==Part Twenty: Draconian==
Now...
Dawnlight spread in a pale sheen across arid stone and sparse tundra. One by one, the sporadic granite monoliths situated across the wasteland were illuminated. At last, the shadow covering a pegasus and her little stone friend lifted, and the two could be seen huddling under the penumbra of a waking morning's glow.
A spyglass reflected the two of them from afar. On the opposite end, a glaring hawkeye blinked. Slowly, Romulus lowered the looking-glass. His feathers were a ruffled, mottled mess, and several scrapes covered his feline half. After several weary breaths, he turned and whistled over his shoulder.
Grunting in pain, a yellow pegasus hobbled over, her front right hoof hung in a sling. Sunset Shimmer squinted past the hill of gravel where the two hid. She shuddered slightly at the sight of the two targets, her body too exhausted to properly express relief.
"Seems she's gathered her senses," Romulus spoke in an icy tone. "You'd better set up your magic crud here. It's now or never, pony."
"Don't need to tell me twice." Sunset Shimmer reached into her saddlebag, floating loose six long shards of glowing violet crystals. She started shoving them into the pliable gravel, one after another. At long last, once they were all embedded in a tight circle, she shot a beam of magic into the structures. Several beams of red energy criss-crossed between the array, glowing brighter and brighter with a metallic ringing sounde.
"This had better damn well work," Romulus snarled. "Or else we're stuck out here alone."
"Will you get off my back?!" Sunset growled, her jaw hardening. "I know what I'm doing." Then, with a deep breath of concentration, she fired a bright red beam at the circle, igniting it with flames.
Earlier...
"What in Tartarus' name is she doing now?!" Sunset Shimmer hissed under the shroud of night.
"Shhhh!" Romulus stared up at the floating beam of ruby light in the sky. He struggled to keep up with the erratic sweeping motions of the Griffon's Wind Stone with his one good eye peering through a spyglass. "She seems to be battling something. One of the beasts out here, I assume."
"That mare is absolutely crazy!" Sunset Shimmer hissed, leaning on her good hoof while the other dangled. "One moment, she's shouting to the stars, and the next moment she's tackling one of the monsters out here for no good reason—"
"Wait!" Romulus barked, crouching lower behind the hill of gravel where they hid. "She dropped the stone!"
"She dropped it?!" Sunset gaped. "How in the hay does she plan on getting back, now?!"
"Actually, this is perfect," Romulus said, his scarred face smirking slightly behind his beak. "It means—in a worse case scenario—we can strand the stupid pegasus out here."
"Strand her?"
"Provided your spell works like you say it will."
"Are you still on that?!"
"Shhh..."
"What's she doing now?"
"Hrmmmfff..." Romulus stared through the spyglass again. "I can't see. But I can hear her. The pathetic wuss is sobbing her head off."
"Ungh..." Sunset Shimmer shook her head. "Can't we just put her out of her misery?"
"All in due time."
"You keep saying that, and yet—!"
"It was true then, and it's true now!" Romulus hissed. "We can't make a move right now even if we wanted to. We need backup." He took a long, deep breath. "Besides, I made an agreement with our mutual source of income..."
"He's not paying enough for this."
"I thought that revenge would be enough for you."
"Yeah—and after what we've been through?!" Sunset pointed at her sling. "I just want to be done with this whole mess!"
Earlier than that...
"Ow ow ow ow!" Sunset Shimmer hissed through clenched teeth, slapping the griffon's shoulder with her hoof. "Do you gotta tie it so tight?!"
"Quit your whining," Romulus grumbled, wrapping Sunset's foreleg in a sling. "You're worse than our target."
"Don't even—nnngh—pretend. That pony is stark-raving mad." Sunset frowned, glaring out the mouth of the cave facing the western wasteland. "At least I'm still in control of my head."
"You're clearly not in control of your eyes," Romulus grumbled. "I can't afford to haul your useless flank the rest of the way."
"Just you worry about tracking that crazy maniac!" Sunset barked, leaning back and flexing her pained leg in the fresh sling. "Even with half of her faculties, she flies like a Celestia-damn bullet."
"Are you good to cast magic spells?"
"Uhhhh... yeah?"
"Good." Romulus' beak nostrils flared. "Because your crystal array is the only reason I'm keeping you alive."
"Nice to know I'm appreciated." Sunset's ear twitched to the sound of distant, echoing shriekes. "... ... ....what in blazes is that?"
"Any manner of collossal beasts," Romulus droned. "Out here, the landscape runs rampant with monstrosities sealed away by my ancient forbearers for thousands of years." He cracked the joints in his neck. "We need to be cautious in our pursuit of the target."
"Heh..." Sunset smiled bitterly, trotting towards the cave entrance as she followed the griffon. "...could have told me that hours ago."
"SHREEE-EEE-EEE-EEE!"
The arachnid matriarch clawed and clambored its way across the narrow cavern.
"Move! Move!" Sunset Shimmer's voice cracked as she galloped madly, trying to avoid a veritable sea of hatchlings searching after her. "Ohhhhh ick ick ick ick!"
"Dammit, calm down!" Romulus grunted, flying backwards behind her. He swung his daggers in a swish-swish-swish-swishing motion, ripping the pulpous bodies of the smaller spiders to shreds. "Just find us a place where we can hide and—"
"Hide?!?!" Sunset Shimmer wheezed. "Do you not see what's after us?!"
"They're not after us! Look!" He pointed across the way with a talon.
The large matriarch pursued a blue darting figure, its fangs lunging.
"She'll draw its attention!" Romulus exclaimed. "So long as we remain quieter than—"
"Aaaaaugh!" Sunset plunged suddenly. Thud!
Romulus fought off another wave of creepy-crawlies, then spun—sweating. "...the hell happened?!"
"Unnngh..." Sunset Shimmer moaned from a deep, slimy pit.
"Goddess almighty..." Romulus snarled, perching on the lip of the enclosure. "Did you fall?"
"Unngh!" Sunset winced, dangling a forelimb. "I... I-I think I sprained something!"
"Great." Romulus rolled his one good eye. He dove out of sight of the shrieking matriarch and crawled over to the unicorn. "Just what I need." He lifted the mare off her hooves.
"Aaaaugh!" Sunset yelped. "Not so fast—"
"Suck it up," Romulus hissed. "You made it through the Spindel. Don't go croaking on me now, ya stupid horse."
"She's moving!" Sunset exclaimed.
"Are you certain?" Romulus asked, staring down the long narrow trench.
"I can sense the movement of the stone in her possession!" Sunset said. "She and that little chatterbox of a golem are jumping down some enormous pit!"
"But are you certain?!" Romulus grunted. "Because if you're wrong—"
Sunset rolled her eyes. "Oh, for Celestia's sake!" She grabbed the griffon and teleported—FLASH!
The two materialized at the lip of an enormous vertical drop. Romulus gasped, flapping his wings. Sunset hung off his lower limbs.
"Dammit, mare!" Romulus grunted. "What's the meaning of—?"
Just then, a howling wind exploded above, occupying all corners of Spindel's Narrow.
The griffon looked up, sweating. "Buck me..."
"You see now?!" Sunset Shimmer grunted, struggling to keep ahold of the griffon's leg, dangling. "If we had stayed up there, we'd become the tunnel's new upholstery!"
"But... this doesn't make any sense!" Romulus whispered, glaring down at the tiny dot of ruby light growing even tinier beneath them. "Why the sudden drop? Where does she even think she's going?"
"Does it matter?" Sunset wheezed, starting to slip. "Uhm... Romulus—?"
"Yeah yeah." He tossed her—flailing—then caught her shoulders neatly with his lower limbs. "Stay quiet. Stay still." He began a slow descent. "And... above all... don't ever call me by my name again."
Sunset gulped, staring at the distant ruby glow below. "Right..."
"What are we waiting for?!" Romulus snarled.
"Just watch..." Sunset craned her neck, staring at the thin niche set in the wall of the enormous earthen barricade stretching north and south. She and Romulus perched on a ledge much closer to the summit. Howling winds whistled above them, tickling their ears. "Hmmm... looks like her friend is removing something from the Chalice."
"What?" Romulus did a double-take. "She's tearing the Chalice apart?"
Sunset smirked. "And here I thought you didn't give a crap about your culture's history."
"I... don't..." Romulus's feathers ruffled. "I just don't understand. How does she intend to enter Spindel's Narrow?"
"Ah... of course..." Sunset Shimmer smirked. "The jewels! The rubies set inside the goblet?"
"What about them?"
"They're what's enchanted about the artifact," Sunset explained. "Just one of them should let Rainbow Dash through the tunnel, no problem."
"And her conniving friend can just return the rest of the Chalice back to Fibb and the idiot will be none the wiser."
"Exactly."
"Hrmmmm..." Romulus leaned back, folding his arms beneath his wings. "Funny."
"What is?"
"All this time, I thought that Rainbow Dash was a formidable mercenary to have gotten so many shards under our noses." He frowned. "Now... I see she's just a lucky imbecile."
"Well, now it's our chance to be lucky." Sunset pointed. "As soon as Rainbow makes physical contact with that stone, her body leylines will activate it. The wind barreling through Spindel's Narrow should stop just long enough to let her enter and spelunk through the barrier. We need to rush in and take advantage of that same lull in the wind."
"Then we have a tough journey ahead," Romulus said. "It'd be difficult enough without having to hide from a pegasus shuffling ahead of us."
"Just how long will we be having to trot through caves?" Sunset asked.
"Who knows. Hours? Days?" Romulus glared at the ledge beneath them. "Keep a close eye on the target. If she dies at the fangs of whatever's inside that mountain—which she probably will—we'll have to scramble for the enchanted stone."
"Got it."
"You say that now, but..."
"I don't get it..." Sunset Shimmer perched on a stone plateau, staring out at several tall crystalline structures. "Why'd she stop?"
"These last damn shards are a lot further out than we anticipated," Romulus explained, squinting through his spyglass. He stared out at a long barricade of stone and wind that occupied the entire horizon. "Aatxe must have his headquarter situated out in the monstrous wasteland." He lowered the spyglass with a sigh. "That would explain things."
"So, we're stranded out here?" Sunset Shimmer paced in an axious circle. "I mean... if Rainbow Dash can't fly out any further, than what hope do we have?! Blast it!" She stomped a hoof. "We should have jumped the mare in Appleloosa! Ponyville, even! This whole trip was for nothing, and now Don Canter is going to have our throats—"
"Calm down, horse," Romulus grunted. "This pegasus has eluded us before, and now we're about to witness just how clever she really is."
"How so...?"
"My kind—the griffons—we built this barricade ages ago. There's an artifact in our possession, housed in one of the many spires here, and it's the one thing that can allow passage beyond the wall and into the Wasteland."
"And... you think Rainbow Dash is going to try to get this... thing?"
"I'm willing to bet on it." Romulus flapped his wings. "Prepare to teleport. We gotta mix in with the general populace... find out where she's going and when, or else we'll never make it beyond the barricade."
"You know, you're putting an awful lot of faith in this moron."
"It was my mistake for not doing so before," Romulus grunted. "I can't afford to underestimate this crazed mare again."
"There she goes," Romulus said, crouched behind a wagon in Appleloosa as he stared up at the blue figure darting past the western hilltops. "Just over the mountains. It's like I said."
"Well I'll be..." Sunset stood beside him. "Now that is a mare on a mission."
"It's a good thing we didn't ambush her in Ponyville," the griffon added. "I know our boss wants her guts, but we'd have no hope of finding the other shards otherwise."
"I'll set up the array," Sunset said, reaching into her saddlebag. "The others will want in on this."
"No." Romulus gripped her hoof, turning to glare. "Not yet."
"But—we know where she's headed now—"
"All we have is an inclination," Romulus said. "There are countless desolate landscapes beyond those mountains. We have to tail her a bit longer. If we summon Don Canter's crew too early, then we risk burdening the entire group with an unnecessary slog through desert nothingness."
Sunset's nostrils flared. She grumbled and batted his talons away. "Okay... fine." She crossed her forelimbs with a pout. "Then just what do you propose?"
"She wants to get close to Aatxe?" Romulus stared at the mountaintops again, his one good eye narrowing. "We get in closer."
"An array?" Don Canter muttered out the side of his muzzle, chewing on a cigar.
Sunset nodded, standing across from him in the dark, hazy barn. "Twelve crystalline focus shards." She pointed at two sets of six violet stones, long and jagged. "Half of them, I'll leave here, strongly enchanted with a teleportation spell. And the rest..." She looked at Romulus. "...the mercenary and I will carry with us out west as we tail the target."
"The one pattern about all of the shards this 'Rainbow Dash' has retrieved is that each new sample is situated further and further from our local operations," Romulus explained. "If Aatxe has all the ones that are remaining, then it's best to assume that they are far... far away."
"I don't have the resources to send my forces out over long distances," Don Canter grunted.
"Right!" Top Dog snarled, gripping his spear. "And there are no canine colonies out beyond the Equestrian reaches!"
"Just how far west are we talking about?" asked Flam.
"We don't know. Which is the whole point," Sunset remarked, pointing at the shards. "We'll carry these shards with us. Once we feel that Rainbow has reached her destination—"
"—or has exhausted herself to the point that she's outlived her usefulness to us," Romulus interjected.
"Right..." Sunset cleared her throat. "I'll set up an array with the six pieces that I'm carrying, enchant them, and then perform a transportation spell."
"And just what do you plan on transporting?" Flim asked.
"Anyone you want to send," Sunset said, staring at Don Canter. "Anypony you feel is strong enough, agile enough, and crazy enough to take on Aatxe and steal the shards for your organization."
"You really expect us to crawl inside your crazy pony transportation fart machine and let it take us wherever?!" Top Dog cackled while his fellow hounds howled. "You're crazier than this Rainbow Dash!"
The group broke into loud, uproarious protest. In the corner, a glowing eye spun and swirled in its jar.
"Yes..." Romulus nodded. "It could be dangerous. Stupid and risky, even. But the reason I didn't pounce on the mare and rip out her organs earlier is because she's leading us to the prize... the prize that we all hold a rightful claim to. And..." He gestured at the fat, suited stallion surrounded by henchstallions. "By the good grace of Don Canter and his bit bag..." He glared at the rest. "The glory and power we all seek is within reach."
"What's more..." Sunset Shimmer spoke louder. "...anypony wanting their opportunity to have revenge on this pathetic rainbow-headed freak can now do so. This is your chance, and we're giving it to you."
The barn hung in silence.
"I don't embark on contracts unless I know that they're feasible," Romulus said. His one-eyed gaze fell on Don Canter. "So... what do you say?"
The stallion swiveled his cigar to the far corner of his mouth, blew smoke... ... ... and smiled.
Right now...
"This had better damn well work," Romulus snarled. "Or else we're stuck out here alone."
"Will you get off my back?!" Sunset growled, aiming her horn at the array of crystals forming a tight circle inside the Wasteland. "I know what I'm doing." Then, with a deep breath of concentration, she fired a bright red beam.
FLASSSH!
A crimson portal opened up, levitating just above the array like a pillar of fire.
Within minutes, several figures marched out—all armed to the teeth. Top Dog emerged with over two dozen canines carrying spears and polearms. Flim and Flam shuffled into view, dragging a cart full of several devious-looking devices and explosives. At last, a veritable company of suited stallions came trotting through, carrying bludgeons, daggers, boomsticks, and a swirling basilisk eye in a jar.
The group squinted curiously at the desolate landscape around them, and one or two gasped at the sight of a flying beast in the distance.
"Gentlecolts..."
They all looked Romulus' way.
The griffon stood tall and proud, his good eye piercing each and every one of them.
"Who here is ready to bag us a pegasus...?"
Part Twenty: Draconian
(In Which Everything Gloriously Hits the Fan)
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Back and back and back...
Hot damn, it's about time.
Well, looks like Rainbow Dash has a way back across the barrier after all.
But then, once Lancie had reassembled himself, he could have arranged transportation too (though come to think of it, Lancie could be accused of forgetting that detail two chapters back).
Well, that's one way to get back to over the barrier without the stone.
And I wouldn't think following Rainbow Dash on one of these excursions would be that much fun. Romulus and Sunset Shimmer only got a taste of what's probably coming to them.
Huh. I didn't see that coming, but... I'm also not particularly surprised. And the reverse structure was pretty nifty.
If only Rainbow knew, she could just duck out of the way and let Don Canter's goons clash with Aatxe's horde, and make off with the shards during the mayhem. My biggest hope is that Sunset will do the right thing. She's much cuddlier as a redeemed character.
Obviously I missed something, since when is Sunset Shimmer a pegasus and working with a Griffon merc?
Whelp, it's been a good run folks. Rainbow's gonna have to pull some serious badassery out of somewhere to deal with her illness, residual mental shenanigans, a dragon with probable minions and now these guys all at the same time.
That reverse timeline for telling us how Sunset and Romulus tracked Rainbow also threw me for a loop. That's some serious messing with chronological flashbacks JE.
Hey, isn't this the first time someone has ever aknowledged Lancie's existence?
...Well, shit. Everyone knows stupid plans work best.
Well, then.
That array would have been a useful thing to have in Austraeoh.
6345393 No. Romulus McNuggets and Bacon Pone found out when Rainbow was prepping to leave Ponyville.
Epic blood-nosed pile-driven slap-down drag-out hootenanny of a brawl-fest coming right up!
Charge.
I'm not sure if I'm excited or nervous or what. I do know this is going to be majorly awesome.
Oh, you poor, poor pathetic fool. Do you really, really think that it's gonna be that easy? Rainbow's bested you pathetic idiots before, and she'll do so again.
Because she, at least, is doing what she's doing in the name of a cause much grander and nobler than yours.
Love.
Face it, Romuludummy. You (and your pathetic pals) lost this thing the moment you all crossed paths with the Element of Loyalty.
You just won't admit it.
Reverse chronology, eh? I like it.
6345403
...Oh, Lunapoop.
I'm whimpering to death...someone hold me.
This arc...the title...the chapters...
Help?
655...the countdown continues...
I'm glad this whole evil organization thing is coming to a head now, to be honest. I just feel like we've had our fill of Romulus and the gang at this point, so it'll be nice to be done with them... one way or another.
I feel like sunset shimmer is going to get stuck, or maybe die or something, then they'll all be stuck there permanently.
Oh, joy.
Hey, Bacon Pone finally got her wings! Of course, she's no better off, since someone stole her horn. So, still not the Bacon Princess.
I just realized... Sunset already knows a long distance portal spell (This was a triumph...), which is what Twixie were working on earlier. And she seems to be able to do so on her own.
Impressive. Most impressive.
But that's in the completely opposite direction.