was the one who took him out.”
“Wow! That is something I would love to see.”
“Yeah. I swore those pirates kicked his head like a pawball.”
“Pirates?” Chummer, Shadow, and Molly questioned.
“Yeah, there were these guys called the avians gliding this airship to find treasure. They also took revenge on the Storm King.”
“Ooh! I wish we could meet them,” Shadow noted.
“Yeah, they were fun to be with, but I wish I could’ve been with you two for stuff like the wedding.” Shadow looked a little guilty when she heard that Chummer decided to inform his formerly lost friend about something.
“I wasn’t invited to it after the ship crashed.” Capper then rubbed the back of his head, feeling like he shouldn’t have said that.
“I know how you all feel, wishing to turn back the clock,” Thorax noted. “I spent most of my childhood not doing what changelings did when we used to look like this.” He shapeshifted into what changelings used to look like, surprising them a little bit.
“That’s what you used to look like?” Molly asked.
“Yes. We always hunted for love to feed on… literally. That was until with the help of my good friends, the former queen was dethroned.”
“Dethroned for a good reason,” Ember noted. “Times are different now.” Thorax smiled before changing back into his normal form and nuzzling against his girlfriend, who only cracked a smile as she was still getting used to showing their affection in public.
“Wait, you two are a couple?” Chummer questioned.
“Yeah, any issue with that?”
“No, it’s just… Never mind.”
“I’d assume some like you would have a hard time with changes,” Capper commented. “I did plan on moving in with one of the ponies after we helped each other out with the Storm King.”
“You’re already planning on moving there?” Shadow raised. “We just got reunited.”
“I know. It’s just…. I’m figuring out what to do after I leave Kludgetown. But hey, life keeps finding ways to make events interesting, huh?”
“Understatement of the century,” Chummer commented. “Nonetheless, it’s great to see you again, Capper. Still friends?”
Capper just simply smiled and just said, “Best friends.” The Abyssinian trio soon shared a group hug after being separated for so many years.
Suddenly, as they separated themselves from the hug, Capper’s whiskers started to glow again, much to the shock of Chummer and Shadow. They saw the same thing happening with Ember’s horns and Thorax’s wings.
“Yes!” Ember cheered.
“What’s going on?” Molly asked.
“It means that it’s time for us to go home,” Thorax sighed. This was a bit of a disappointment to them. “Mission accomplished.”
“Look, I’m going to work things out with the princess of Equestria,” Capper stated. “Maybe we can try and make a deal with foreign kingdoms after they start getting along. Maybe have some tourists for the F.R.N.” He winked at Shadow.
“Oh, Cap,” Shadow chuckled, “You always know a trick to get rich.” The two of them shared a high-five before Chummer spoke up.
“Once you get settled in Pony Land, make sure to write a letter to us.”
“I will.” They soon heard a whistle and looked to see an engine waiting for the three visitors.
“We’ll put in a good word for you all,” Ember informed.
“Thank you,” Chummer said, “And we’ll vouch for you if someone attempts to make up clichés about you being mindless monsters.” Ember gave a thumbs up as she and Capper headed to the coach.
Thorax was about to go as well, but Molly held his hind leg tight to stop him. “Please stay for a moment?” the yellow kitten pleaded with kitty eyes.
“Sorry, Molly,” Thorax apologized, squatting down on her level. “I have to go. There’s still more for me to do. It’s nice meeting you though. I’m happy that you had that amazing adventure you experienced with me.”
“Will you come again soon?”
Thorax smiled. “I will. I promise.”
Molly then gave him the final hug, knowing that this might be the last time she met him. So, Thorax headed back to the coach so they could get to the airship and go home. The whistle blew and the train rolled onto the tracks.
Molly felt upset and sad seeing her first friend leave. She now has to wait for her ride back to the orphanage. However, for Chummer, he has a plan for her.
A few weeks went by after the visit, the bridge of Panthera was almost fully rebuilt and there was talk about old myths of magical creatures being put to rest. Molly, meanwhile, had started acting differently since she met Thorax. She hadn’t attempted to escape since then and she hadn’t tried irritating any of the others. While the caretakers were happy Molly had calmed down, they were concerned about her.
One day, Chummer arrived at the orphanage. He was reminiscing about the simpler times he and his friends had during those times. With certainty, he knocked on the door, and a female caretaker came out.
“Excuse me, sir,” she said, “May I help you?”
“Oh, yes,” Chummer responded. “My apologies, I was taking a trip down memory lane. I used to stay in this orphanage.” As he was taken inside. Several kittens saw Chummer, and they were a little scared about his eye patch and scars.
“Pardon me, sir,” the caretaker said, “I’ve seen you around the block once or twice. No offense, but you don’t seem to be the fatherly type.”
“I’ve… had a rough couple of years due to personal issues. I recently got them sorted out and I heard that one of the kittens here was in a similar position to myself.” The caretaker raised an eyebrow. “She’s a bright yellow kitten named Molly. Do you know where she is?”
The caretaker paused a little bit before she answered. “She’s been pretty quiet lately. We’ve been figuring out what was wrong.”
“I know the reason. Can I speak to her?”
The caretaker nodded. “Right this way.” She took the officer outside, where there was a playground still standing. There, they saw Molly sitting by herself on the swing set. “There she is.”
“Thank you.” Chummer then approached her, remembering the time that he and Capper got stuck up there. He then focused his attention on the glum kitten and sat on the swing beside her. Molly looked up and recognized him.
“Hello,” she said meekly.
“Hey, kid. You seem quieter than usual. My buddy Max was kind of worried about you.”
“Everyone is worried about me. It’s just like when I tried escaping.” She sighed as she looked down at her feet.
“I’m not sure if anyone asked this but… Why have you been trying to escape?”
“...All I want to explore more of the world and… maybe find my parents one day.” She sounded a bit somber saying that after she heard about them when she was in the coach.
“I’m afraid that won’t be easy, kid. They’re… in a different world…”
“You can just say they’re gone. I remember what you said about the Storm King.”
“...It never gets easier telling anyone about this. I’m sorry you had to have this kind of life, Molly. I know how it is.”
“...You do?”
“Yes. I grew up in this very orphanage for most of my childhood. I made best friends. We hit a rough patch but… it’s all in the past.”
“I saw you made amends with your friends and the glowing whiskers. Why are you here?”
“Because I want to help give you a real shot at life. It wasn’t too bad for me and my pals living here, but our social circle was low. And… we didn’t have that much of a parental figure growing up, something I think you deserve.”
Her head raised and her eyes broadened. “You mean it?”
“Yes. I understand you want to be something more, and I want to help you. I want to make sure you don’t make the same mistakes I did.” Molly thought about what Chummer said, realizing she didn’t connect with anyone else until she met Thorax. She smiled, simply stood up, and faced the officer.
“I’m ready,” she said.
“Alright. Let’s sign some papers, and it’ll be official.” The two head back to the building as Molly reached up for Chummer’s paw, which he held onto as they went to complete her adoption.
Also LikedSimilarAuthor
- AugieDog · 9.2k words · 62 1 · 1.2k views
- Lets Do This · 47k words · 210 3 · 3.2k views
- Matthais Unidostres · 11k words · 51 1 · 2.2k views
- Raptormon132 · 5.1k words · 123 4 · 8.2k views
- MarlonCalpe4000 · 38k words · 117 21 · 5.6k views
- Lovesick-Ded · 61k words · 29 1 · 1.4k views
- Bicyclette · 2.5k words · 232 13 · 3.2k views
- daOtterGuy · 11k words · 49 2 · 612 views
Stats
Page generated in 0.062 seconds
Total duration
1,042 users online
2,136,869 hits today, 2,205,040 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
I wouldn't say that we just need to come up with another plan
How the world did he know that was shadow I guess throughout his younger years he noticed her pattern
Ha you got to love the puns 😄
Their jaws dropped as they saw those huge objects Chummer was glancing at. Swarms of dark-colored airships hover up the atmosphere, with dark clouds turning the sky from light aqua blue to dark gray. They don’t appear to be the royal airship because their colors were supposed to be vibrant blue and golden yellow.
Oh shoot it's the Storm King and the army
“Why? You’re always making us do the dirty work! You do not care if we don’t get caught as long as you get what you want!”
Ohhh I kind of guess that's what breaks the bonds between him and chummer and probably shadow
Yeah that's actually pretty cold man so not cool 😕
Boy that sounds like griffonstone
I mean he did try to conquer Canterlot I'm even imprisoned the other ponies
Are they crazy they're going to get these people killed especially their own kind
11574220
Yea it is, but this is 'survival trumps morals', first survive the event then seek ... harsh but even harder to do in reverse ...
Yeah you tell him thorax
Yeah basically Deja Vu back in season 5 when Starlight broke her own rule about the cutie mark I had to bring up old runed
Yep it was fizzle Pop berry twist
Out of all of the characters of “My Little Pony: The Movie,” Capper Dapperpaws is my favorite. He seemed to have the most interesting backstory out of the movie origin comics.
Yeah I did remember reading the comic it had a pretty interesting backstory of his younger years before we know him right now it's a pretty sad one but at least now we know why he's like that
Ok wow that was a pretty awesome story so ember thorax and Molly need to figure out what to do now since escaping is out of the question and they need to save capper but before then they saw shadow sneaking into the carriage where capper is and apparently Chummer knows she's nearby so it looks like they are about to open up what happened to them and apparently in the past the Storm King attacked their Homeland and all three of them had to get out of there but they Shadow got separated from the other two and Chummer was worried about her but capper wanted to escape before they get killed thinking that she'll be okay but Chummer did not like that saw him and Capper got in the fight but also causing the ship to crash and capper falling to a different town capper felt guilty for leaving Shadow like that but then something did not add up right about the whole situation and it looks like there's suspicious was confirmed because the king scepter but before they could do something they were chased by the guards but because of their Reckless shooting causing the pillars that connect to the train was coming down but what makes worse the train is coming and ember thorax and max try every amount of energy to keep it steady while the train keeps going once it pass the pillars fell down luckily there was nobody there got hurt and the King was not too happy but then capper did something he thinks he will get in trouble he grabbed us after and use the magic and it turns out the King was lying he had magic while the other creatures didn't because it was banned and the others were not too happy about that so he made a deal with capper to let his friends go and have pardon and even his old friends after that it was one last thing he had to do Chummer and capper apologize to each other and they really wish they could take all of it back but what's done is done but it doesn't mean they can still amend their friendship and it looks like their mission has complete so the others have to go home and Molly was pretty upset that thorax is leaving and I'm sure they will see each other again a few weeks later Molly was not herself lately but it looks like things was about to change when Chummer showed up and it looks like he wants to give Molly a chance in life so it looks like he's going to adopt her which that's pretty awesome again this was a pretty interesting alternate story of the season 10 it may have some mixed feelings about this whole situation especially with this whole tree of Harmony which I think it's still a pretty awesome idea I'm just saying but anyway this was pretty good and hopefully we get the chance to see all the creatures again well I guess that's another story so keep up the good work
Very nice ending, really enjoyed!