Blood Tribute
Flash managed to keep a friendly expression on his face, which was impressive given the veritable thicket of spears that were presently leveled at him and his team by the crowd of angry looking ponies as they stood there on the beach, the gentle noise of the waves breaking on the sand being the only sound presently punctuating the air.
It had been considerably longer than 20 minutes, and during that time, Slipstream had worryingly failed to show up. Who had shown up, however, was a patrol made up of more than a dozen of the island’s resident ponies who emerged from the tree line with no fanfare, sporting scowls and spears. The lead pony, a dark blue stallion with a brown mane and hooves and a particularly angry frown stood at the lead; his cutie mark was a gray, stone arrowhead that was nearly imperceptible against his dark coat.
The first thing Flash noted about these ponies is how tall they were, around four feet on average. And in the world that he came from where the average height was roughly three and a half, they were veritable giants; and each one built like an elite Royal Guard Stallion who guarded the Princesses. Any fight with them was going to be a painful prospect, one that the human was going to make sure to avoid at all costs. Far from being the flea-bitten jungle savages Post Haste made them out to be, these ponies appeared graceful, noble, and with a cold, intelligent gleam in their eyes that told of the cool, calculating mind of a predator. It would be a foalish last error to underestimate them.
“Outsiders not welcome!” He angrily repeated, “You leave, now!” He said, emphasizing his last word with a sharp jab of his spear. Flash sighed and attempted once more to reason with the pony whom he had decided to mentally refer to as Frowny McMunchface. Why? Because ponies are cute, that's why. Even the ones with scowls, spears, and lots of sharp pointy teeth. Being raised by them didn't change the human's perception of them. He allowed a look of concern into his features,
Well, at least they speak Ponish, he thought, grateful for small mercies of not needing to struggle with a language barrier.
“Please, my name is Captain Flash Skies. I come in peace on behalf of the nation of Equestria. I’m here to find out why you attacked and severely injured one of our ponies. I wish to find out what happened so that we might avoid such violence in the future.” The pony shook his head,
“No more words! You leave!” He shouted, baring his fangs, a few of his fellow ponies shouting in support as well. The pony appeared to be one of only three stallions in the group, though one of them looked young enough to still be considered a colt; the rest were all mares. Angry, dangerous, but beautiful looking mares, all of them sleek and strong with flawless, glossy coats of varying colors and hues. Flash cast a quick searching glance at the skies, his anxiety for Slipstream growing by the minute.
“If we leave without finding out what happened, then you force us to assume that it is only a matter of time before you hurt another one of our citizens,” Flash said, allowing a hint of iron to mix in with the sympathy in his voice, “Please, I know this is your home, so can’t we work together to avoid further violence? Perhaps I can deliver a message to my leader on behalf of your ponies?”
"You want words for the sun pony? You tell her to keep her greedy ponies away! If they harm our kind again, then we will kill them and eat their hearts!" Flash allowed some shock to be visible on his face in the form of a raised eyebrow,
"Harm your kind? Are you saying that our ponies harmed yours? If that was the case, then please tell us what happened so that we can make sure it never happens again."
The pony did not answer this time, but merely glared at Flash, his brown eyes squinting as he seemed to be reevaluating the human.
Flash could sense his team tensing behind him, ready to leap into action if the pony turned violent. Flash for his part had kept his stance casual and unaggressive with his un-gauntleted hands clasped before him; his helmet was still attached to his belt, hidden beneath his cloak. The pony's nostrils flared, once more catching the human's scent, and by an unspoken signal, all of the spears were slowly withdrawn.
"What manner of creature are you?" The pony finally asked, "I know not your scent or kind." Flash gave a small smile,
"I am a human." The pony squinted in concentration,
"A hyoo-man?" He slowly enunciated, "Why you with ponies and not your own kind, hooman?" Flash resisted the urge to smirk; it never got old hearing ponies try to pronounce the name of his species for the first time.
"I lost my parents when I was an infant, the ponies of Equestria took me in and raised me, that is why I am with them." He answered simply enough.
A few of the tribesponies murmured to one another in their native tongue, which sounded smooth and sharp, like water flowing over hard rocks. Their leader cast a glare behind him, silencing them.
"And what is your name, if I might ask?" Flash inquired. The pony looked back up at the human, remaining silent for a moment,
"Hmph, my name not matter for now,"
That's okay, Mr. McMunchface.
"But if you want to see my leader, know that no pony sees our leader without first bringing tribute." Flash tilted his head slightly to one side,
"Tribute? What sort of tribute?" The pony seemed to smile for the first time, just a slight curl of his lips,
"A blood tribute, fresh kill." Flash smiled, if this pony was hoping to make him uncomfortable at the idea of meat and blood, he was in for disappointment.
"I have some rations of meat in my kit that my thestral companion and I both share," Flash said while gesturing to Rose Dust behind him, "Would that suffice?" Frowny's eyes widened slightly, but he shook his head,
"No, must be a fresh kill, fresh hunt!"
"I see, then will you permit me to hunt some game here?"
"No."
Flash smirked slightly, Well, look who's a clever little murder pony, he thought to himself. If he wanted to meet their leader, then that meant that he would have to leave the island and come back, all but guaranteeing that he would never be able to see them, or at the very least, would keep them away from the island for some time as fresh game would be difficult to transport and keep. This little requirement allowed the island ponies to slam the door in his face while simultaneously saving face diplomatically. He was genuinely impressed, but not deterred, and decided to throw in a little maneuver of his own.
"A fresh blood tribute? Alright then," Flash snapped his fingers, "Rose, could you be so kind as to bring me the med kit?"
The bat pony cocked her head curiously at him, but did as he said. In the meantime, Flash opened up his canteen and quickly drank most of its contents before pouring the remaining water out. Summoning his magic, he ran a quick surge of electric current through the aluminum container which had the double effect of both sterilizing it while at the same time evaporating any residual water into harmless hydrogen and oxygen gas.
The island ponies murmured among themselves as Flash removed his left vambrace and rolled up his sleeve.
"What are you doing?!" Rose Dust hurriedly whispered as she opened up the medical kit. Flash reached inside and took what he needed from the blood transfusion pack.
"Giving them what they want," He whispered back; he winced slightly as he inserted the needle into his arm, making sure the open end of the transfer tube was inserted in the canteen. For once, he was glad that he was far enough away from his mother that she would not be able to see in his mind what he was doing through their bond, he'd never hear the end of it.
"Here, hold this," he said to Rose Dust, handing her the canteen. Flash flexed his fist a few times as warm, crimson blood shot down the tube and into the canteen. The bat pony's nostrils flared at the enticing scent, her bright pink eyes wide with surprise.
"Hmph, you never offered me such a treat!" She accused under her breath. Flash smirked,
"Maybe because its illegal?" He said.
"That doesn't seem to be stopping you here," she countered.
"We're not in Equestria, little bat," he teased back with a wink. What he got in response was the most pouty bat face he had ever seen; he rolled his eyes, "Relax, I'll get you at next Hearth's Warming."
Capping the canteen, now warm to the touch, he called Lumen Dawn over with a gesture of his head. "Lumen, if you would be so kind?" The unicorn stepped over, his posture haughty and confident. Flash honestly thought the white unicorn looked quite intimidating in his black armor with his horn protruding out the top of his helmet like a gleaming dagger; but he would never tell the pony that, he was proud enough as it was. Lumen's horn shone with a yellow glow as he cast his spell. Flash nodded his thanks,
"Now, so long as you keep the blood in this container, it should stay fresh for," he glanced back at Lumen,
"A year," Lumen replied, a smug look on his face. Flash raised an eyebrow in surprise; but of course, Lumen would never miss a chance to flex his magical might, or, was there something else to it?
Hmph, showoff, Flash thought, turning his attention back to the islanders, "-a year." He finished while tossing the canteen to Frowny pony who snatched it out of the air with his free hoof. Flash was thankful that it was only a pint, he could ill afford to feel lightheaded in a place like this. "Fresh enough for you?"
The pony looked dumbfounded for a moment, looking from the canteen in his hoof to the human while his fellow ponies curiously drew near, whispering to each other. Removing the cap, the stallion took a curious sniff and snorted, shaking his head before taking a small, cautious sip. The pony's eyes immediately went wide with sheer delight, as if he had tasted the most incredible thing in his life; Flash had to stifle a chuckle as the pony actually let out an adorable whinny of delight. The pony quickly put a hoof to his lips, looking embarrassed.
"I think they like you," Rose Dust whispered as Flash reaffixed his vambrace.
"Lucky me," he said, not sure how to feel about the fact that he was on an island of meat eaters who apparently thought he was utterly delicious, if the drool now coming from some of their muzzles at the mere scent of his blood was anything to go by. The ponies were now talking in hurried, hushed voices with one another in their own tongue. One of the mares, a yellow pony with a dark blue mane and green eyes cast fervent glances at Flash as she spoke with Frowny. Another pony slowly reached for the canteen in his hoof, only to shrink back from a harsh rebuke he received.
Flash slowly took a few steps back until he was alongside Lumen Dawn, "Any luck?" He whispered. Lumen had been running a tracing spell since they landed which was designed to pick up the unique magical signature of their armor; it was a means for locating teammates in the event that they got separated. The unicorn gave a slow nod.
"Towards the center of the island, though he hasn't moved. He's either immobilized, not wearing his armor, or-" he trailed off, not finishing his sentence. Flash tried not to grimace.
No, he's gotten out of tougher scraps, he'll be fine, he thought, trying to ease the worry growing in his heart for one of his oldest friends. He cast a glance at his executive officer, "If things go south, I want you to teleport to Slipstream's location and get him out, wherever he may be."
"And how will you all escape the locals without me while I go to save the peasant?" Lumen inquired, a hint of amusement in his voice. Flash didn't answer yet, as it appeared that their hosts had come to a decision. Frowny turned towards them, an anxious, excited look in his eye.
"Y-you, will come with us! I will take you to our leader," he said, a slight tremor in his voice. Flash's eyes narrowed slightly, the pony's eyes seemed to almost be glowing and his body seemed to tremble with an overabundance of energy.
Well now, that's interesting, he mused to himself. "If it comes to that, I'll lead them away while the rest of you withdraw. I'll catch up to you later." He finally answered back. Flash motioned with his head for the others to join him as they joined the group of islanders and began heading for the jungle. Rose Dust walked on his opposite side while Sharps and Sugar took up the rear. Lumen smiled,
"What makes you so sure they'd follow you?" He wondered aloud. Flash tried to ignore the calculating look in the unicorn's eye,
"Follow me?" He asked, taking notice of all the curious, hungry glances directed at him, "We'll be lucky if they don't follow me home."
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A canteen full of blood is certainly a novel diplomatic maneuver, but it's gotten him in the proverbial door.
It was a pleasure to help with the editing, as always.
11427463
So how long before Frowny loses control?
11427507
Poor guy's doing his best, imagine trying a sip of your buddy's soft drink only for it to turn out to be one of those hypercaffineated energy drinks.
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That or you expect the taste of Jim Beam, but you get Eagle Rare instead.
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Flash thinks on his feet that's for sure.
You're the best!
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Now that's more like it, at least there's meat now.
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Ooh, I love me some Eagle Rare.
Before even getting into this story, I feel like I have to say LOOKS LIKE MEAT'S BACK ON THE MENU, BOYS!
11433271
So much for "Hippity hoppity, get off my property".
And that's assuming you can even find the original copies anymore! All I have is a post-Invasion fan written book from the 90s. The rest I picked up from Sarna and Tex of the Black Pants Legion.
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He lives!
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Educate me senpai...
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Witness!
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Noted, and fixed. Danke.
Well, at least I hope Slipstream's doing fine through all this! But it was good to see Flash and crew back at it again. And, sure, the ponies are carnivorous, but to the point of being excited by drinking blood alone? Though I guess these ponies usually have, well, eat something else along with the blood.
Ah, and the islanders confirm that they don't exactly have the best of histories with Equestria. We shall see if Flash can mend this heavily sour spot...
Either way, thanks for the update on this! Looking forward to more, Destiny!
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They are cousins to the thestrals, so they prefer fresh meat, but are fine with just blood if it is fresh.
Thanks for the patronage! More to come soon!
Diplomatic relations sure are interesting when the ambassadors you meet have already tasted you.
I don't know if the scene with Rose Dust is adorable or terrifying. Adorafying?
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A careful balance must be kept in those kind of Diplomatic relations.
Nice new adjective you made there.
What makes her so scary in that scene?
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I mean, it's not that scary, but it just makes you think.
The fact that she's interested in drinking Flash's blood herself.