Two years later...
Gallus wandered, boredom slowly killing him. He looked up to the sky, the early morning sun greeted him with its blinding light. Summer’s heat washed over the town of griffons, driving most of them to find shelter. Gallus, however, welcomed the warmth with open talons, relishing in the heat.
It’s not to say that he thought it was overwhelming. Oh boy, it was sweltering, but the little griffon much rather perfected this that’s the cold winter.
That being said, HOLY MOTHER OF GROVER, it was HOT.
Gallus felt the sweat soak into his fur, making him sticky and uncomfortable. He groaned, the heat waves felt pressure against his back as he tried to find some sort of shade.
“Where is the convenient shade when you need it!” The blue griffon complained, stamping his talons on the ground, and drawing it back when the hot stones burned his claws.
Can’t find shade? The next best bet is water. And with the communal fountain dried out, he’d have to look somewhere else.
Running on the dirt path, because no way in hell was we crossing the stone streets, flapping his wings and lifting into the air. He soared above Griffonstone, squinting around.
He kept himself afloat, letting the cooler wind wash over his sweat-soaked feathers. Diving from perch to perch, Gallus searched the small town around him. He was glad Griffonstone had fallen to ruins because he knew he would have an even worse time finding water.
“Water...water...where the hell is all the-“ he cut himself off, the heat leading him to exhaustion. The blue griffon landed onto a sturdy branch that stuck out from the side of the cliff, the wind almost nonexistent.
He let the branch sway under his weight as he looked at the land below him. There wasn’t much, but quite a few more green trees were present, and Gallus could make out the silhouette of a small stream.
Groaning, he swooped down. The branch above him snapped, sending the perch tumbling down the rocky cliff.
Welp, there goes my sleeping spot, Gallus though grimly. Shaking off the thoughts, he clasped his wings to his sides, accelerating downwards at a high velocity. The wind whipped his face, making it hard to see. When the ground was near, the griffon spread his blue wings, parachuting himself and avoiding a very, very painful crash.
Ducking underneath the not-dead tree, Gallus settled near the stream. It wasn’t big, by any means, but the air around it felt cooler and much more tolerable.
Sighing, the griffon reached for the tree’s branches. Gallus stood on his hind paws, his talons grasping the air. He plucked the large, smooth leaves of the trees, cupping them into a bowl-like shape.
He tentatively soaked his talons in the stream, the cool water washing over them. Gallus dipped the leaf bowl into the new found water source, collecting the water. Letting himself relax a little, he drank from the bowl.
Much better, he thought as his throat stop throbbing from dehydration. The blue griffon brought his eyes to the summer skies, watching the streaky clouds moving within the vast blue space. He leaned his back against the tree bark, not seeing a problem with resting by the tree a little while.
A loud noise caught his attention as he turned his head. From the east side of Griffonstone, he could make out dark storm clouds, echoing the crackle of thunder. Confusion plastered Gallus’s face.
Storm clouds? It’s summer! Why the hell are we getting a storm?
Shaking himself, Gallus took off from the ground. The flapped his wings, elevating himself higher, perching back onto the cliff at the entrance of Griffonstone.
Upon closer inspection, the griffon could make out what looked to be an airship. It was dark, unwelcoming blue, with brighter magnets accents and a symbol in electric blue, glowing amongst the clouds.
Yeah, this shouldn’t be here.
Padding over to an older griffon, he poked her shoulder. “Uh...what is that thing?”
Her ruffled white feathers bristled, making a growling sound at the back of her throat. “I don’t know, but I don’t like it.”
She shook out her wings, casting a glance at the young griffon. “You better get home. Things like this only ask or trouble.”
Gallus gulped, looking at the darkening sky. This would an....interesting summer.
“I swear on Grover’s good throne, if it rains aNOTHER DAY I AM GOING TO LOSE MY MIND!” Gallus screeched, stomping the ground. His talons were met with cold, unwelcoming water, splashing everywhere. He was drenched in rain, only using his wings to cover his head.
The blue griffon was mostly alone on the streets, most others have been driven inside or found somewhere else to stay for the time being. Right now, he sat in his old alleyway, ignoring the feelings of tightness in favor of taking out his frustration.
It was practically flooded, the water level inching higher than the average rainfall usually gives to the barren town. What’s even worse was that it was the middle of summer! No griffon, or any other creature for that matter, were prepared for this kinda weather.
Gallus winced as the rumbling of clouds overhead made a sudden crash! Lighting struck a metal beam that was attached to one of the houses, making the young griffon shutter.
He looked at the sky, remembering the airship he had seen. It had been a few weeks, and Gallus just had a feeling that this wasn’t any normal weather. Something had happened, and he knew that dark, sinister-looking airship was responsible for it.
“I hope this rain lets up soon.”
The crackle of thunder made Gabby wince, dropping the bowl into the sink. It clattered against the metal surface, and Gabby covered her talons over her hidden ears.
“Jeez, this is some thunder,” she heard Gavin say from across the room. She looked over at her little brother, who was buried under a pillow and blanket.
“It’s never this bad,” she added, tired of the constant rain. “Usually I wouldn’t complain, but this is a bit much.”
The fledgling nodded, pulling a small picture book from the shelf. Gavin read through all the books in the house and continued to re-read through them despite the distain.
Gabby was about to walk over when a hard knock on the front down distracted her. He padded forth, the cold air making her sluggish.
With an effort to keep a cheery smile, she unlocked the door and opened it. She could already feel both the rain and the annoyed energy from the blue griffon in front of her.
“Hello, Gallus!” She greeted with a peppy voice. Gallus just grumbled, pushing his way into the household. “I see that the weather has treated you poorly.”
“Yeah,” the drenched griffon muttered, flopping onto the hammock that still hung from the ceiling.
Gabby smiled awkwardly. “I’ll get you a towel.” She excused herself, rushing up the stairs.
Gavin sat in his repurposed breadbasket, looking down at the soaked blue griffon. His eyes shown with amusement. “Rough night, huh?”
Gallus groaned. “I never want to see rain again.”
“Ah well, this isn’t so bad.”
The fledgling gained a glare from the griffon.
“What? What did I do?”
Instead of answering, the griffon face planted into the hammock, too cold to talk. He heard wingbeats of Gabby coming from the dark stairwell, holding a white towel in her talons.
Gallus hummed thanks as he tightly wrapped himself with the towel, wanting the torturous weather to end.
Well, the young griffon has only one thing to say.
“Why is a TORNADO any BETTER?!”
Gallus found himself shelter behind a walled alleyway, having thought he’d get a break from the rain. Nope. The world just wants to taunt him.
It started just fine. Still dark, sure, but the clouds didn’t give off any it’s insistent pouring for the past several days. One star added!
“Welp, I should’ve known better,” he muttered grumpily. His back was pressed against the walls as the winds became stronger. “The world is a cruel place and I shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up.”
Off in the distance, he could see the outline of a swirling mass of wind, a sucking vortex that was powerful enough to effect Griffonstone.
The gush of wind threw him off balance, effectively sending him across the street. He desperately clawed at the stone floor, not wanting to be swept away by the powerful wind.
He could see many griffons and their fledglings hurrying inside, taking cover. The unfortunate ones that didn’t have a home retreated into alleys or just hung onto the wall.
And the unUNfortunate, Gallus, was being tossed around like a loose piece of plastic. His body aches as he struggled to fight against the winds, flapping his wings tiredly.
To no avail, he continued to bumble down off the streets. Dangerously close to falling off the cliff that Griffonstone was built on, Gallus began to panic.
Frantically, grasped an old tree with his talons, digging his claws into the bark.
This is a bad idea, he acknowledged, feeling the brittleness of the dying tree before him. This is gonna snap this is gonna snap this gonna snap-
That phrase is repeated, he closed his eyes, dreading the worse.
Surprisingly, and thankfully, Gallus felt the wind began to slow down, abruptly stopping. The lack of powerful wind made Gallus face-plant down, colliding his beak with the stone floor.
“Ow..” he groaned, rubbing the tip of his beak. His mind wandered, unsure of how to take in what happened.
He focused on where he last saw the tornado, turning his head towards the west side of Griffonstone. A pocket of clouds had cleared up around the area, letting the sunshine down in beams.
Huh, he thought, taking note of the interesting behavior of nature. He slowly got to his talons, shaking out his feathers.
Ok now please be done with this crazy weather, he begged.
Atop a perch, Gallus sat comfortably above the town of griffons. It had been a few more weeks, and the weather had cleared up. He was thankful. Finally, the stars were in his favor!
He swished his tail back and forth, content with his position. His blue eyes trailed the roads, which were more crowded than usual. Not that it was unreasonable, they have been trapped indoors for weeks now, but an unusual sight.
He twitched the feather on the side of his head, hearing the sound of something clicking against the floor. Turning his head, his eyes gazed upon an equine creature, dressed in a black suit of armor and a scar across her right eye.
She looked like what Gilda described as a unicorn, but her horn seemed to be missing and didn’t seem that cuddly or soft-hearted as Gilda had made them out to be. She also didn’t look like a helpful guide or as friendship-y as Gabby made them out to be.
Which already captivated Gallus’s interest.
What is a pony doing in Griffonstone? He thought, his imagination coming up with a wild variety of options. Friendship Quest? No, she doesn’t look friendly...Royal Duties? Possibly...Bringer of Bad News? Evil Big Scary Villain is defeated? Ha...Gallus, you’ve been reading too many graphic novels...
The unicorn stomped her hoof on the ground, a sonic wave of power radiating from her. Her expression seemed to harden, which caught the attention of every griffon in a ten feet radius.
“Citizens of Griffonstone!” She said with a hint of authority. “My name is Tempest Shadow, and I am here on the behalf of Princess of Friendship. We spread news of the Storm Kings defeat, his body is destroyed, and the Hippogriffs have returned to Mount Aris.”
She coughed as if she’s been reciting this over and over. Tempest raised her hoof, about to continue her speech when the griffons began to converse among themselves about this news.
Gallus voices his question above the rest.
“What?”